P.R. Laws tit. 24, § 742
For the purposes of this chapter the following terms shall have the meanings indicated below:
(a) Secretary. — The Secretary of Health of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or his authorized representative.
(b) Person. — Any natural or juridical person, his employees, agents or representatives.
(c) Department. — The Department of Health of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(d) Poultry product dealer. — Any person engaged in the business of buying or selling poultry products and/or its food by-products, on commission or otherwise except as an employee of another person.
(e) Renderer. — Any person engaged in the business of rendering poultry except rendering conducted under inspection or exemption under this chapter.
(f) Animal food manufacturer. — Any person engaged in the business of manufacturing or processing poultry food derived wholly or in part from poultry.
(g) Intrastate commerce. — Commerce within the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.
(h) Poultry. — Any live or slaughtered domesticated bird.
(i) Poultry product. — Any poultry carcass or part thereof or any product processed wholly or in part from any poultry carcass or part thereof, excepting products which contain poultry ingredients only in a relatively small proportion or historically have not been considered by consumers as products of the poultry food industry, and which are exempted by the Secretary from definition as a poultry product under such conditions as he may prescribe to assure that the poultry ingredients in such products are not adulterated and that such products are not represented as poultry products.
(j) Capable of use as human food. — Any carcass, or part or product of a carcass, of any poultry, unless it is denatured or otherwise identified as required by regulations prescribed by the secretary to deter its use as human food, or it is naturally inedible by humans.
(k) Processed. — Slaughtered, canned, salted, stuffed, rendered, boned, cut up, or otherwise manufactured or processed.
(l) Adulterated. — Any poultry product under one (1) or more of the following circumstances:
(1) If it bears or contains any poisonous or deleterious substance which may render it injurious to health; but in case the substance is not an added substance, such article shall not be considered adulterated under this clause if the quantity of such substance in or on such article does not ordinarily render it injurious to health.
(2)
(A) If it bears or contains by reason of administration of any substance to the live poultry or otherwise any added poisonous or added deleterious substance which may, in the judgment of the Secretary, make such article unfit for human food.
(B) It is, in whole or in part, a raw agricultural commodity and such commodity bears or contains a pesticide chemical which is unsafe within the meaning of the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Puerto Rico Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, §§ 711—732 of this title.
(C) If it bears or contains any food additive which is unsafe within the meaning of the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Puerto Rico Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, §§ 711—732 of this title.
(D) If it bears or contains any color additive which is unsafe within the meaning of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and the Puerto Rico Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, §§ 711—732 of this title; Provided, That an article which is not otherwise deemed adulterated under paragraphs (B), (C) or (D) of this clause shall nevertheless be deemed adulterated if use of the chemical, pesticide, food additive, or color additive in or on such article is prohibited by regulations of the Secretary in establishments under jurisdiction of this chapter.
(3) If it consists in whole or in part of any filthy, putrid or decomposed substance or is for any other reason unsound, unhealthful, unwholesome, or otherwise unfit for human food.
(4) If it has been prepared, packed, or held under unsanitary conditions whereby it may have become contaminated with filth, or whereby it may have been rendered injurious to health.
(5) If it is, in whole or in part, the product of any poultry which has died otherwise than by slaughter.
(6) If its container is composed, in whole or in part, of any poisonous or deleterious substances which may render the contents injurious to health.
(7) If it has been subjected to radiation, unless the use of radiation was in conformity with a regulation or exemption in effect pursuant to § 409 of the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
(8) If any valuable constituent has been in whole or in part omitted or abstracted therefrom; or if any substance has been substituted, wholly or in part therefor; or if damage or inferiority has been concealed in any manner, or if any substance has been added thereto or mixed or packed therewith so as to increase its bulk or weight, or reduce its quality or strength, or make it appear better or of greater value than it is.
(m) Misbranded. — Any poultry product as defined under one (1) or more of the following circumstances:
(1) If its labeling is false or misleading in any particular.
(2) If it is offered for sale under the name of another food.
(3) If it is an imitation of another food, unless its label bears, in type of uniform size and prominence, the words “imitation of” immediately preceding the name of the food imitated.
(4) If its container or wrapper is so made, formed or filled as to be misleading.
