§ 156-H — Food and farm products promotion

§ 156-h. Food and farm products promotion. 1. The commissioner may\ndesign, determine and adopt official brands to be used on labels and on\npackages and containers to identify New York state food products and New\nYork state produced or landed aquatic products. The design of such\nbrand or brands may contain the whole or a part of the seal of the state\nof New York. Each of such brands, when adopted by the commissioner, may\nbe registered as a trade mark in the office of the secretary of state\nunder the provisions of article twenty-four of the general business law,\nor any other provision of law which may hereinafter be enacted relating\nto the registration of trade marks. Any such trade mark shall be\nregistered by the secretary of state without the exaction of any fee\ntherefor. The commissioner may in his or her discretion register any\nsuch mark with the United States government and any other state or\nforeign country.\n 2. Such brand or mark may be imprinted upon packages or used on labels\nupon or attached to packages containing: (a) New York state grown farm\nproducts packed within this state in accordance with official standards\nestablished as provided by this article, article thirteen, article\nthirteen-a, article thirteen-b, article thirteen-c and article\nthirteen-d of this chapter or New York state produced or landed aquatic\nproducts, subject to and in accordance with rules and regulations to be\npromulgated by the commissioner; or\n (b) New York state processed food products, manufactured within this\nstate in accordance with official standards established by the\ncommissioner pursuant to regulation, which are essentially composed of\nNew York state grown farm products, provided, however, that whenever the\ncommissioner determines, after public hearing, that the use of\ningredients not grown or produced in this state is necessary or\nbeneficial in manufacturing a particular product because such\ningredients are either not grown in New York or unavailable in\nsufficient quantity or at a reasonable price to allow the product to be\ncomposed of only New York state grown farm products, the standard for\nsuch product may authorize the inclusion of ingredients not produced in\nthis state, except that in no event shall an official brand or mark be\napproved for use on a food product unless at least fifty-one percent of\nits content is derived from New York state grown farm products.\n 3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subdivision two of this section,\nsuch brand or mark may be imprinted upon packages or labels attached to\npackages containing cheddar or American type cheese packed outside this\nstate provided that such product is manufactured within the state and\nmeets all other requirements for the inclusion or attachment of such\nbrand or mark.\n 4. No such label shall be imprinted on or attached to any package of\nfresh or processed products unless said products have been produced and\npacked in accordance with an official quality control program\nestablished by the commissioner. The rules and regulations shall provide\nfor a charge to be made for any inspections, except the commissioner, at\nhis or her discretion, need not make a charge for inspections carried\nout for the purposes of research and development of grades, standards,\ninspection and quality control techniques. The commissioner shall cause\nto be printed labels bearing a state brand in sufficient quantities to\nmeet the demand therefor and/or authorize container manufacturers to\nimprint the state brand on packages at the time of manufacture or\nprinting, and may sell such labels or charge a fee for such imprinting\nin an amount to be fixed by the commissioner. As an alternative method,\nthe commissioner may in accordance with rules and regulations rent dies\nor cuts of the state brand to persons desiring to manufacture their own\nlabels for use on fresh or processed products owned and packed by them,\nat a price to be fixed by the commissioner. Labels shall be affixed to\nor imprinted on packages in the manner prescribed by the rules and\nregulations. The label denoting the state brand may be used in\nconjunction with and in addition to any regional mark or name for\ngrowers, packers or processors in a county or group of counties and/or\nprivate mark or name under which the grower, packer or processor has\nbeen accustomed to pack and market fresh or processed products. Moneys\nderived from the sale or use of labels denoting the state brand shall be\naccounted for as to product source and shall be expended as the\ncommissioner may direct for general publicity purposes and to advertise\nproducts identified with the state brand.\n 5. The rules and regulations may provide for an advisory committee of\nfive packers or sellers of the state brand products, who shall advise\nthe commissioner as to the general plan of any publicity campaign and in\nsuch other matter as the commissioner may request. The members of any\nsuch advisory committee shall serve without compensation. The\ncommissioner shall have the power, by injunction or otherwise, to\nrestrain any person who uses or attempts to use any state brand except\nin accordance with the provisions of this section.\n