NY State Senate Bill S3212

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Agriculture Committee

Introduced
In Committee
On Floor Calendar
- Passed Senate
- Passed Assembly
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	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Jan 28, 2021	referred to agriculture

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A4570
Current Committee:: Senate Agriculture
Law Section:: Agriculture and Markets Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §§130 & 131, Ag & Mkts L

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Permits commercial feed manufacturers to use the term "human food grade" for certain pet food if it conforms to certain state and federal standards.

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

 
BILL NUMBER: S3212

SPONSOR: SEPULVEDA
 
TITLE OF BILL:

An act to amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to using
the term "human food grade" for certain pet food

 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:

To create a voluntary standard for pet foods to use the term "human food
grade" on their labeling, and to prohibit pet foods that do not meet the
standard from using the term and other misleading words or images.

 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:

Section 1 adds a new Ag & Mkts L. § 130, subdivision 3. Creates a new
voluntary pet food designation of "human food grade" and provides the
standards that a pet food needs to meet in order to apply for and
receive the designation from the Department. It also prohibits the
advertisement of any pet foods as human food grade if they do not have

the designation.

§ 2 amends Ag & Mkts L § 131 to make clear that using words or images
that do not honestly represent the ingredients used in a pet food
constitutes false or misleading advertising.

§ 3 is the effective date.

 
JUSTIFICATION:

This bill creates a new voluntary legal standard called "human food
grade." Pet food manufacturers that choose to would be able to label and
advertise their products as meeting that standard, if they apply to and
are approved by the state Department of Agriculture and Markets. This
will enable pet owners in New York State to clearly identify products
that are intended for pets, but whose ingredients and manufacturing
practices meet the safety and quality standards of human food.

Consumers deserve to know what is in the products they buy for their
pets, and this bill will add more transparency to the labeling and
advertising of pet foods.  At the federal and state levels, pet foods
are regulated as "commercial feeds" with much more lax ingredient stand-
ards than their packaging implies. Because commercial pet food need only
meet "feed-grade" safety and quality standards, pet food manufacturers
can (and routinely do) take diseased or discarded meat (including
euthanized animals), render it into a powder called "chicken meal" or
"beef meal," process it at high temperatures into kibble pellets, and
still label the product with terms like "premium natural pet food" with
images of restaurant-quality meat and produce.  The bill characterizes
the dishonest representation of pet food ingredients as an act of
misbranding. This bill is a critical step toward closing the gap between
how pet food is made and how it is advertised to consumers so they can
make informed decisions based on honest representations.

 
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:

New bill

 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:

None.

 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after it
shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the commissioner of
agriculture and markets shall make regulations and take other actions
reasonably necessary to implement this act on that date.

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

 
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   3212
 
                        2021-2022 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             January 28, 2021
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by Sen. SEPULVEDA -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Agriculture
 
 AN  ACT  to  amend the agriculture and markets law, in relation to using
   the term "human food grade" for certain pet food
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section 130 of the agriculture and markets law is amended
 by adding a new subdivision 3 to read as follows:
   3. (A) A REGISTRANT MAY APPLY TO  THE  COMMISSIONER  FOR  DESIGNATION,
 INCLUDING A RENEWAL OF A DESIGNATION, OF A PET FOOD AS HUMAN FOOD GRADE.
 AN APPLICATION FOR THE DESIGNATION SHALL BE MADE ON A FORM PRESCRIBED BY
 THE  COMMISSIONER  AND SHALL BE ACCOMPANIED BY AN APPLICATION FEE OF ONE
 HUNDRED DOLLARS. THE COMMISSIONER  SHALL  APPROVE  THE  APPLICATION  AND
 GRANT  THE DESIGNATION IF IT DEMONSTRATES THE FOLLOWING TO THE SATISFAC-
 TION OF THE COMMISSIONER:
   (I) THE PET FOOD IS PRODUCED IN FACILITIES THAT ABIDE BY UNITED STATES
 DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE ("USDA") CRITERIA AND INSPECTION RULES AND ARE
 LISTED ON THE USDA MEAT, POULTRY AND EGG PRODUCT INSPECT (MPI)  DIRECTO-
 RY.
   (II)  EACH  INGREDIENT  AND THE RESULTING PRODUCT ARE STORED, HANDLED,
 PROCESSED, AND TRANSPORTED UNDER CURRENT  GOOD  MANUFACTURING  PRACTICES
 SPECIFIED IN 21 CFR PART 117 SUBPART B.
   (III) A CONTINUING LETTER OF GUARANTEE AND WARRANTY FROM EACH SUPPLIER
 OF  EACH  INGREDIENT  USED  IN SUCH PRODUCT, THAT THE INGREDIENT, TO THE
 EXTENT IT IS UNDER CONTROL OF THE SUPPLIER, CONFORMS WITH  SUBPARAGRAPHS
 (I) AND (II) OF THIS PARAGRAPH AND IS SUITABLE FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION.
   (IV) A LIST OF EVERY INGREDIENT IN THE PET FOOD.
   (B)  THE  COMMISSIONER  MAY  SUSPEND  OR REVOKE THE DESIGNATION, AFTER
 WRITTEN NOTICE TO THE REGISTRANT AND AN OPPORTUNITY TO BE  HEARD,  WHEN:
 (I)  ANY  STATEMENT  IN THE APPLICATION WAS FALSE OR MISLEADING; OR (II)
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02745-01-1

