Florida Senate - 2013                                    SB 1708
       
       
       
       By Senator Bullard
       
       
       
       
       39-01099-13                                           20131708__
    1                        A bill to be entitled                      
    2         An act relating to the labeling of beef; amending s.
    3         877.06, F.S.; requiring persons or entities operating
    4         restaurants, eating places, markets, or packinghouses
    5         to mark beef containing “pink slime” with certain
    6         words; authorizing enforcement by the Department of
    7         Agriculture and Consumer Services and the Department
    8         of Business and Professional Regulation; making
    9         technical and grammatical changes; providing criminal
   10         penalties; providing an effective date.
   11  
   12  Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida:
   13  
   14         Section 1. Section 877.06, Florida Statutes, is amended to
   15  read:
   16         877.06 Labeling of beef not slaughtered according to state
   17  or United States standards; beef containing “pink slime”;
   18  enforcement; penalty.—
   19         (1) Every person, firm, or corporation operating a
   20  restaurant, or any other eating place, or retail or wholesale
   21  market or packinghouse, in this state which, and who sells beef
   22  shall mark, stamp, or describe the beef if:
   23         (a)The beef that has not been slaughtered and inspected
   24  according to standards established by either the Government of
   25  Florida or of the United States; or
   26         (b) The beef contains low-grade beef trimmings or lean,
   27  finely textured beef also known as “pink slime.”, shall mark,
   28  stamp, or describe the same by the following words, “slaughtered
   29  in” followed by the name of the state or country and the words
   30  “has not been slaughtered and inspected according to federal or
   31  state standards.”
   32         (2)(a) Packinghouses and wholesale and retail meat markets
   33  before sale of beef which is within the purview of subsection
   34  (1) shall plainly stamp on each carcass, each carton, each can,
   35  and each container the words “slaughtered in” followed by the
   36  name of the state or country and the words “has not been
   37  slaughtered and inspected according to federal or state
   38  standards, or the words “product contains pink slime,” as
   39  applicable. All, the words prescribed in subsection (1) and all
   40  advertising as to the sale of such beef must shall include such
   41  words; provided, however, that a conspicuous sign containing the
   42  words prescribed in subsection (1) visibly displaying such words
   43  displayed near the display of the such beef in retail markets
   44  may be used if when the stamping of individual cuts of beef is
   45  impractical.
   46         (b) It shall be the duty of The Department of Agriculture
   47  and Consumer Services through its agents or inspectors shall to
   48  enforce the provisions of this subsection.
   49         (3)(a) Restaurants or other eating places advertising their
   50  meals or food, by menus or otherwise, shall set out plainly in
   51  such menus, advertisements or otherwise as to beef coming within
   52  the purview of subsection (1), the law the words “slaughtered
   53  in” followed by the name of the state or country and the words
   54  “has not been slaughtered and inspected according to federal or
   55  state standards, or the words “product contains pink slime,” as
   56  applicable prescribed in subsection (1).
   57         (b) It shall be the duty of The Division of Hotels and
   58  Restaurants of the Department of Business and Professional
   59  Regulation through its agents or inspectors shall to enforce the
   60  provisions of this subsection.
   61         (4) A Any person who willfully and knowingly violates
   62  violating any provision of the provisions of this section or any
   63  person who fails to comply with any requirement of this section
   64  commits the requirements hereof shall be guilty of a misdemeanor
   65  of the second degree, punishable as provided in s. 775.082 or s.
   66  775.083, and each day during which such a violation continues
   67  shall continue, shall be deemed a separate violation and a
   68  separate offense.
   69         (5) This section does not Nothing herein shall be construed
   70  to prohibit the use of additional words in describing the grade,
   71  quality, or kind of such beef.
   72         Section 2. This act shall take effect July 1, 2013.