Licensing of Slaughterhouses (Consolidated Laws of New York: Agriculture and Markets Law; Article 5−A; §§ 96−a − 96−f)

1 Agriculture and Markets ARTICLE 5-A LICENSING OF SLAUGHTERHOUSES Section 96-a. Declaration of policy and purpose. 96-b. License required. 96-c. Posting of inspection results required. 96-d. Application of article. 96-e. Unlawful acts. 96-f. Denial, revocation and suspension of licenses. § 96-a. Declaration of policy and purpose. Whereas unsanitary conditions in the slaughtering of animals and fowl for food have been found to exist in this state, and whereas such conditions endanger the health and welfare of the people of the state, it is hereby declared to be a matter of legislative determination that the supervision of the slaughtering of animals and fowl is in the public interest, and that this article is enacted in the exercise of the police power of the state and its purposes are the protection of the public health. * § 96-b. License required. 1. No person, firm, partnership or corporation not granted inspection pursuant to the federal meat inspection act, the federal poultry products inspection act, article five-B or article five-D of this chapter shall operate any place or establishment where animals or fowls are slaughtered or butchered for food unless such person, firm, partnership or corporation be licensed by the commissioner. In addition to any other requirements established by the commissioner, such license shall prohibit the slaughter or butchering by slaughterhouses of domesticated dog and domesticated cat to create food, meat, meat by-products or meat food products for human or animal consumption. An application for license shall be made upon a form prescribed by the commissioner on or before the first day of May in every other year, for a two year license period commencing upon the following first day of June. With the application there shall be paid a license fee of two hundred dollars. 2. In a city with a population of one million or more, the commissioner shall not license any person, firm, partnership or corporation to operate any place or establishment where animals and/or fowls are slaughtered or butchered for food within a fifteen hundred foot radius of a residential dwelling. This subdivision shall not apply to any premises upon which a person, firm, partnership or corporation has been continuously conducting business as described in this subdivision from a date prior to the effective date of this subdivision. 3. In addition to any other requirements established by this chapter, an applicant for a license pursuant to this article shall furnish evidence: (a) of his or her good character, experience and competency, (b) that the establishment has adequate facilities and equipment for the business to be conducted, (c) that the establishment is such that the cleanliness of the premises can be maintained and (d) that the product produced therein will not become adulterated. * NB Effective until August 5, 2020 * § 96-b. License required. No person, firm, partnership or corporation not granted inspection pursuant to the federal meat inspection act, the federal poultry products inspection act, article 2 five-B or article five-D of this chapter shall operate any place or establishment where animals or fowls are slaughtered or butchered for food unless such person, firm, partnership or corporation be licensed by the commissioner. In addition to any other requirements established by the commissioner, such license shall prohibit the slaughter or butchering by slaughterhouses of domesticated dog and domesticated cat to create food, meat, meat by-products or meat food products for human or animal consumption. An application for license shall be made upon a form prescribed by the commissioner on or before the first day of May in every other year, for a two year license period commencing upon the following first day of June. With the application there shall be paid a license fee of two hundred dollars. In addition to any other requirements established by this chapter, an applicant for a license pursuant to this article shall furnish evidence: (a) of his or her good character, experience and competency, (b) that the establishment has adequate facilities and equipment for the business to be conducted, (c) that the establishment is such that the cleanliness of the premises can be maintained and (d) that the product produced therein will not become adulterated. * NB Effective August 5, 2020 § 96-c. Posting of inspection results required. Each person, firm, partnership or corporation licensed pursuant to this article shall post a copy of the date and results of its most recent sanitary inspection by the department in a conspicuous location near each public entrance, as prescribed by the commissioner. Such copies shall also be made available to the public upon request. § 96-d. Application of article. Except for the absolute prohibition against the slaughtering or butchering of domesticated dog and domesticated cat to create food, meat, meat by-products or meat food products for human or animal consumption contained in this article which shall continue to apply notwithstanding the following exclusions from this article, the remaining provisions of this article shall not apply to (a) any bona fide farmer who butchers his own domestic animals or fowl on his farm exclusively for use by him and members of his household and his non-paying guests and employees, or (b) any custom slaughterer, (as used in this section, "custom slaughterer" means a person, firm, corporation or association who or which operates a place or establishment where animals are delivered by the owner thereof for slaughter exclusively for use, in the household of such owner, by him, and members of his household and his non-paying guests and employees, provided, that such custom slaughterer