 S. 3212                             2
 
 THE REGISTRANT FAILS TO COMPLY WITH ANY REQUIREMENT FOR THE  DESIGNATION
 OR APPLICABLE REGULATIONS.
   (C)  (I)  A DESIGNATION OF A PET FOOD AS "HUMAN FOOD GRADE" UNDER THIS
 SUBDIVISION MEANS THAT THE PET FOOD IS SUITABLE  FOR  HUMAN  CONSUMPTION
 BUT  IS  INTENDED  FOR  CONSUMPTION BY PETS. A PET FOOD DESIGNATED UNDER
 THIS SUBDIVISION MAY BE LABELED, ADVERTISED  AND  REPRESENTED  AS  HUMAN
 FOOD  GRADE,  OR  USE  WORDS,  SYMBOLS,  OR  IMAGES OF THAT MEANING. THE
 COMMISSIONER SHALL CREATE A SYMBOL, LABEL, OR WORDING THAT A  REGISTRANT
 MAY,  BUT  IS  NOT REQUIRED TO, USE FOR A PET FOOD DESIGNATED UNDER THIS
 SUBDIVISION.
   (II) ANY LABEL, ADVERTISEMENT OR REPRESENTATION IMPLYING  THAT  A  PET
 FOOD  IS  HUMAN FOOD GRADE SHALL INCLUDE WORDS, SYMBOLS OR IMAGES, OF AT
 LEAST EQUAL SIZE AS THOSE IMPLYING THAT IT IS HUMAN FOOD GRADE,  CLEARLY
 INDICATING  THAT  IT  IS  INTENDED FOR CONSUMPTION BY PETS OR PARTICULAR
 CATEGORIES OF PETS.
   (III) NO PERSON MAY LABEL, ADVERTISE OR REPRESENT ANY PRODUCT AS BEING
 A PET FOOD OF HUMAN FOOD GRADE, OR WORDS OF THAT MEANING, OR  USING  ANY
 IMAGE  CONVEYING  THAT  MEANING,  UNLESS THE PRODUCT IS DESIGNATED UNDER
 THIS SUBDIVISION.
   (D) A DESIGNATION UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL BE VALID FOR TWO  YEARS
 FROM THE DATE OF ISSUANCE OR FROM THE DATE OF RENEWAL.
   (E)  THIS SUBDIVISION DOES NOT DIMINISH THE APPLICABILITY OF ANY OTHER
 PROVISIONS OF THIS ARTICLE.
   § 2. Section 131 of the agriculture and markets law, as added by chap-
 ter 816 of the laws of 1974, is amended to read as follows:
   § 131. Misbranding. A commercial feed shall be deemed to be misbranded
 if:
   1. Its labeling is false or misleading in  any  particular,  INCLUDING
 THROUGH  THE  USE  OF WORDS OR IMAGES THAT DO NOT HONESTLY REPRESENT THE
 INGREDIENTS USED IN THE COMMERCIAL FEED.
   2. It is distributed under the name of another commercial feed.
   3. It is not labeled , ADVERTISED OR REPRESENTED as required in, OR IS
 LABELED, ADVERTISED OR REPRESENTED IN VIOLATION OF, section one  hundred
 thirty of this article.
   4.  It purports to be or is represented as a commercial feed, or if it
 purports to contain or is represented as containing  a  commercial  feed
 ingredient,  unless  such commercial feed or feed ingredient conforms to
 the definition, if any, prescribed by regulation by the commissioner.
   5. Any word, statement, or other  information  required  by  or  under
 authority  of  this  article  to  appear on the label or labeling is not
 prominently placed thereon with such conspicuousness (as  compared  with
 other  words,  statements,  designs,  or devices in the labeling) and in
 such terms as to render it likely to be read and understood by the ordi-
 nary individual under customary conditions of purchase and use.
   § 3. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
 it shall have become a law. Effective immediately, the  commissioner  of
 agriculture  and  markets  shall make regulations and take other actions
 reasonably necessary to implement this act on that date.

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The New York State Senate

senate Bill S3212

Sponsored By

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Agriculture Committee

Your Voice

Actions

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Details

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments

senate Bill S3212

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Sponsored By

Luis R. Sepúlveda

Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Agriculture Committee

Your Voice

Actions

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Details

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Summary

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

S3212 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

Comments