Arkansas Code of 1987 (2023) › Title 20 - PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE (§§ 20-2-101 — 20-86-113) › Subtitle 4 - FOOD, DRUGS, AND COSMETICS (§§ 20-56-201 — 20-64-1103) › Chapter 61 - FISH AND SEAFOOD (§§ 20-61-101 — 20-61-305) › Subchapter 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS (§ 20-61-101) › Section 20-61-101 - Foreign fish

(a)
No fresh, cold storage, or frozen fish produced outside this state or in any foreign country and imported into the United States shall be sold or offered for sale in this state by any food establishment unless:
(1)
The package or container containing the food bears a statement in writing naming thereon the country of origin, the date of packaging, and the common name of all fish contained therein; and
(2)
The fish has been packaged and processed under sanitary conditions equal to the standards required by the laws and rules of this state for fish processing plants.
(b)
(1)
Outlets serving cooked, fresh, cold storage, or frozen fish at retail which display on the menu or in some conspicuous public place in the outlet the identity of the country of origin and the common name of all fish as reflected on the menu or sold in the outlet shall be deemed as having satisfied the requirements of subdivision (a)(1) of this section.
(2)
All suppliers of any fresh, cold storage, or frozen fish shall furnish to the distributor or retailer to which the products are sold in this state an affidavit that all products are properly labeled, as required in this section, with respect to the country of origin of and the contents of any foreign imported fish. This affidavit shall include a certificate that the supplier has caused each of the products to be properly labeled in conformance with the requirements of this section.
(3)
(A)
The Director of the Arkansas Bureau of Standards and enforcement personnel of the Arkansas Bureau of Standards are authorized to enforce the requirements of subsection (a) and subdivisions (b)(1) and (2) of this section.
(B)
The director is authorized to promulgate rules necessary to enforce subsection (a) and subdivisions (b)(1) and (2) of this section.
(4)
In addition, all suppliers of any fresh, cold storage, or frozen fish shall furnish to any distributor or retailer to which the product is sold in this state proof that the fish has been packaged and processed under sanitary conditions equal to the sanitary conditions required of fish processing plants in this state. The proof may be upon certification by the Department of Health or certification by the United States Food and Drug Administration or other appropriate federal agency that the processing plant in which the fish was packaged or processed meets sanitary conditions within at least the minimum requirements of the laws and rules of this state for fish processing plants, or proof may be upon the certification of the supplier that the fish packaged or processed outside this state or in a foreign country was packaged or processed in a fish processing plant that meets at least the minimum requirements of the laws and rules of this state for sanitary conditions for fish processing plants.
(c)
Any supplier of fresh, cold storage, or frozen fish or any distributor or retailer who sells any fish in this state in violation of the provisions of this section shall each be individually and severally subject to the civil penalties as provided in subsection (d) of this section.
(d)
(1)
A violator of this section shall be assessed by the State Plant Board a civil penalty of:
(A)
Not less than one hundred dollars ($100) nor more than three hundred dollars ($300) for a first violation;
(B)
Not less than four hundred dollars ($400) nor more than six hundred dollars ($600) for a second violation within three (3) years after the date of the first violation; and
(C)
Not less than seven hundred dollars ($700) nor more than one thousand dollars ($1,000) for a third violation within three (3) years after the date of the first violation.
(2)
For a violation to be considered as a second or subsequent offense, it must be a repeat violation of a requirement enumerated in subsection (a) and subdivisions (b)(1) and (2) of this section.
(3)
(A)
Any person subject to a civil penalty shall have a right to request an administrative hearing within ten (10) calendar days after receipt of the notice of the penalty.
(B)
The board is authorized to conduct the hearing after giving appropriate notice, and its decision shall be subject to judicial review.
(4)
(A)
If a violator has exhausted the administrative appeals and the civil penalty is upheld, the violator shall pay the civil penalty within twenty (20) calendar days after the date of the final decision.
(B)
If the violator fails to pay the penalty, a civil action may be brought by the board in any court of competent jurisdiction to recover the penalty.
(C)
Any civil penalty collected under this section shall be transmitted to the Plant Board Fund.
(e)
The provisions of this section shall not be applicable to shellfish.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 2220, eff. 7/24/2019.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 2219, eff. 7/24/2019.
Amended by Act 2019, No. 315,§ 2218, eff. 7/24/2019.
Acts 1971, No. 367, §§ 1-3; 1973, No. 519, § 1; A.S.A. 1947, §§ 82-982 -- 82-984; Acts 2003, No. 1024, § 1.