7 U.S.C. § 1575 — False advertising

Page 886 TITLE 7—AGRICULTURE § 1575 1 So in original. The period probably should be a semicolon. brought under provisions of this chapter and stated that use of enumerated clauses as defenses in pro- ceedings not brought under this chapter is not barred. 1956—Act July 9, 1956, substituted ‘‘or other pro- ceeding’’ for ‘‘, or in any proceeding for confiscation of seeds,’’. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE OF 1956 AMENDMENT Amendments made by act July 9, 1956, applicable only with respect to violations occurring after July 9, 1956, see note set out under section 1596 of this title. EFFECTIVE DATE See section 1610 of this title. § 1575. False advertising It shall be unlawful for any person to dissemi- nate, or cause to be disseminated, any false ad- vertisement concerning seed, by the United States mails, or in interstate or foreign com- merce, in any manner or by any means, includ- ing radio broadcasts: Provided, however, That no person, advertising agency, or medium for the dissemination of advertising, except the person who transported, delivered for transportation, sold, or offered for sale seed to which the false advertisement relates, shall be liable under this section by reason of disseminating or causing to be disseminated any false advertisement, unless he or it has refused, on the request of the Sec- retary of Agriculture, to furnish the Secretary the name and post-office address of the person, or advertising agency, residing in the United States, who caused, directly or indirectly, the dissemination of such advertisement. (Aug. 9, 1939, ch. 615, title II, § 205, 53 Stat. 1282.) Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries EFFECTIVE DATE See section 1610 of this title. SUBCHAPTER III—FOREIGN COMMERCE § 1581. Prohibitions relating to importations The importation into the United States is pro- hibited of— (1) any agricultural or vegetable seeds if any such seed contains noxious-weed seeds or the labeling of which is false or misleading in any respect; (2) screenings of any seeds subject to this subchapter (except that this shall not apply to screenings of wheat, oats, rye, barley, buck- wheat, field corn, sorghum, broomcorn, flax, millet, proso, soybeans, cowpeas, field peas, or field beans, which are not imported for seeding purposes and are declared for cleaning, proc- essing, or manufacturing purposes, and not for seeding purposes); (3) any seed containing 10 per centum or more of any agricultural or vegetable seeds, unless the invoice pertaining to such seed and any other labeling of such seed bear a lot iden- tification and the name of each kind and vari- ety of vegetable seed present in any amount and each kind or kind and variety of agricul- tural seed present in excess of 5 per centum of the whole, and unless in the case of hybrid seed present in excess of 5 per centum of the whole it is designated as hybrid.1 (4) any agricultural seeds or any mixture thereof, or any vegetable seeds or any mixture thereof, for seeding purposes, that have been treated, unless each container thereof bears a label giving the following information and statements in accordance with rules and regu- lations prescribed under section 1592 of this title: (A) A word or statement indicating that the seeds have been treated; (B) The commonly accepted coined, chem- ical (generic), or abbreviated chemical name of any substance used in such treatment; (C) If the substance used in such treatment in the amount remaining with the seeds is harmful to humans or other vertebrate ani- mals, an appropriate caution statement ap- proved by the Secretary of Agriculture as adequate for the protection of the public, such as ‘‘Do not use for food or feed or oil purposes’’; Provided, That the caution state- ment for mercurials and similarly toxic sub- stances, as defined in said rules and regula- tions, shall be a representation of a skull and crossbones and a statement such as ‘‘This seed has been treated with POISON’’, in red letters on a background of distinctly contrasting color; and (D) A description, approved by the Sec- retary of Agriculture as adequate for the protection of the public, of any process used in such treatment. (Aug. 9, 1939, ch. 615, title III, § 301, 53 Stat. 1282; Pub. L. 85–581, § 12, Aug. 1, 1958, 72 Stat. 478; Pub. L. 89–686, §§ 13, 14, Oct. 15, 1966, 80 Stat. 978; Pub. L. 97–439, § 5(b)(1), Jan. 8, 1983, 96 Stat. 2288; Pub. L. 103–465, title IV, § 441(1), Dec. 8, 1994, 108 Stat. 4973.) Editorial Notes AMENDMENTS 1994—Pub. L. 103–465 struck out ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The im- portation’’ in introductory provisions, struck out ‘‘, or is required to be stained and is not so stained, under the terms of this subchapter,’’ after ‘‘noxious-weed seeds’’ in par. (1), redesignated pars. (4) and (5) as (3) and (4), respectively, and struck out former par. (3) which read as follows: ‘‘any seed containing 10 per cen- tum or more of the seeds of alfalfa or red clover, which has been stained prior to being offered for entry in a manner that does not permit compliance with the pro- visions of this subchapter and the regulations made and promulgated thereunder.’’ 1983—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 97–439 substituted ‘‘any agricultural or vegetable seeds if any such seed con- tains noxious weed seeds’’ for ‘‘any seed containing 10 per centum or more of any agricultural or vegetable seeds if any such seed is adulterated or unfit for seed- ing purposes’’. 1966—Subsec. (a)(4). Pub. L. 89–686, § 13, prohibited im- portation of any seed containing 10 per centum or more of any agricultural seeds and prescribed as additional prerequisites to importation a lot identification for the invoice and any other labeling, the kind and variety of seed present in any amount, each kind or kind and va- riety of seed present in excess of 5 per centum of the whole, and hybrid designation in case of hybrid seed present in excess of 5 per centum of the whole.