2023 Maine Revised Statutes › TITLE 22: HEALTH AND WELFARE › Subtitle 2: HEALTH › Part 5: FOODS AND DRUGS › Chapter 562-A: PREPARATION OF LIVESTOCK AND POULTRY PRODUCTS FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION › Subchapter 3: INSPECTIONS AND EXAMINATIONS › 22 §2517-C. Slaughter and inspection; producer exemptions for poultry

§2517-C. Slaughter and inspection; producer exemptions for poultry
1.  Exemption for processing fewer than 1,000 birds annually.
Notwithstanding section 2512 and whether or not the poultry are intended for human consumption, inspection is not required for the slaughter of poultry or the preparation of poultry products as long as the poultry are slaughtered by the producer that raised the poultry and the poultry products are prepared on the farm where the poultry were raised and:
A. Fewer than 1,000 birds are slaughtered annually on the farm;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
B. No birds are offered for sale or transportation in interstate commerce;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
C. Any poultry products sold are sold only as whole birds;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
D. [PL 2013, c. 323, §5 (RP).]
D-1. The poultry producer is registered under section 2514‑A;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
E. [PL 2013, c. 323, §5 (RP).]
F. The poultry producer assigns a lot number to all birds sold and maintains a record of assigned lot numbers and the point of sale;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
G. The poultry are sold in accordance with the restrictions in subsection 2; and   [PL 2021, c. 64, §22 (AMD).]
H. [PL 2021, c. 64, §23 (RP).]
I. The poultry products are labeled with:
(1) The name of the farm, the name of the poultry producer and the address of the farm including the zip code;
(2) The statement "Exempt under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section 2517‑C NOT INSPECTED"; and
(3) Safe handling and cooking instructions as follows: "SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: Keep refrigerated or frozen. Thaw in refrigerator or microwave. Keep raw poultry separate from other foods. Wash working surfaces, including cutting boards, utensils and hands, after touching raw poultry. Cook thoroughly to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit maintained for at least 15 seconds. Keep hot foods hot. Refrigerate leftovers immediately or discard."   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
[PL 2021, c. 64, §§22, 23 (AMD).]
1-A.  Exemption for processing fewer than 20,000 birds annually.
A poultry producer may slaughter and process that producer's own poultry without an inspector being present during processing if all the following criteria are met; a producer that does not meet these criteria does not qualify for this exemption and shall seek state or United States Department of Agriculture inspection of poultry products intended to be sold:
A. The producer is licensed as a commercial processor pursuant to section 2514;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
B. The producer's facilities conform to the rules of the department governing food processing and manufacturing, including a:
(1) Separate area for slaughter, bleeding and defeathering;
(2) Separate area for evisceration and cooling; and
(3) Water supply that is tested twice annually for nitrates, nitrites and coliforms;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
C. The producer raises, slaughters and processes, on that producer's premises, no more than 20,000 poultry in a calendar year. The producer must declare to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry that it is exempt under this subsection at the beginning of each calendar year. Records must demonstrate numbers of birds raised. A producer that does not maintain accurate records does not qualify for the exemption under this subsection;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
D. The producer's facility is not used to slaughter or process poultry by any other person or business without prior approval from the commissioner in accordance with the requirements of the federal Food Safety and Inspection Service Administrator;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
E. The producer does not purchase birds for resale that have been processed under any exemption under this section;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
F. Poultry are healthy when slaughtered;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
G. Slaughter and processing are conducted using sanitary standards, practices and procedures to produce poultry products that are not adulterated;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
H. The producer does not engage in Internet or interstate sales;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
I. The shipping containers of the poultry bear the following labeling:
(1) Producer's name, address and zip code;
(2) Common name of product or list of ingredients;
(3) Weight of product in shipping container or immediate container;
(4) Lot number, which must consist of a coded number in some combination of the number of the day of the year on which the poultry was slaughtered;
(5) The statement "Exempt P.L. 90-492"; and
(6) Safe handling and cooking instructions as follows: "SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: Keep refrigerated or frozen. Thaw in refrigerator or microwave. Keep raw poultry separate from other foods. Wash working surfaces, including cutting boards, utensils and hands, after touching raw poultry. Cook thoroughly to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit maintained for at least 15 seconds. Keep hot foods hot. Refrigerate leftovers immediately or discard."   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
The producer may further process poultry carcasses into parts and other products. The producer may sell retail poultry products to the household consumer and may sell wholesale poultry products to retail stores, hotels, restaurants and institutions, with the appropriate licenses.
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
1-B.  Small enterprise exemption.
