21 U.S.C. § 455
Section 455 · Inspection in official establishments
Amended 2 times on record
Applied in 11 court decisions — leading case Farguson v. MBank Houston, N.A. (1986)
Most recently applied in Association des Éleveurs de Canards et d'Oies du Québec v. Becerra (September 2017)
How often courts cite this section
Court decisions citing this, by year.Markers show enactment, consequential amendments, and circuit splits over this section — watch for a citation surge after a change or a disagreement. The dip in the last several years is a data-coverage gap, not a real trend — our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so recent citations are undercounted.
For the purpose of preventing the entry into or flow or movement in commerce of, or the burdening of commerce by, any poultry product which is capable of use as human food and is adulterated, the Secretary shall, where and to the extent considered by him necessary, cause to be made by inspectors ante mortem inspection of poultry in each official establishment processing poultry or poultry products for commerce or otherwise subject to inspection under this chapter.
The Secretary, whenever processing operations are being conducted, shall cause to be made by inspectors post mortem inspection of the carcass of each bird processed, and at any time such quarantine, segregation, and reinspection as he deems necessary of poultry and poultry products capable of use as human food in each official establishment processing such poultry or poultry products for commerce or otherwise subject to inspection under this chapter.
All poultry carcasses and parts thereof and other poultry products found to be adulterated shall be condemned and shall, if no appeal be taken from such determination of condemnation, be destroyed for human food purposes under the supervision of an inspector: Provided, That carcasses, parts, and products, which may by reprocessing be made not adulterated, need not be so condemned and destroyed if so reprocessed under the supervision of an inspector and thereafter found to be not adulterated. If an appeal be taken from such determination, the carcasses, parts, or products shall be appropriately marked and segregated pending completion of an appeal inspection, which appeal shall be at the cost of the appellant if the Secretary determines that the appeal is frivolous. If the determination of condemnation is sustained the carcasses, parts, and products shall be destroyed for human food purposes under the supervision of an inspector.
Editorial notes U.S. Code · Office of the Law Revision Counsel
Amendments
1968—Par. (a). Pub. L. 90–492, §6(a), substituted “of, or the burdening of commerce by, any poultry product which is capable of use as human food and is adulterated,” for “or a designated major consuming area of any poultry product which is unwholesome or adulterated,” “each official establishment” for “any official establishment”, and “otherwise subject to inspection under this chapter” for “in, or for marketing in a designated city or area”.
Par. (b). Pub. L. 90–492, §6(b), substituted “segregation, and reinspection” for “segregation, reinspection”, and “otherwise subject to inspection under this chapter” for “in, or for marketing in a designated city or area”, and inserted “capable of use as human food” after “necessary of poultry and poultry products”.
Par. (c). Pub. L. 90–492, §6(c), inserted “other” before “poultry products”, and substituted “to be adulterated” for “to be unwholesome or adulterated”, “made not adulterated” for “made not unwholesome and not adulterated”, and “to be not adulterated” for “to be not unwholesome and not adulterated”.
Effective Date of 1968 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 90–492 effective Aug. 18, 1968, see section 20 of Pub. L. 90–492, set out as a note under section 451 of this title.