9 CFR 309.16 – Livestock suspected of having biological residues
(a) Except as provided by paragraph (d) of this section, livestock suspected of having been treated with or exposed to any substance that may impart a biological residue which would make the edible tissues unfit for human food or otherwise adulterated shall be handled in compliance with the provisions of this paragraph. They shall be identified at official establishments as “U.S. Condemned.” These livestock may be held under the custody of a Program employee, or other official designated by the Administrator, until metabolic processes have reduced the residue sufficiently to make the tissues fit for human food and otherwise not adulterated. When the required time has elapsed, the livestock, if returned for slaughter, must be re-examined on ante-mortem inspection. To aid in determining the amount of residue present in the tissues, officials of the Program may permit the slaughter of any such livestock for the purpose of collecting tissues for analysis for the residue. Such analysis may include the use of inplant screening procedures designed to detect the presence of antimicrobial residues in any species of livestock.
(b) All carcasses and edible organs and other parts thereof, in which are found any biological residues which render such articles adulterated, shall be marked as “U.S. Condemned” and disposed of in accordance with § 314.1 or § 314.3 of this chapter.
(c) [Reserved]
(d) Calves shall not be presented for ante-mortem inspection in an official establishment except under the provisions of this paragraph.
(1) Definitions. For purposes of this paragraph, the following definitions shall apply:
(i) Calf. A calf up to 3 weeks of age or up to 150 pounds.
(ii) Certified calf. A calf that the producer and all other subsequent custodians of the calf certify in writing has not been treated with any animal drug while in his or her custody or has been treated with one or more drugs in accordance with FDA approved label directions while in his or her custody and has been withheld from slaughter for the period(s) of time specified by those label directions.
(iii) Healthy calf. A calf that an inspector determines shows no visual signs of disease or treatment of disease at ante-mortem inspection.
(iv) Producer. The owner of the calf at the time of its birth.
(v) Sick calf. A calf that an inspector on ante-mortem inspection determines has either signs of treatment or signs of disease.
(vi) Veterinary medical officer. An inspector of the Program that has obtained a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree which is recognized by the Program.
(2) General requirements. (i) The identity of the producer of each calf presented for ante-mortem inspection shall be made available by the official establishment to the inspection prior to the animal being presented for ante-mortem inspection.
(ii) The inspector shall segregate the calves presented for ante-mortem inspection at the establishment and identify each calf as one of the following: (a) Certified, (B) noncertified, or (C) previous residue condemnation.
(3) Certified group. (i) For a calf to be considered certified, the producer and all other subsequent custodians of the calf must certify in writing that while the calf was in his or her custody, the calf was not treated with animal drugs or was treated with one or more drugs in accordance with FDA approved label directions and was withheld from slaughter for the period(s) of time specified by those label directions. All prior certifications must be presented with the animal at the time of slaughter. The certifications shall contain a list of the calves with accompanying identification numbers, as required by paragraph (d)(3)(ii) of this section, followed by the following language:
I hereby certify that, while in my custody, from ________ to ________ (time period of custody), the above-listed calf or calves have not been treated with drugs, or have been treated with one or more drugs in accordance with FDA approved label directions and have been withheld from slaughter for the period(s) of time specified by those label directions. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, all information contained herein is true, that the information may be relied upon at the official establishment, and that I understand that any willful falsification of this certification is a felony and may result in a fine of up to $250,000 for an individual or up to $500,000 for an organization, or imprisonment for not more than 5 years, or both (21 U.S.C. § 677, 18 U.S.C. § 1001 and 3571).
(ii) Each calf must be identified by use of backtag, eartag, or other type of secure identification which displays a number which shall be recorded on all written certifications.
(iii) The inspector shall have segregated for veterinary medical officer examination any certified calf which he or she determines to show any sign of disease or which is not identified individually. Such animal will be tagged as “U.S. Suspect” and its carcass will be retained on post-mortem inspection and handled in accordance with § 310.21 (c) and (d).
(iv) The inspector shall handle the remaining carcasses of healthy animals in accordance with § 310.21(c) and (d).
(4) Noncertified group. On ante-mortem inspection, the inspector shall have segregated for veterinary medical officer examination any calf which he or she determines to show any sign of disease. Such animal will be tagged as “U.S. Suspect” and its carcass will be retained on post-mortem inspection and handled in accordance with § 310.21(c). The inspector shall handle the remaining carcasses of healthy animals in accordance with § 310.21(c).
(5) Calves from producers with previous residue condemnation. On ante-mortem inspection, the inspector shall have segregated for veterinary medical officer examination any calf which he or she determines to show any sign of disease. Such animal will be tagged as “U.S. Suspect” and its carcass will be retained on post-mortem inspection and handled in accordance with § 310.21(e). The inspector shall handle the remaining carcasses of healthy animals in accordance with § 310.21(e).
(e) The name of each and all person(s) who sold or consigned each swine to the establishment shall be made available by the establishment to any Program employee or other authorized employee of the United States Department of Agriculture upon that employee’s request and presentation of his or her official credentials. Swine identification, by means approved by the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA, under part 71 of this title, must be maintained throughout post-mortem inspection, in accordance with § 310.23(a) of this subchapter.