Rule 40-10-1-.18 - Marking Products and Their Containers(1) Authorization required to make devices bearing official marks. No brand manufacturer, printer, or other person shall cast, print, lithograph, or otherwise make or cause to be any device containing any official mark or simulation thereof without prior written authority therefor from the Commissioner as provided for in 40-10-1-.18 of this chapter.(2) Approval required for official marks. No device containing any official mark shall be made or caused to be made for use on any product until it has been approved by the Commissioner as provided for in 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter.(3) Use of official marks prohibited except under supervision of Program employee; removal of official marks, when required: (a) No person shall affix or place, or cause to be affixed or placed, the official inspection legend or any other official mark, or any abbreviation or simulation of any official mark, to or on any product, or container thereof, except under the supervision of a Program employee.(b) No person shall fill, or cause to be filled, in whole or in part, with any product, any container bearing or intended to bear any official mark or any abbreviation or simulation of any official mark, except under the supervision of a Program employee.(c) Product bearing any official mark shall not be canned, cooked, cured, smoked, salted, packed, rendered, or otherwise prepared by any person for commercial purposes unless: 1. Such preparation is performed at an official establishment; or2. Such preparation is conducted under State or other governmental inspection and the prepared product is marked to show that fact; or3. The official marks are removed, defaced or otherwise destroyed before or during such preparation; or4. The preparation of the product consists solely of cutting up operations at any establishment exempted from inspection under paragraph 40-10-1-.04(1)(d)2. of the Act or equal provisions of a law of a State or organized Territory.(4) Marking devices; to be furnished by official establishments; control of: (a) Each official establishment shall furnish such ink brands, burning brands, and any other device for marking products with official marks as the Commissioner may determine is necessary for marking products at such establishment. The official inspection legend on such a device shall be as prescribed in this chapter.(b) All official devices for marking products with the official inspection legend, or other official marks, including self-locking seals, shall be used only under the supervision of a Program employee, and, when not in use for marking shall be kept locked in properly equipped lockers or compartments, the keys of which shall not leave the possession of a Program employee.(5) Branding ink; to be furnished by official establishments; approval by Program; color: (a) Each official establishment shall furnish all ink for marking products with the official marks at such establishment. Such ink must be made with harmless ingredients that are approved for the purpose by the Commissioner. Samples of inks shall be submitted to the Program Laboratory from time to time as may be deemed necessary by the officer in charge.(b) Only ink approved for the purpose shall be used to apply ink brands bearing official marks to carcasses of cattle, sheep, swine, or goats and fresh meat cuts derived there from.(c) Green ink shall not be used to apply marks to the carcasses of cattle, sheep, swine, or goats or fresh meat cuts derived there from.(d) Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, branding ink of any color, approved for the purpose by the Commissioner may be used to apply ink brands, including official marks, to processed meat cuts derived from cattle, sheep, swine or goats.(e) Only green ink approved for the purpose shall be used to apply ink brands including official marks to carcasses and parts of carcasses and meat cuts derived from horses, mules and other equines.(f) Ink used must assure legibility and permanence of the markings and the color of ink shall provide acceptable contrast with the color of the product to which it is applied.(6) Products not to be removed from official establishments unless marked in accordance with the regulations. No person shall remove or cause to be removed from an official establishment any products which the regulations in this chapter require to be marked in any way unless they are clearly and legibly marked in compliance with such regulations.(7) Marking devices not to be false or misleading; style and size of lettering; approval required. No brand or other marking device shall be false or misleading. The letters and figures thereon shall be of such style and type as will make a clear and legible impression. All markings to be applied to products in an official establishment shall be approved prior to use by the Commissioner as provided for in 40-10-1-.19(3), except that official markings prescribed by the Federal meat grading regulations (7 CFR 53.19) need not be submitted to the Commissioner for approval.(8) Unmarked inspected products moved between official establishments; moved in commerce.