The Vermont Statutes Online

Title 6: Agriculture

Chapter 153: Standards and Purity

• Subchapter 001: Dilution or Adulteration

• § 2801. Adulteration prohibited

  It is prohibited to sell, transfer, or offer for sale any adulterated dairy product that does not conform to Vermont statutes and rules adopted under the statutes. Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the salvage of milk solids for human consumption under rules adopted by the Secretary. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 14; amended 1969, No. 73, § 5, eff. April 18, 1969; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003; 2011, No. 39, § 4, eff. May 19, 2011; 2021, No. 105 (Adj. Sess.), § 118, eff. July 1, 2022.)

• § 2802. Foreign fats prohibited

  A person, firm, or corporation, by himself or herself, his or her servant or agent, or as the servant or agent of another, shall not manufacture, sell, or exchange, or have in possession with intent to sell or exchange, any dairy products or any of the fluid or solid derivatives of any of them to which has been added any fat or oil other than milk fat, except chocolate ice cream and chocolate milk, that may contain the amount of fats other than milk fat normally contained in the chocolate or cocoa used in the manufacture of chocolate ice cream and chocolate milk. This section does not prohibit a fat substitute if it is approved for insertion into a dairy product by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is clearly identified in the list of ingredients on the label. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 15; amended 2011, No. 39, § 4, eff. May 19, 2011.)

• Subchapter 002: Labeling; Weights and Measures; Tests

• § 2811. Marking of retail packages

  (a)(1) All retail packages of dairy products and fluid dairy products sold or offered for sale shall be plainly and conspicuously marked with:

  (A) The true name of the product as defined by statute or regulation.

  (B) The true name of all ingredients in descending order of importance if it is not a single defined product.

  (C) The name and address of the producer or handler.

  (D) The net weight or volume of package contents.

  (2) The Secretary may assign identifying numbers for milk plants, which may appear on the package.

  (b) The following situations are exempted from the operation of subsection (a) of this section:

  (1) Milk sold by a producer to a handler.

  (2) A producer who sells unpasteurized (raw) milk pursuant to chapter 152 of this title. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 3; amended 1969, No. 73, § 6, eff. April 18, 1969; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003; 2011, No. 39, § 4, eff. May 19, 2011.)

• § 2812. False, misleading, or fraudulent statements

  No false, misleading, or fraudulent statement shall appear on a retail package, display material, or advertising connected therewith. The words dairy, milk, cream, dairy farm, cow, and all words or pictures of similar connotation shall not be used on packages of imitation dairy products, products in semblance of dairy products, or in the display material or advertising connected therewith. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 4.)

• § 2813. Testing utensils

  (a) Bottles, pipettes, or measuring glasses used by a person in determining by test the value of milk or cream received from other persons, before use, may be tested for accuracy of measurement and for accuracy of the percent scale marked thereon, by the State Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets.

  (b) The Secretary may enter into reciprocal agreements with other states with regard to testing equipment or may accept tests conducted by other states having substantially the same tests. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 9; amended 1967, No. 52; 1989, No. 256 (Adj. Sess.), § 10(a), eff. Jan. 1, 1991; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003.)

• § 2814. Tests of sample by Secretary

  The producers and handlers of milk and dairy products may request the Secretary to make bacteriological or chemical tests, or both, of their dairy products and water in the central testing laboratory of the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets. If, in the opinion of the Secretary, these tests can be made without interfering with regulatory work, the Secretary or his or her agent may perform them. A handler for whom such tests are made shall pay fees as, in the opinion of the Secretary, will cover the cost of performing the tests. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 12; amended 1989, No. 256 (Adj. Sess.), § 10(a), eff. Jan. 1, 1991; 1999, No. 49, § 122; 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003.)

• § 2815. Records and reports

  (a) Each handler shall record and preserve for one year all purchases and sales by weight or volume, butterfat or solids tests, or any other tests that are used as a basis for payment or determination of quality for dairy products delivered by a producer. The record shall show the name and number of the producer, the period covered by the test, and the date the test was made. This record shall be signed by the licensed technician performing the tests and shall be available for examination by the Secretary at all times.

  (b) The handler shall immediately furnish each producer for each delivery a statement showing the weight or volume of dairy product, the producer’s name and number, the handler’s name, the date, and other information required by the Secretary.

  (c) Each payment to each producer shall be accompanied by a statement showing the period covered, the producer’s name and number, unit price, weight or volume for the period covered, the results of all tests used as a basis for payment, a detailed statement of all deductions, and other appropriate information.

  (d) The Secretary shall upon request make available to the persons directly involved, the results of all tests made by him or her to check the accuracy of tests performed by the milk handler. (Added 1965, No. 175, § 13; amended 2003, No. 42, § 2, eff. May 27, 2003.)

• § 2816. Preliminary incubation testing; rejection of supply

  A handler shall not reject the milk supply of a producer based solely on a preliminary incubation count. (Added 2009, No. 147 (Adj. Sess.), § 2, eff. July 1, 2011.)