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The Florida Statutes

The 2024 Florida Statutes

Title XXXV
AGRICULTURE, HORTICULTURE, AND ANIMAL INDUSTRY
Chapter 583
CLASSIFICATION AND SALE OF EGGS AND POULTRY
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F.S. 583.01
583.01 Definitions.For the purpose of this chapter, unless elsewhere indicated, the term:
(1) “Broker” means any person, firm, or corporation that sells eggs, egg products, or dressed poultry in this state for a dealer on a commission basis.
(2) “Carton” means any one-half-dozen-sized to three-dozen-sized container used as a carrier of eggs in which each egg has an individual covered cell. A bag or other carrier in which eggs are packed in bulk without separation between individual eggs is not considered to be a carton.
(3) “Dating” or “code dating” means the use of the actual date of pack according to the month and day of the month, or the Julian calendar date. No other code dating is permitted unless approved by the department. Dating or code dating must be legible.
(4) “Dealer” means a person, firm, or corporation, including a producer, processor, retailer, or wholesaler, that sells, offers for sale, or holds for the purpose of sale in this state 30 dozen or more eggs or its equivalent in any one week, or more than 384 dressed birds in any one week.
(5) “Department” means the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.
(6) “Destination” means any location other than the point of origin.
(7) “Egg producer” means any person, firm, or corporation that produces eggs.
(8) “Egg whites,” “liquid egg whites,” “whites,” or “liquid whites” means the whites of eggs of the domestic hen that are separated from the yolks of the eggs and conform with the specifications prescribed or to be prescribed by the definition and standard of identity established by the United States Egg Products Inspection Act, Pub. L. No. 91-597 (84 Stat. 1620), and chapter 500, the Florida Food Safety Act.
(9) “Egg yolks,” “liquid egg yolks,” “yolks,” or “liquid yolks” means yolks of eggs of the domestic hen so separated from the whites of the eggs as to contain a total egg solid content that conforms with the specifications prescribed by the definition and standard of identity established by the United States Egg Products Inspection Act, Pub. L. No. 91-597 (84 Stat. 1620), and chapter 500, the Florida Food Safety Act.
(10) “Eggs” means all edible shell eggs from the domesticated chicken and liquid or frozen whole eggs, yolks, whites, and egg products.
(11) “Florida dressed poultry” means any fowl, slaughtered and offered for sale in this state, that has not been hard-chilled or frozen.
(12) “Frozen egg products” means frozen whole eggs, frozen whites, or frozen yolks or any combination thereof to which have been added salt, sugar, or other food or noninjurious food additive.
(13) “Frozen eggs,” “frozen whole eggs,” or “frozen mixed eggs” means the food prepared by freezing liquid eggs.
(14) “Frozen whites” or “frozen egg whites” means the food prepared by freezing egg whites.
(15) “Frozen yolks” or “frozen egg yolks” means the food prepared by freezing egg yolks.
(16) “Liquid eggs,” “mixed eggs,” “liquid whole eggs,” or “mixed whole eggs” means eggs of the domestic hen that are broken from the shells, with the yolks and whites in their natural proportions as so broken. They may be mixed, or mixed and strained.
(17) “Live poultry” means any fowl which is to be slaughtered for human consumption.
(18) “Origin” means a plant where eggs are graded and packed.
(19) “Poultry” means all kinds of poultry and includes chickens, turkeys, ducks, guineas, geese, pigeons raised as domesticated food birds, quail, and other domesticated food birds.
(20) “Processor” means any person, firm, or corporation that packs or processes eggs, or slaughters and dresses poultry, for commercial purposes.
(21) “Quick-frozen poultry” or “frozen poultry” means any fowl that has been processed, packed, sealed, and frozen in strict conformity with accepted standards for quick-freezing, or when frozen, that has not developed any appearance of cold storage stock and shows no evidence of deterioration from freezing.
(22) “Ready-to-cook poultry” means any dressed poultry from which the protruding pinfeathers, vestigial feathers (hair or down, as the case may be), head, shanks, crop, oil gland, trachea, esophagus, entrails, reproductive organs, and lungs have been removed, which poultry is with or without giblets, and which poultry is ready to cook without need of further processing. The term “ready-to-cook poultry” also means any cut-up or disjointed portion of such poultry or any edible part thereof.
(23) “Shell eggs” means all edible shell eggs from the domesticated chicken still in their original shells and are classified as follows:
(a) “Cold storage eggs” means shell eggs which have been held under refrigeration in excess of 30 days.
(b) “Fresh eggs” means eggs of Grade A or better quality.
(c) “Graded eggs” means eggs the quality of which has been determined by candling. Only after candling may a grade be declared by any dealer or packer of shell eggs. However, it is understood that, should a new grading method be approved by the department, it shall be within the authority of the department to allow such new method for determining internal quality to be used in place of the now universally accepted candling procedure.
(d) “Loose eggs” means eggs that are not in a carton.
(e) “Nest run eggs” means eggs that come from production facilities without having been washed, sized, or graded for quality.
(f) “Shell-treated eggs” means eggs which have been treated with an acceptable food-preserving oil or another acceptable substance in the interest of preserving their internal quality.
(g) “Unclassified eggs” means washed shell eggs which have not been graded for quality and size. However, unclassified eggs may have no more checks, dirties, leakers, or loss than those allowed for Florida Grade B; and such eggs shall not be offered at retail in carton containers.
(24) “Shipped dressed poultry” means any fowl produced and slaughtered outside of this state that has not been hard-chilled or frozen.
(25) “Storage fowl” or “cold storage fowl” means any fowl that is free from disease, and regardless of where slaughtered, that shows evidence of deterioration from freezing or that has been held at low temperature for 60 or more days.
History.s. 1, ch. 16012, 1933; ss. 1, 2, ch. 16982, 1935; s. 1, ch. 17170, 1935; CGL 1936 Supp. 4126(1),(2), 4151(379); s. 1, ch. 24106, 1947; s. 1, ch. 57-151; s. 1, ch. 61-413; ss. 14, 35, ch. 69-106; s. 245, ch. 71-377; ss. 1, 4, ch. 73-81; s. 1, ch. 84-102; s. 1, ch. 86-56; s. 37, ch. 94-180; s. 140, ch. 2014-150.