(a) Unmarked products which have been inspected and passed but do not bear the official inspection legend may be transported from one official establishment to another official establishment, for further processing, in a railroad car, truck, or other closed container, if they are sealed with the official seal of the Department (as prescribed in 40-10-1-.14 of this chapter) bearing the official inspection legend.(b) Products which have been inspected and passed but do not bear the official inspection legend may be removed from an official establishment in closed containers bearing the official inspection legend and all other information required by this part and 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter: Provided, that upon removal from such closed container the product may not be further transported in commerce unless such removal was made under the supervision of a Program employee and such product is reinspected by a Program employee and packed under his supervision in containers bearing the official inspection legend and all other information required by this part and 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter: and provided further, that unmarked products shall not be brought into an official establishment in an open container.(9) Products to be marked with official marks: (a) Each carcass which has been inspected and passed in an official establishment shall be marked at the time of inspection with the official inspection legend containing the number of the official establishment.(b) Except as provided otherwise in this part, each primal part of a carcass, the beef cod fat and beef kidney fat, and each liver, beef tongue and beef heart which has been inspected and passed shall be marked with the official inspection legend containing the number of the official establishment before it leaves the establishment in which it Is first inspected and passed, and each other inspected and passed product susceptible of marking shall be marked with the official inspection legend containing the number of the office establishment where it was last prepared: Provided, that products need not be so marked if packed in properly labeled immediate containers in accordance with the regulations in 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter. Additional official marks of inspection may be applied to such products as desired to meet local conditions. Primal parts are the wholesale cuts of carcasses as customarily distributed to retailers. The round, flank, loin, rib, plate, brisket, chuck, and shank are primal parts of beef carcasses. Veal, mutton, and goat primal parts are the leg, flank, loin, rack, breast, and shoulder. The ham, belly, loin, shoulder, and jowl are pork primal parts. Equine primal parts are the round, flank, loin, rib, plate, brisket, chuck and shank.(c) Beef livers shall be marked with the official inspection legend containing the number of the official establishment at which the cattle involved were slaughtered, on the convex surface of the thickest portion of the organ.(d) Inspected and passed parts of carcasses which are not marked with the official inspection legend under this section shall not enter any official establishment or be sold, transported, or offered for sale or transportation, in commerce, except as provided in 40-10-1-.18.(10) Marking of meat food products with official inspection legend and ingredient statement: (a) Inspected and passed sausage and other products in casings or in link form, of the ordinary "ring" variety or larger shall be marked with the official inspection legend and list of ingredients in accordance with 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter. The official marks required by this section shall be branded near each end of sausage or similar product prepared in casings when the product is of a size larger than that customarily sold at retail intact.(b) Inspected and passed sausage and other products, in casings or link form, of the smaller varieties, shall bear one or more official inspection legends and one or more lists of ingredients on each 2 pounds of product, except where such products leave the official establishment completely enclosed in properly labeled containers having a capacity of 10 pounds or less and containing a single kind of product: Provided, That such products in properly labeled closed containers exceeding 10 pounds shipped to another official establishment for further processing or to a governmental agency, needs only have the official inspection legend and list of ingredients shown twice throughout the contents of the container. When such products are shipped to another official establishment for further processing, the officer in charge at the point of origin shall identify the shipment to the officer in charge at destination.(c) The list of ingredients may be applied by stamping, printing, using paper bands, tags, or tissue strips, or by other means approved by the Commissioner.(d) All cured products shall be marked with the list of ingredients in accordance with Part 40-10-1-.19 of this subchapter.