R58-6-8. National Poultry Improvement Plan

(1) Participation

(a) Any person producing or dealing in products may participate in the Plan when they have demonstrated, to the satisfaction of the Department, that their facilities, personnel, and practices are adequate for carrying out the applicable provisions of the Plan, and have signed an agreement with the Department to comply with the general and the applicable specific provisions of the Plan and any regulations of the Department.

(b) A participant in the plan shall participate with all of their poultry hatching egg supply flocks and hatchery operations.

(c) They shall report to the Official State Agency on VS Form 9-2 or through other appropriate means each breeding flock before the birds reach 24 weeks of age or, in the case of ostriches, emus, rheas, cassowaries, before the birds reach 20 months of age. This report will include:

(i) Name and address of flockowner;

(ii) Flock location and designation;

(iii) Type: Primary or Multiplier;

(iv) Breed, variety, strain, or trade name of stock;

(v) Source of males;

(vi) Source of females;

(vii) Number of birds in the flock; and

(viii) Intended classification of flock.

(d) No person shall be compelled by the Department to qualify products for any of the other classifications as a condition of qualification for the U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean classification.

(e) Participation in the Plan shall entitle the participant to use the Plan emblem.

(2) General provisions for all participants.

(a) Records of purchases and sales and the identity of products handled shall be maintained in a manner satisfactory to the Department.

(b) Products, records of sales and purchase of products, and material used to advertise products shall be subject to inspection by the Department at any time.

(c) Except as provided by this paragraph, participants in the Plan may not buy or receive products for any purpose from nonparticipants unless they are part of an equivalent program, as determined by the Department.

(d) Participants in the Plan may buy or receive products from flocks that are neither participants nor part of an equivalent program, for use in breeding flocks or for experimental purposes, under the following conditions only:

(i) With the permission of the Department and the concurrence of the USDA; and

(ii) By segregation of all birds before introduction into the breeding flock.

(iii) Upon reaching sexual maturity, the segregated birds must be tested and found negative for pullorum-typhoid. The Department may require a second test at its discretion.

(e) Each participant shall be assigned a permanent approval number by the USDA.

(i) This number, prefaced by the numerical code of the State, will be the official approval number of the participant and may be used on each certificate, invoice, shipping label, or other document used by the participant in the sale of his products.

(ii) The approval number shall be withdrawn when the participant no longer qualifies for participation in the Plan.

(3) Specific provisions for participating flocks.

(a) Poultry equipment, and poultry houses and the land in the immediate vicinity thereof, shall be kept in sanitary condition.

(b) The participating flock, its eggs, and all equipment used in connection with the flock shall be separated from nonparticipating flocks, in a manner acceptable to the Department.

(c) All flocks shall consist of healthy, normal individuals characteristic of the breed, variety, cross, or other combination which they are stated to represent.

(d) A flock shall be deemed to be a participating flock at any time only if it has qualified for the U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean classification.

(e) Each bird shall be identified with a sealed and numbered band obtained through or approved by the Department.

(4) Specific provisions for participating hatcheries.

(a) Hatcheries must be kept in sanitary condition, acceptable to the Department. The minimum requirements with respect to sanitation include the following:

(i) Egg room walls, ceilings, floors, air filters, drains, and humidifiers should be cleaned and disinfected at least two times per week.

(ii) Incubator room walls, ceilings, floors, doors, fan grills, vents, and ducts should be cleaned and disinfected after each set or transfer.

(iii) Incubator rooms should not be used for storage.

(iv) Egg trays and buggies should be cleaned and disinfected after each transfer.

(v) Hatcher walls, ceilings, floors, doors, fans, vents, and ducts should be cleaned and disinfected after each hatch.

(vi) Hatcher rooms should be cleaned and disinfected after each hatch and should not be used for storage.

(vii) Chick/poult processing equipment and rooms should be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected after each hatch.

(viii) Chick/poult boxes should be cleaned and disinfected before being reused.

(ix) Vaccination equipment should be cleaned and disinfected after each use.

(x) Hatchery residue, such as chick/poult down, eggshells, infertile eggs, and dead germs, should be disposed of promptly and in a manner satisfactory to the Department.

(xi) The entire hatchery should be kept in a neat, orderly condition and cleaned and disinfected after each hatch.

(xii) Effective insect and rodent control programs should be implemented.

(b) A hatchery that keeps started poultry must keep such poultry separated from the incubator room in a manner satisfactory to the Department.

(c) All baby and started poultry offered for sale under Plan terminology should be normal and typical of the breed, variety, cross, or other combination represented.

(d) Eggs incubated should be sound in shell, typical for the breed, variety, strain, or cross thereof and reasonably uniform in shape.

(e) Hatching eggs should be trayed and the baby poultry boxed with a view to uniformity of size.

(f) Any nutritive material provided to baby poultry must be free of the avian pathogens.

(g) If a person is responsibly connected with more than one hatchery, all of such hatcheries must participate in the Plan if any of them participate. A person is deemed to be responsibly connected with a hatchery if he or she is a partner, officer, director, holder, owner of 10 percent or more of the voting stock, or an employee in a managerial or executive capacity.

(5) Specific provisions for participating dealers.

(a) Dealers in poultry breeding stock, hatching eggs, or baby or started poultry shall comply with all provisions in this section which apply to their operations.

(6) Terminology and classification; general.

(a) The official classification terms and the various designs illustrative of the official classifications may be used only by participants and to describe products that have met all the specific requirements of such classifications.