(5) If it is contained in a package or other container without a label showing:
(A) The name and the place of business of the manufacturer, packer or distributor.
(B) An accurate statement of the quantity of the product in terms of weight, measure or numerical count; Provided, That under this clause reasonable variations may be permitted, and exemptions as to small packages or articles not in packages or other containers may be established by regulations prescribed by the Secretary.
(6) If any word, statement or other information required by or under authority of this chapter to appear on the label or other labeling is not prominently placed thereon with such conspicuousness when 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 ordinary individual under customary conditions of purchase and use.
(7) If it purports to be or is represented as a food for which a definition or standard of identity or composition has been prescribed by regulation of the Secretary under § 746 of this title unless:
(A) It conforms to such definition and standard.
(B) Its label or sticker bears the name of the food specified in the definition and standard and, insofar as may be required by such regulations, the common names of optional ingredients, other than spices, flavoring and coloring present in such food.
(8) If it purports to be or is represented as a food for which a standard or standards of fill of container have been prescribed by regulation under § 746 of this title and it does not satisfy the standard of fill of container applicable thereto, unless its label bears, in such manner and form as such regulations specify, a statement that it falls below such standard.
(9) If it is not subject to the provisions of clause (7) of this subsection, unless its label bears:
(A) The common and usual name of the food, if any, and
(B) in case it is manufactured from two (2) or more ingredients, the common or usual name of each such ingredient, except that spices, flavorings, and colorings may, when authorized by the Secretary, be designated as spices, flavorings and colorings without naming each; Provided, That to the extent that compliance with the requirements of paragraph (B) of this clause is impracticable or results in deception or unfair competition, exemptions shall be established by regulations promulgated by the Secretary.
(10) If it purports to be or is represented for special dietary uses unless its label bears such information concerning its vitamin, mineral and other dietary properties as the Secretary determines to be, and by regulation prescribes as necessary in order fully to inform purchasers as to its value for such uses.
(11) If it bears or contains any artificial flavor or coloring or chemical preservatives unless it bears labeling stating the fact. Provided, That, to the extent that compliance with the requirements of this clause is impracticable, the Secretary shall establish exemptions by regulation to that effect.
(12) If it fails to bear on its containers or wrapper directly thereon, as the Secretary may prescribe by regulations, the inspection legend, and unrestricted by any of the foregoing, such other information as the Secretary may require in such regulations to assure that it will not have false or misleading labeling and that the public will be informed of the handling required to maintain the article in a wholesome condition.
(n) Label. — Any written, printed or graphic matter displayed on the article or immediate container, without including packaged liners of said article.
(o) Labeling. — All labels or other written, printed or graphic matter:
(1) Upon any article or any of its containers or wrappers, or
(2) accompanying such article.
(p) Federal Poultry Products Inspection Act. — The act so entitled, approved August 28, 1957 (71 Stat. 441) as amended.
(q) Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. — The act so entitled, approved June 25, 1938 (52 Stat. 1040) as amended.
(r) Pesticide chemical, food additive, color additive and raw agricultural commodity. — Shall have the same meanings, for the purposes of this chapter, as under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
(s) Official seal or official mark. — The official inspection legend or any other symbol prescribed by regulation of the Secretary to identify the status of an article or poultry under this chapter.
(t) Official inspection legend. — Any symbol prescribed by regulation of the Secretary to show that an article was inspected and approved in accordance with this chapter.
(u) Official certificate. — Any certificate issued by regulation of the Secretary by an inspector or other person performing official functions under this chapter.
(v) Official device. — Any device prescribed or authorized by the Secretary for use in applying any official mark.
(w) Official establishment. — Any establishment, as determined by the Secretary, at which inspection of the slaughter of poultry, or the processing of poultry products, is maintained under the provisions of this chapter.
(x) Inspector. — An officer of the Department of Health authorized by the Secretary, among other things, to inspect poultry and poultry products under the provisions of this chapter.
(y) Container or package. — Includes any box, can, paper, cloth, plastic, or receptacle, wrapper or cover.
(z) Shipping container. — Any container used or intended for use in packaging a product in an immediate container.
(aa) Immediate container. — Any container or consumer package, or any other container in which poultry products not consumer packaged are packed.
History —July 7, 1971, No. 10, p. 601, § 2.