does not engage in the business of buying or selling any carcasses, parts of carcasses, meat or meat products of any animal), or (c) any person who slaughters not more than two hundred fifty turkeys or an equivalent number of birds of all other species raised by him on his own farm during the calendar year for which an exemption is sought (four birds of other species shall be deemed the equivalent of one turkey), provided that such person does not engage in buying or selling poultry products other than those produced from poultry raised on his own farm, or (d) any person who donates, and any charitable or not-for-profit organization that possesses, prepares or serves game or wild game pursuant to section 11-0917 of the environmental conservation law (and any person who processes game or 3 wild game on behalf of such donor). § 96-e. Unlawful acts. 1. It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, partnership or corporation to operate any slaughterhouse, abattoir or other place or establishment where animals or fowl are slaughtered or where meat or meat food products are prepared or processed for food unless such place or establishment is maintained and operated in a clean and sanitary manner, and conducted in accordance with the provisions of this article and with the regulations of the commissioner. 2. It shall be unlawful to expose any meat, fowl or meat food product in any slaughterhouse, abattoir or other place or establishment to insects, live animals or injurious contamination; or to slaughter, possess or sell unwholesome meat. Meat shall be unwholesome within the meaning of this article if it be from a diseased animal or one which shall have died other than by slaughter, or if such meat shall be contaminated with filth or shall have been slaughtered, processed or handled under insanitary conditions. 3. It shall be unlawful to feed hogs uncooked offal from a slaughterhouse. 4. It shall be unlawful for any slaughterhouse, abattoir or other place or establishment, or for any person, to slaughter or butcher domesticated dog (canis familiaris) or domesticated cat (felis catus or domesticus) to create food, meat or meat products for human or animal consumption. A violation of this subdivision shall subject the offender to a civil penalty of up to one thousand dollars for an individual and up to five thousand dollars for a corporation for the first violation. Any subsequent violation shall be subject to a civil penalty of up to twenty-five thousand dollars. Any civil penalties collected pursuant to this subdivision shall be paid to the animal population control fund established by section ninety-seven-xx of the state finance law. § 96-f. Denial, revocation and suspension of licenses. 1. The exposure of meat, fowl or meat food product to insects, live animals or injurious contamination, or the slaughter, possession or sale of unwholesome meat, or the slaughtering, butchering, possession or sale of the fur, hair, skin or flesh of a domesticated dog (canis familiaris) or domesticated cat (felis catus or domesticus) shall be cause for the denial of an application for license, or the revocation or suspension of a license already granted. Any such denial, revocation or suspension may be reviewed by a proceeding instituted under article seventy-eight of the civil practice law and rules. 2. After due notice and opportunity to be heard, the license issued to any person, firm, partnership or corporation to operate any place or establishment where animals or fowls are slaughtered or butchered for food pursuant to subdivision one of this section shall be revoked upon establishing failure of three consecutive inspections. Nothing in this subdivision shall prohibit the commissioner from taking licensing action prior to failure of three consecutive inspections. 3. Each licensee shall post a copy of the date and results of its most recent sanitary inspection by the department in a conspicuous location near each public entrance, as prescribed by the commissioner. Such copies shall also be made available to the public upon request. Any licensee that violates the provisions of this subdivision shall be subject to a penalty of five hundred dollars for each day of violation. 4 4. In addition to any other grounds established by this article for the denial, revocation and suspension of licenses, the commissioner may decline to grant a new license, may decline to renew a license, or may suspend or revoke a license after due notice and opportunity for hearing whenever he or she finds that: (a) any statement contained in an application for license is or was false or misleading; (b) the establishment does not have facilities or equipment sufficient to maintain adequate sanitation for the activities conducted; (c) the establishment is not maintained in a clean and sanitary condition or is not operated in a sanitary or proper manner; (d) the maintenance and operation of the establishment is such that the product produced therein is or may be adulterated; (e) the establishment has failed or refused to produce any records or provide any information demanded by the commissioner reasonably related to the administration and enforcement of this article; (f) the applicant or licensee, or an officer, director, partner, holder of ten percent of the voting stock, or any other person exercising any position of management or control has failed to comply with any of the provisions of this chapter or rules and regulations promulgated pursuant thereto; or (g) any person including the applicant or licensee, or an officer, director, partner or any stockholder, exercising any position of management or control has been convicted of a felony in any court of the United States or any state or territory and that there is a direct relationship between that felony and the license sought or held by the individual.