New Jersey-2010-A1811-Introduced

An Act concerning labeling of foods produced from cloned animals and supplementing Title 4 of the Revised Statutes.

Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:

1. A person who sells, manufactures, or produces food or drink to be used for human consumption in this State that contains any product from a cloned animal or its progeny shall label the food or drink on the outer packaging as such. This information shall be displayed in a manner that is clear, conspicuous, and easily readable for consumers.

As used in this act, a "cloned animal" means an animal that arises directly from a somatic cell nuclear transfer event, and "progeny" means an animal derived from the sexual reproduction of a cloned animal with another cloned animal or an animal that is not cloned.

2. A person who violates this act, or an order or regulation of the Department of Agriculture issued or adopted pursuant thereto, shall be liable to a penalty of not less than $500 nor more than $1,000 for each violation or failure to comply, to be sued for and recovered by and in the name of the Secretary of Agriculture in a summary proceeding pursuant to the "Penalty Enforcement Law of 1999," P.L.1999, c.274 (C.2A:58-10 et seq.).

If the violation is of a continuing nature, each day during which it continues constitutes an additional, separate, and distinct offense.

Any penalty monies collected pursuant to this act shall be deposited into an account in the General Fund and credited and appropriated to the Department of Agriculture for the purposes of supporting "Jersey Fresh," "Jersey Grown," and other programs supporting agricultural food products and commodities grown or raised in New Jersey, with the exception of products or commodities that are derived from cloned animals.

3. The Department of Agriculture, in accordance with the "Administrative Procedure Act," P.L.1968, c.410, (C.52:14B-1 et seq.), may adopt rules and regulations as may be necessary to administer and implement this act.

4. The Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Health and Senior Services, shall conduct a study to identify any reported or otherwise known adverse reactions to food and drink used for human consumption containing any product from a cloned animal or its progeny.

The Department of Agriculture shall, within one year after the date of enactment of this act, prepare and submit a report to the Governor and Legislature, pursuant to section 2 of P.L.1991, c.164 (C.52:14-19.1), on its findings, and include in the report any recommendations for legislative or administrative action deemed necessary to effectuate the purposes of this act. The report shall be made available on the Internet websites of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Senior Services.

5. This act shall take effect immediately, except that sections 1 and 2 shall take effect one year after the date of enactment.

STATEMENT

This bill would require a manufacturer or producer of food for human consumption in this State that contains any product from a cloned animal or its progeny to label the food to indicate that fact.

This bill would additionally require the Department of Agriculture, in consultation with the Department of Health and Senior Services, to conduct a study to identify any reported or otherwise known adverse reactions to food or drink products that contain a cloned animal or its progeny. The Department of Agriculture would report its findings to the Governor and Legislature within one year after the date of enactment of this bill into law, and make any legislative or administrative recommendations deemed necessary to carry out the purposes of this bill. The report would be available on the websites of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Health and Senior Services.

Under this bill, the penalty for a violation would be of fine of between $500 and $1,000. If the violation is of a continuing nature, each day during which it continues would constitute an additional, separate, and distinct offense.

Any penalty monies collected under this bill would be credited and appropriated to the Department of Agriculture for the purposes of supporting "Jersey Fresh," "Jersey Grown," and other programs supporting agricultural food products and commodities grown or raised in New Jersey, with the exception of products or commodities that are derived from cloned animals.