(11) Special markings for certain meat food products:(a) Meat food products, in casings or link form, other than sausage, which possess the characteristics of, or resemble sausage, shall bear on each link or piece the word "imitation" prominently displayed: Provided, That the following need not be so marked if they bear on each link or piece the name of the product in accordance with 40-10-1-.19(2) of this chapter: Such products as coppa, capocollo, lachschinken, bacon, pork loins, pork shoulder butts, and similar cuts of meat which are prepared without added substances other than curing materials or condiments; meat rolls, bockwurst and similar products which do not contain cereal or vegetables; headcheese, souse, sulze, scrapple, blood pudding, and liver pudding; and other products such as loaves, chili con carne, and meat and cheese products when prepared with sufficient cheese to give definite characteristics to the finished products: And provided further, that imitation sausage packed in properly labeled containers having a capacity of 3 pounds or less and of a kind usually sold at retail intact, need not bear the word "imitation" on each link or piece if no other marking or labeling is applied directly to the product.(b) When cereal, vegetable, starch, starchy vegetable flour, soy flour, soy protein concentrate, isolated soy protein, dried milk, nonfat dry milk, or calcium reduced dried skim milk is added to sausage in casing or link form within the limits prescribed in 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter, the product shall be marked with the name of each added ingredient, as for example, "cereal added," "potato flour added," "cereal and potato flour added," "soy flour added," "isolated soy protein added," "nonfat dry milk added," "calcium reduced dried skim milk added," or "cereal and nonfat dry milk added," as the case may be.(c)1. When product is placed in a casing to which artificial coloring is thereafter applied, as permitted in 40-10-1-.20 of this chapter, the product shall be legibly and conspicuously marked by stamping or printing on the casing the words "artificially colored."2. If a casing is removed from product at an official establishment and there is evidence of artificial coloring on the surface of the product, the product from which the casing has been removed shall be marked by stamping directly thereon the words "artificially colored."3. The casing containing product need not be marked to show that it is colored if it is colored prior to its use as a covering for the product, and the coloring is of a kind and so applied as not to be transferable to the product and not to be misleading or deceptive in any respect.(d) When an approved artificial smoke flavoring or an approved smoke flavoring is added to any meat food product such as permitted in 40-10-1-.20 of this chapter, the product shall be legibly and conspicuously marked with the words "Artificial Smoke Flavoring Added," whichever may be applicable.(e) Subject to the provisions in paragraph (a) of this section, in the case of sausage of the smaller varieties, the markings prescribed in this section may be limited to links bearing the official inspection legend, and such markings shall not be required if the sausages are packed in properly labeled containers having a capacity of 3 pounds or less and of a kind usually sold at retail intact. Further, all markings otherwise required by this section (except those required by paragraph (a) of this section) may be omitted from the casings of sausage and other meat food products when these products are to be processed in sealed metal containers properly labeled in accordance with the requirements in 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter.(f) When an approved antioxidant is added to any meat food product as permitted in 40-10-1-.20 and .21 of this chapter, the products shall be legibly and conspicuously marked in an approved manner identifying the specific antioxidant used by its common name or approved abbreviation and the purpose for which it is added, such as "BHA, BHT, and Propylgallate" added to help protect flavor.(g) Sausage of the dry varieties treated with potassium sorbate or propylparaben (propyl p-hydroxybenzoate) as permitted by 40-10-1-.20 of this chapter shall be marked as prescribed in 40-10-1-.19(8)(b)28. of this chapter.(13) Marking of outside containers: (a) Except as provided in this chapter, when any inspected and passed product for domestic commerce is moved from an official establishment, the outside container shall bear an official inspection legend as prescribed in 40-10-1-.14 of this chapter.(b) When any product prepared in an official establishment for domestic commerce has been inspected and passed and is enclosed in a cloth or other wrapping, such wrapping shall bear the official inspection legend and official establishment number applied by the approved 2 1/2-inch rubber brand in the form prescribed in 40-10-1-.14 of this chapter: Provided, That the rubber brand may be omitted if the official inspection legend and the official establishment number on the product itself are clearly legible through the wrapping or the wrapping is labeled in accordance with 40-10-1-.19 of this chapter: Provided further, that plain unprinted wrappings, such as stockinettes, cheese cloth, paper and crinkled paper bags, for properly marked products, which are used solely to protect the product against soiling or excessive drying during transportation or storage need not bear the official inspection legend.