''American Public Health Association v. Butz'' (APHA v. Butz), 511 F.2d 331 (D.C. Cir. 1974) was a
case argued on January 22, 1974, and decided on December 19, 1974.
Case
The
appellant
In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...
was the
American Public Health Association, which wanted to force
Earl Butz
Earl Lauer "Rusty" Butz (July 3, 1909 – February 2, 2008) was a United States government official who served as Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. His policies favored large-scale corporate farming ...
, the then
United States Secretary of Agriculture
The United States secretary of agriculture is the head of the United States Department of Agriculture. The position carries similar responsibilities to those of agriculture ministers in other governments.
The department includes several organi ...
, to treat ''
Salmonella
''Salmonella'' is a genus of rod-shaped (bacillus) Gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two species of ''Salmonella'' are ''Salmonella enterica'' and ''Salmonella bongori''. ''S. enterica'' is the type species and is fur ...
'' as an
adulterant
An adulterant is caused by the act of adulteration, a practice of secretly mixing a substance with another. Typical substances that are adulterated include but are not limited to food, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, fuel, or other chemicals, that ...
in food.
As plaintiffs in the District Court our appellants alleged in their complaint that the Secretary of Agriculture was violating certain provisions of the Wholesome Meat Act
The Wholesome Meat Act (also called "Equal To" law) is a United States federal law passed by the 90th United States Congressional session and enacted into law by United States President Lyndon B. Johnson on December 15, 1967, amending the Federal ...
, 21 U.S.C. §§ 601 et seq., and the Poultry Products Inspection Act
The Poultry Products Inspection Act of 1957 ( P.L. 85–172, as amended) requires the United States Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) to inspect all domesticated birds when slaughtered and processed into products ...
, 21 U.S.C. §§ 451 et seq. Specifically, they alleged that the Secretary was wrongfully refusing to affix to meat and poultry products, inspected by the Department of Agriculture, labels containing handling and preparation instructions to protect the consumer against food poisoning caused by salmonellae and other bacteria. The complaint prayed that the Secretary be enjoined 'from affixing the label 'U.S. Passed and Inspected' or 'U.S. Inspected for Wholesomeness' on meat and poultry unless it is accompanied by an adequate explanation to the consumer that the product may contain organisms capable of causing food poisoning or infection which will multiply unless the product is properly handled and cooked, along with proper instructions on how to minimize such risk.' In substance, the plaintiffs claimed that the official inspection labels constituted misbranding. On cross motions for summary judgment the District Court granted the defendants' motion and dismissed the case.
The court determined that ''Salmonella'' was not an adulterant, it was naturally present in meats, and the onus was on the consumer to properly handle and cook meats.
Law
In 2015, New York Senator
Kirsten Gillibrand
Kirsten Elizabeth Gillibrand (; ; born December 9, 1966) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from New York since 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, she served as member of the U.S. House of Re ...
proposed a law that would give the
Food Safety and Inspection Service
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is the public health regulatory agency responsible for ensuring that United States' commercial supply of meat, poultry, and egg pro ...
(FSIS) of the
United States Department of Agriculture
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, ...
the ability to recall meat tainted with ''Salmonella'' bacteria.
See also
*
''Escherichia coli'' O157:H7, legally an adulterant in the United States
References
External links
{{US-case-law-stub
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit cases