Bill Text: HI HB1663 | 2020 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Relating To Health.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2020-02-14 - Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 2 and referred to the committee(s) on FIN with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Holt, Takayama excused (2). [HB1663 Detail]
Download: Hawaii-2020-HB1663-Amended.html
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HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES |
H.B. NO. |
1663 |
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THIRTIETH LEGISLATURE, 2020 |
H.D. 1 |
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STATE OF HAWAII |
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A BILL FOR AN ACT
RELATING TO HEALTH.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:
Section 1. The legislature finds that while over forty dairy farms once existed across the islands of Hawaii, only one small dairy remains on the big island due to the high cost of land, utilities, imported feed, labor, and competition from mainland sources. Today, well over ninety per cent of all milk sold in the State via grocers and retailers is imported from the mainland United States.
The legislature further finds that some of this milk is pasteurized and shipped in large unrefrigerated tanks from the west coast of the United States to Hawaii. This ocean crossing takes approximately one week, and additional time is needed to re-pasteurize the milk in order to lower the amount of bacteria that has increased during ocean transportation, before the milk is packaged and sent to market.
The legislature additionally finds that when this re-pasteurized milk is packaged and placed on the store shelves and labeled as "fresh", it is often marketed as from "Hawaii's dairy" or under a store's own private label brand as "fresh milk", thereby causing potential confusion for consumers who may believe this milk is actually locally produced.
Moreover, the legislature notes that a University of Hawaii study found that milk sold on Oahu exceeded federal regulatory limits for bacterial counts five days prior to the milk's expiration date and that consumers frequently discover that imported milk spoils before the stamped expiration date.
The legislature further finds that when the Milk Control Act was first enacted in 1967, the dairy industry in Hawaii was flourishing. The Milk Control Act was established to protect the local dairy industry from the fluctuations of the market and ensure the availability of milk. It was not intended to ensure that milk shipped over long distances was safe to consume, especially for infants, toddlers, and young children, who are among the largest consumers of milk.
The legislature also notes that in 2017, the department of health issued a cease-and-desist order to the processing plant involved in re-pasteurization because the levels of coliform bacteria that existed in the processing plant's two per cent milk testing exceeded by ten times the legal limit for coliform bacteria in three of five consecutive tests conducted by the department of health.
The legislature further finds that according to recent data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 48,000,000 individuals in the United States are sickened, 128,000 are hospitalized, and 3,000 die each year from foodborne diseases. This significant public health burden is largely preventable.
The legislature additionally finds that modern methods of transportation that prioritize food safety as well as cold chain logistics and controls required by the federal Food Safety Modernization Act now exist and are available to all importers of single-pasteurized, fresh milk, thus creating a level playing field for all businesses involved in the shipping and distribution of milk and making the re-pasteurization of milk and its associated dangers an unnecessary risk for consumers in Hawaii.
The purpose of this Act is to protect the health of Hawaii's consumers by requiring that:
(1) All United States mainland milk shipped to and sold in Hawaii is single pasteurized only and complies with all handling, transportation, and distribution requirements of the federal Food Safety Modernization Act, including handling procedures, temperature verifications, and proper refrigerated transportation of all perishable foods; and
(2) Any
processed milk or milk product must be entirely produced in the State in order
to be labeled with any term or slogan that might imply that the milk or milk
products are produced locally.
SECTION 2. Chapter 321, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:
"§321- Milk; safety; transport; sale. (a)
No person shall:
(1) Transport into
the State; or
(2) Keep, offer,
display, expose for sale, or solicit for the sale of,
(b) As used in this section, "milk" shall have the same meaning as that term is defined in section 157-1."
SECTION 3. Section 486-120, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
"(a) No person shall keep, offer, display, expose
for sale, or solicit for the sale of any processed milk or milk product which
is labeled with the term "island fresh", or like terms, with any
other term or slogan that implies that the processed milk or milk product is
produced locally, or which by any other means misrepresents the origin of
the item as being from any place within the State unless the processed milk or
milk product has been [at least ninety per cent, by weight,] produced entirely
in the State."
SECTION 4. This Act does not affect rights and duties that matured, penalties that were incurred, and proceedings that were begun before its effective date.
SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.
SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect upon its approval.
Report Title:
Milk; Food Safety Modernization Act; Shipping and Sale; Transportation; Handling; Locally Produced Milk
Description:
Requires all United States mainland milk shipped to and sold in Hawaii to be single pasteurized only and comply with all handling, transportation, and distribution requirements of the federal Food Safety Modernization Act, including handling procedures, temperature verifications, and proper refrigerated transportation of all perishable foods. Requires any processed milk or milk product to be entirely produced in the State in order to be labeled with any term or slogan that might imply that the milk or milk products are produced locally. (HD1)
The summary description
of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is
not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.