(d) Slack barrels used as outside containers of products shall have a cloth or paper top covering branded with the official inspection legend containing the official establishment number which shall be applied in such a manner that removal of the covering results in defacing such official inspection legend.(e) The outside containers of any product which has been inspected and passed for cooking, pork which has been refrigerated as provided in 40-10-1-.20(10)(c) of this chapter, and beef which has been inspected and passed for refrigeration shall bear the markings and tag prescribed elsewhere in this chapter.(f) The outside container of glands and organs which are not used for human food purposes shall be plainly marked with the phrase "For pharmaceutical purposes," "For organotherapeutic purposes" or "For technical purposes", as appropriate, with no reference to inspection, and need not bear other markings otherwise required under the regulations in this chapter.(g) Approval in accordance with 40-10-1-.19(3) of this chapter is not required by labeling information which is not false or misleading and is in accordance with 40-10-1-.19(2) of this chapter if it is applied by stencils, box dies, other marking devices or labels on outside containers such as tierces, crates, barrels, drums, boxes and fiberboard containers, and if the information is approved by the officer in charge and does not contain any official inspection legends and if the containers on which it is to be used will bear all labels and markings required by 40-10-1-.19(2) of this chapter and other provisions of this part and 40-10-1.19 of this chapter.(h) The outside containers of condemned livers shall be marked as prescribed in 40-10-1-.16(10) of this chapter.(i) The outside containers of any equine product shall be marked to show the kinds of animals from which derived, when the products are sold, transported, offered for sale or transported or received for transportation in commerce.(14) Marking tank cars and tank trucks used in transportation of edible products:(a) Each tank car and each tank truck carrying inspected and passed product from an official establishment shall bear a label containing the name of the product in accordance 40-10-1-.19(2) of this chapter, the official inspection legend containing the number of the official establishment and the words "date of loading," followed by a suitable space in which the inspector shall insert the date when the tank car or truck is loaded. The label shall be conspicuously located and shall be printed on material of such character and so affixed as to preclude detachment or effacement upon exposure to the weather. Before the car or truck is removed from the place where it is unloaded, the carrier shall remove or obliterate such label.(b) Tank cars and tank trucks carrying inspected and passed product from an official establishment to another official establishment shall be equipped for sealing and securely sealed by a Program employee with an official seal of the Department bearing the official inspection legend as prescribed by 40-10-1-.14 of this chapter.(15) Marking outside containers of inedible grease, etc.: (a) Outside containers of inedible grease, inedible tallow, or other inedible animal fat, or mixture of any such articles, resulting from operations at any official establishment shall be marked conspicuously with the word "inedible" prior to removal from the point of filling. Containers, such as tierces, barrels, and half barrels shall have both ends painted white with durable paint, if necessary, to provide a contrasting background, and the word "inedible" shall be marked thereon in letters not less than 2 inches high, while on tank cars and tank trucks the letters shall be not less than 4 inches high.(b) Inspected rendered animal fat which is intended not to be used for human food may also be marked "inedible" if handled as provided in paragraph (a) of this section and 40-10-1-.16 of this chapter.(16) Custom prepared products to be marked "Not for Sale." Carcasses and parts therefrom that are prepared on a custom basis under 40-10-1-.04(1)(a)2. of this chapter shall be marked at the time of preparation with the term "Not for Sale" in letters at least three eighths inch in height, except that such products need not be so marked if in immediate containers properly labeled in accordance with the regulations in 40-10-1-.19(16) of this chapter. Ink used for marking such products must comply with the requirements of 40-10-1-.18(5).Ga. Comp. R. & Regs. R. 40-10-1-.18
O.C.G.A. Secs. 26-2-60, 26-2-80.
Original Rule entitled "Liver Products" adopted. F. and eff. June 30, 1965.Amended: ER. 40-10-1-0.3-.18 entitled "Entry Into Official Establishments: Reinspection and Preparation of Products" adopted. F. and eff. August 24, 1970, the date of adoption.Amended: Permanent Rule of same title adopted. F. Dec. 17, 1970; eff. Jan. 6, 1971.Amended: F. June 24, 1975; eff. July 14, 1975.Amended: F. July 23, 1984; eff. August 12, 1984.Repealed: New Rule entitled "Marking Products and Their Containers" adopted. F. July 21, 1997; eff. August 11, 1997.Repealed: New Rule of same title adopted. F. Jan. 15, 2004; eff. Feb. 4, 2004.Repealed: New Rule of same title adopted. F. Dec. 17, 2008; eff. Jan. 6, 2009.