(b) Products produced under the Plan shall lose their identity under Plan terminology when they are purchased for resale by or consigned to nonparticipants.

(c) Participating flocks, their eggs, and the baby and started poultry produced from them may be designated by their strain or trade name.

(d) When a breeder's trade name or strain designation is used, the participant shall be able by records to substantiate that the products so designated are from flocks that are composed of either birds hatched from eggs produced under the direct supervision of the breeder of such strain, or stock multiplied by persons designated and so reported by the breeder to the Department.

(7) Terminology and classification; hatcheries and dealers.

(a) Participating hatcheries and dealers shall be designated as "National Plan Hatchery" and "National Plan Dealer", respectively.

(b) The Department shall be notified by the USDA of additions, withdrawals, and changes in classification.

(8) Terminology and classification; flocks and products.

(a) Participating flocks, products produced from them that have met the requirements of a classification in this part may be designated as:

(i) U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean,

(ii) U.S. M. Gallisepticum Clean,

(iii) U.S. Sanitation Monitored,

(iv) U.S. M. Synoviae Clean,

(v) U.S. M. Meleagridis Clean,

(vi) U.S. Sanitation Monitored, Turkeys,

(vii) U.S. S. Enteritidis Clean,

(viii) U.S. Salmonella Monitored,

(ix) U.S. M. Gallisepticum Monitored,

(x) U.S. M. Synoviae Monitored,

(xi) U.S. Avian Influenza Clean, or

(xii) U.S. H5/H7 Avian Influenza Clean.

(9) Supervision.

(a) The Department may designate qualified persons as Authorized Agents to do the sample collecting provided for in this section and may designate qualified persons as Authorized Testing Agents to do the sample collecting and blood testing provided for in this section.

(b) The Department shall employ or authorize qualified persons as State Inspectors to perform the qualification testing of participating flocks, and to perform the official inspections necessary to verify compliance with the requirements of the Plan.

(c) Authorities issued under the provisions of this section shall be subject to cancellation by the Department on the grounds of incompetence or failure to comply with the provisions of the Plan or regulations of the official State agency.

(i) Such actions shall not be taken until a thorough investigation has been made by the Department and the authorized person has been given notice of the proposed action and the basis therefore and an opportunity to present his views.

(10) Inspections.

(a) Each participating hatchery shall be audited at least one time annually or a sufficient number of times each year to satisfy the Department that the operations of the hatchery are in compliance with the provisions of the Plan.

(b) The records of all flocks maintained primarily for production of hatching eggs shall be examined annually by a State Inspector.

(i) Records shall include:

(A) VS Form 9-2, "Flock Selecting and Testing Report";

(B) VS Form 9-3, "Report of Sales of Hatching Eggs, Chicks, and Poults";

(C) set and hatch records;

(D) egg receipts; and

(E) egg/chick orders or invoices.

(ii) Records shall be maintained for 3 years.

(iii) On-site inspections of flocks and premises will be conducted if the State Inspector determines that a breach of sanitation, blood testing, or other provisions has occurred for Plan programs for which the flocks have or are being qualified.

(11) Debarment from participation.

(a) Participants in the Plan, who after investigation by the Department or its representative, are notified in writing of their apparent noncompliance with the Plan provisions or regulations of the Department, shall be afforded a reasonable time, as specified by the Department, within which to demonstrate or achieve compliance.

(b) If compliance is not demonstrated or achieved within the specified time, the Department may debar the participant from further participation in the Plan for such period, or indefinitely, as the Department may deem appropriate.

(c) The debarred participant shall be afforded notice of the bases for the debarment and opportunity to present their views with respect to the debarment in accordance with procedures adopted by the Department.

(d) The Department shall thereupon decide whether the debarment order shall continue in effect.

(e) Such decision shall be final unless the debarred participant, within 30 days after the issuance of the debarment order, requests the Administrator to determine the eligibility of the debarred participant for participation in the Plan.

(i) In such event the Administrator shall determine the matter de novo in accordance with the rules of practice in 7 CFR part 50, which are hereby made applicable to proceedings before the Administrator under this section.

(ii) The definitions in 7 CFR 50.10 and the following definitions shall apply with respect to terms used in such rules of practice.

(12) Testing.

(a) Poultry must be more than 4 months of age when tested for an official classification except,

(i) That turkey candidates may be tested at more than 12 weeks of age;

(ii) That game bird candidates may be tested when more than 4 months of age or upon reaching sexual maturity, whichever comes first;

(iii) That ostrich, emu, rhea, and cassowary candidates may be tested when more than 12 months of age.

(b) Samples for official tests shall be collected by an Authorized Agent, Authorized Testing Agent, or State Inspector and tested by an authorized laboratory, except that the stained antigen, rapid whole-blood test for pullorum-typhoid may be conducted by an Authorized Testing Agent or State Inspector.

(c) For Plan programs in which a representative sample may be tested in lieu of an entire flock, except the ostrich, emu, rhea, and cassowary program, the minimum number tested shall be 30 birds per house, with at least 1 bird taken from each pen and unit in the house. The ratio of male to female birds in representative samples of birds from meat-type chicken, waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game bird flocks must be the same as the ratio of male to female birds in the flock. In houses containing fewer than 30 birds other than ostriches, emus, rheas, and cassowaries, all birds in the house must be tested.

(d) The Department adopts all sampling and testing procedures specified in Title 9 CFR 145-147 (2013) which incorporated by reference.