A small enterprise may slaughter, dress and cut up poultry without an inspector being present during processing if all the following criteria are met; a small enterprise that does not meet these criteria does not qualify for the exemption and shall seek state or United States Department of Agriculture inspection of poultry products intended to be sold:
A. The small enterprise is licensed as a commercial processor pursuant to section 2514;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
B. The small enterprise's facilities conform to the rules of the department governing food processing and manufacturing, including a:
(1) Separate area for slaughter, bleeding and defeathering;
(2) Separate area for evisceration and cooling; and
(3) Water supply that is tested twice annually for nitrates, nitrites and coliforms;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
C. The small enterprise raises, slaughters and dresses poultry, or purchases live poultry to slaughter and dress, or purchases dressed poultry, in a combination of no more than 20,000 birds in a calendar year. The small enterprise must declare to the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry that it is exempt under this subsection at the beginning of each calendar year. Records must show numbers of birds raised, purchased or purchased as dressed. A small enterprise that does not maintain accurate records does not qualify for the exemption under this subsection;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
D. The small enterprise's further processing is limited to whole and cut up poultry only;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
E. The facility is not used to slaughter or process poultry by any other person or business without prior approval from the commissioner in accordance with the requirements of the federal Food Safety and Inspection Service Administrator;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
F. Slaughter and processing are conducted using sanitary standards, practices and procedures to produce poultry products that are not adulterated;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
G. Poultry are healthy when slaughtered;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
H. The small enterprise does not engage in Internet or interstate sales;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
I. The small enterprise does not cut up and distribute poultry products to a business operating under any exemption under this section;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
J. The shipping or immediate containers of the poultry bear the following labeling:
(1) Business name, address and zip code;
(2) Common name of product;
(3) Weight of product in shipping container or immediate container;
(4) Lot number, which must consist of a coded number in some combination of the number of the day of the year on which the poultry was slaughtered;
(5) The statement "Processed by a Licensed Commercial Food Processor/Small Enterprise Exempt from state or United States Department of Agriculture continuous bird-by-bird inspection"; and
(6) Safe handling and cooking instructions as follows: "SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: Keep refrigerated or frozen. Thaw in refrigerator or microwave. Keep raw poultry separate from other foods. Wash working surfaces, including cutting boards, utensils and hands, after touching raw poultry. Cook thoroughly to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit maintained for at least 15 seconds. Keep hot foods hot. Refrigerate leftovers immediately or discard."   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
The small enterprise may sell poultry products wholesale to hotels, restaurants and institutions, prepackaged products to retail stores and retail products to household consumers, with the appropriate licenses.
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
2.  Restrictions on point of sale.
Except as provided in subsections 1‑A and 1‑B, poultry products sold under this section may be sold only by the poultry producer and in the following locations or manner:
A. At the farm on which the poultry were raised;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
B. At a farmers' market as defined in Title 7, section 415;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
C. Delivered to a consumer’s home by the poultry producer whose name and address appear on the label under subsection 1 or whose name and license number appear on the label under subsection 1‑A or 1‑B;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
D. Received by a person who is a member of a community supported agriculture farm that has a direct marketing relationship with the poultry producer. For the purposes of this section, "community supported agriculture" means an arrangement whereby individual consumers have agreements with a farmer to be provided with food or other agricultural products produced on that farm;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
E. To a locally owned grocery store; or   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
F. To a locally owned restaurant.   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
3.  Mobile poultry processing unit operators.
A mobile poultry processing unit operator may not sell poultry products that have not been inspected at a farmers' market, to a locally owned grocery store or to a locally owned restaurant unless the poultry products are labeled with:
A. The name of the farm, the name of the poultry producer and the address of the farm including the zip code;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
B. The number of the license issued to the poultry producer in accordance with section 2514 and the lot number for the poultry products pursuant to subsection 1, paragraph F;   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
C. The statement "Exempt under the Maine Revised Statutes, Title 22, section 2517‑C NOT INSPECTED." The statement must be prominently displayed with such conspicuousness that it is likely to be read and understood; and   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
D. Safe handling and cooking instructions as follows: "SAFE HANDLING INSTRUCTIONS: Keep refrigerated or frozen. Thaw in refrigerator or microwave. Keep raw poultry separate from other foods. Wash working surfaces, including cutting boards, utensils and hands, after touching raw poultry. Cook thoroughly to an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees Fahrenheit maintained for at least 15 seconds. Keep hot foods hot. Refrigerate leftovers immediately or discard."   [PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
4.  Rules.
The commissioner shall adopt rules to establish requirements for the physical facilities and sanitary processes used by poultry producers whose products are exempt from inspection under this section. Rules adopted under this subsection are major substantive rules as defined in Title 5, chapter 375, subchapter 2‑A.
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
5.  Enforcement.
The commissioner shall enforce the provisions of this section.
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
6.  Violation; penalty.
A person who violates this section is subject to penalties under section 2524.
[PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR).]
SECTION HISTORY
PL 2009, c. 354, §3 (NEW). PL 2013, c. 304, §§5-7 (AMD). PL 2013, c. 323, §5 (AMD). PL 2013, c. 567, §1 (AMD). PL 2015, c. 329, Pt. A, §10 (RPR). PL 2021, c. 64, §§22, 23 (AMD).