Bill Text: IA HF458 | 2015-2016 | 86th General Assembly | Introduced

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Bill Title: A bill for an act requiring that honey packaged in this state and sold or offered for sale to consumers be labeled, and making penalties applicable.

Sponsorship: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 12-3)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2015-03-03 - Introduced, referred to Agriculture. H.J. 449. [HF458 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2015-HF458-Introduced.html

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House File 458 - Introduced




                                 HOUSE FILE       
                                 BY  BROWN=POWERS, MEYER,
                                     GAINES, BENNETT,
                                     MOMMSEN, HUNTER,
                                     KEARNS, HANSON,
                                     BRANHAGEN, THEDE,
                                     MASCHER, LENSING,
                                     ABDUL=SAMAD,
                                     H. MILLER, and GASSMAN

                                      A BILL FOR

  1 An Act requiring that honey packaged in this state and sold
  2    or offered for sale to consumers be labeled, and making
  3    penalties applicable.
  4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:
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PAG LIN



  1  1    Section 1.  NEW SECTION.  191.8A  Label requirements for
  1  2 honey.
  1  3    1.  As used in this section, "honey" means the substance
  1  4 capable of use as human food that is produced by bees of
  1  5 the genus apis mellifica, and derived from the nectar of
  1  6 plants, secretions of living parts of plants, or excretions of
  1  7 plant=sucking insects on the living parts of plants, that the
  1  8 bees collect, transform, deposit, dehydrate, store, and leave
  1  9 in a honeycomb to ripen and mature.
  1 10    2.  The department shall adopt rules prescribing a label
  1 11 that must be affixed to a container of honey when the honey
  1 12 is packaged in this state and sold or offered for sale to
  1 13 consumers on a retail basis, to the extent such rules are
  1 14 allowed under the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21
  1 15 U.S.C. ch. 9, subch. IV, including applicable regulations
  1 16 adopted by the United States food and drug administration.
  1 17    3.  The department shall adopt rules that prescribe the size
  1 18 of the label, where the label may be affixed to the container,
  1 19 and the size and type of letters printed on the label.  The
  1 20 label shall include all of the following:
  1 21    a.  The name and address of the person packaging the honey.
  1 22    b.  The net weight of the honey.
  1 23    c.  The grade assigned to the honey and the color for the
  1 24 honey of that grade.  The honey may be assigned no grade.
  1 25    d.  Whether the container contains an ingredient other than
  1 26 honey or any form of additive.
  1 27    4.  Nothing in this section shall prevent the department
  1 28 from adopting rules that allow a person to supplement the
  1 29 information required to be contained on the label, including
  1 30 but not limited to a further description of the quality or
  1 31 type of honey being sold or offered for sale.  The label may
  1 32 identify a predominant flavor of the honey or the principal
  1 33 source from which the honey is derived so long as it is clearly
  1 34 predominant and readily distinguishable.
  1 35    Sec. 2.  RULEMAKING.  In adopting rules under this Act, the
  2  1 department of agriculture and land stewardship shall consult
  2  2 with interested persons including but not limited to the Iowa
  2  3 honey producers association and Sioux honey association.
  2  4                           EXPLANATION
  2  5 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
  2  6 the explanation's substance by the members of the general assembly.
  2  7    BILL'S PROVISIONS.  This bill amends Code chapter 191 which
  2  8 authorizes the department of agriculture and land stewardship
  2  9 to regulate food sold or offered for sale, including by
  2 10 requiring that labels be affixed to food containers.  The
  2 11 bill requires the department to adopt rules prescribing a
  2 12 label that must be affixed to a container of honey when the
  2 13 honey is packaged in this state and sold or offered for sale
  2 14 to consumers on a retail basis.  The department's rules must
  2 15 comply with the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and
  2 16 regulations of the United States food and drug administration
  2 17 adopted pursuant to that law.  The label prescribed by the
  2 18 department must include:  (1) the name and address of the
  2 19 person packaging the honey, (2) the net weight of the honey,
  2 20 (3) the color and grade assigned to the honey, and (4) whether
  2 21 the container includes other ingredients or additives.  The
  2 22 department may allow a person to supplement the information
  2 23 contained on the label.  In adopting the rules, the department
  2 24 must consult with interested persons.
  2 25    ENFORCEMENT.  The department may restrain a person violating
  2 26 the bill's provisions by petitioning the district court where
  2 27 the violation occurs for injunctive relief (Code section
  2 28 191.10).
  2 29    PENALTY.  A person violating the bill's provisions is guilty
  2 30 of a simple misdemeanor (Code section 189.21).  A simple
  2 31 misdemeanor is punishable by confinement for no more than 30
  2 32 days or a fine of at least $65 but not more than $625 or by
  2 33 both.
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