Hygrade Food Products Corporation v. United States

160 F.2d 816, 1947 U.S. App. LEXIS 2688
Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit·Decided April 9, 1947·No. 13386·Published·Cited by 17 cases

Opinion

GARDNER, Circuit Judge.

This is an appeal from a judgment entered in an action brought by the government against Hygrade Food Products Corporation under the provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, 21 U. S.C.A. § 301 et seq., which enjoined appellant from shipping in interstate commerce any of its products processed and manufactured at its Manchester, Iowa, plant. It will be convenient to refer to the parties as they appeared in the trial court.

The defendant, since March, 1944, has owned and operated a plant at Manchester, Iowa, and has been engaged in the processing of cheese and cheese products from milk, and shipping these products in interstate commerce. It is charged in the complaint that these products have become contaminated with filth, rendering them injurious to health, and were adulterated in violation of Section 342(a), (3) and (4), Title 21 U.S.C.A. After hearing the court found that defendant acquired its plant at Manchester, Iowa, in March, 1944, and has since been engaged in the processing of cheese and cheese products from milk, and has been shipping and introducing the products so processed into interstate commerce; that under the standards used by the Administrator of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, milk as to sediment content is classified into five grades known as Grades 1 to 5 inclusive; that Grade 1 is milk which is practically free from sediment; that Grade 2 is milk in which there is only a very small amount of sediment; that Grade 3 is milk in which there is a moderate amount of sediment; that Grade 4 is milk in which there is a large amount of sediment, and that Grade 5 is milk in which there is a very large amount of sediment; that milk which grades 1 and 2 is highly fit and satisfactory for processing into cheese; that milk which grades 3, while undesirable, does not have such a heavy sediment content as to result in filthy cheese, but that milk which is graded 4 and 5 is such filthy milk as to result in filthy cheese. The court then sets out the results of various inspections of the defendant’s plant at which milk was graded. The court found that the problem of filthy milk in the area of defendant’s Manchester, Iowa, plant has been aggravated by war time conditions in that the farmers have been short of help; that the defendant, commencing in July, 1945, for the first time began to cope with the filthy milk situation and has spent some time, effort and expense on the problem; that it made special provision for an employee to do something about the filthy milk situation by carrying on an educational campaign among the milk producers; that it made arrangements to have tests made of the milk as delivered at the plant and as a result the number of defendant’s patrons have been reduced from around one hun *818 dred to fifty-eight; that the producers of filthy milk whose product is rejected by defendant frequently thereafter sell their filthy milk or cream to certain of defendant’s competitors, but that defendant since it began operating the Manchester plant has been a large outlet for filthy milk and a hindrance to those purchasers of milk and cream who are trying to raise the standards of dairy cleanliness, and that certain of defendant’s competitors now operate as a hindrance to the defendant when it is trying to raise the standards of dairy cleanliness; that since Jufy 16, 1945, defendant has put considerable pressure on its patrons to quit delivering filthy milk, but when defendant relaxes this pressure a number of such patrons lapse back into dairy uncleanliness, and that when government pressure is released as to defendant it,relaxes back into acceptance and processing. of filthy milk. The court found, “That the defendant has shown that it can and will do everything necessary to place its plant at Manchester, Iowa, in proper condition for the production of cheese, and no injunction is needed as to that phase.” The court also found that because of competitive conditions and the desire to secure milk the pressure on defendant to accept filthy milk was such that defendant could not resist it and that before defendant would be able to refrain from using filthy milk a very substantial change in the entire background in the matter of dairy cleanliness in the area served by its plant would have to occur. The court found that unless restrained by the court defendant Would ship in interstate commerce dairy products processed at its Manchester, Iowa, plant contaminated by filthy substances contrary to the provisions of Title 21 U.S.C.A. §§ 331(a) and 342(a) (3). The court entered judgment restraining defendant,

“ * * * from shipping or introducing into interstate commerce any cheese or other dairy products processed at its Manchester, Iowa, plant.

“It is further ordered that after the expiration of two years, the defendant may move to modify this judgment so as to permit it to ship or introduce into interstate commerce cheese or other dairy products processed at its Manchester, Iowa, plant on the ground that there has been such a change in circumstances as to justify the expectation that such products will be processed without the use of filthy milk.”

In seeking reversal defendant challenges the court’s findings and conclusions on substantially the following grounds: (1) The court should have refused an injunction because defendant is a responsible and reputable party and no present intention to violate the law appears; (2) the injunction should not be entered against the defendant as a penalty for past infractions; (3) injunctional relief provided for under Section 332, Title 21 U.S.C.A., presupposes a temporary injunction only with opportunity to the defendant to show a change of circumstances; (4) under Section 332, Title 21 U.S.C.A., the court was without authority to enjoin a processor or shipper from shipping its unadulterated products in interstate commerce.

Section 331, Title 21 U.S.C.A. prohibits the introduction or delivery for introduction into interstate commerce of any food, drug, device, or cosmetic that is adulterated or misbranded, and Section 332 of the same title confers jurisdiction upon the District Courts of the United States “for cause shown * * * to restrain violations of section 331”.

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Hygrade Food Products Corporation v. United States, 160 F.2d 816, 1947 U.S. App. LEXIS 2688 (8th Cir. 1947).

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