REPORT TITLE:
Aquatic Food Labeling


DESCRIPTION:
Makes it unlawful to misrepresent aquatic foods from outside the
state as being Hawaiian in origin.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
                                                        
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES                H.B. NO.966        
TWENTIETH LEGISLATURE, 1999                                
STATE OF HAWAII                                            
                                                             
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                   A  BILL  FOR  AN  ACT

RELATING TO AQUATIC FOODS.



BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

 1      SECTION 1.  Chapter 486, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended
 
 2 by adding a new section to be appropriately designated and to
 
 3 read as follows:
 
 4      "�486-    Aquatic foods; misrepresentation as Hawaiian.  (a)
 
 5 It shall be unlawful for a person to:
 
 6      (1)  Knowingly possess, sell, offer to sell, or expose for
 
 7           sale to a buyer, any aquatic food grown, manufactured,
 
 8           significantly processed, or landed outside of the
 
 9           State, which is misrepresented as having been grown,
 
10           manufactured, significantly processed, or landed within
 
11           the State.
 
12      (2)  Knowingly possess, sell, offer to sell, or expose for
 
13           sale to a buyer, any aquatic food grown, manufactured,
 
14           significantly processed, or landed outside of the
 
15           State, which is identified with a label using the
 
16           aquatic food's Hawaiian name, and which lacks a
 
17           conspicuous disclaimer affixed to all packages, bulk
 
18           displays, containers, and any other devices used to
 
19           sell the aquatic food, which clearly states that the
 
20           aquatic food is imported from outside of the state.
 

 
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                                     H.B. NO.966        
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1      (b)  It shall be unlawful for a restaurant to:
 
 2      Knowingly sell, offer for sale, or expose for sale, any
 
 3 aquatic food that has been landed at any location outside of the
 
 4 State where the bill of fare, placard, menu, or other device or
 
 5 method used by the restaurant to identify and sell the aquatic
 
 6 food, identifies the aquatic food with its Hawaiian name without
 
 7 clearly stating that the aquatic food is imported from outside of
 
 8 the state.
 
 9      (c)  Any person who violates this section shall be fined not
 
10 less than $5,000 for each separate offense."
 
11      (d)  For the purposes of this section:
 
12      "Aquatic food" means any fish, crustacean, mollusk,
 
13 gastropod, echinoderm, or aquatic plant intended for human
 
14 consumption.
 
15      "Buyer" means a wholesaler, retail store, or consumer.
 
16      "Landed" means caught or harvested.
 
17      "Restaurant" means any retail eating establishment
 
18 authorized by the department of health to operate as a food
 
19 service establishment, where food is sold for on-site
 
20 consumption.
 
21      "Retail" has the same meaning as in section 237-16.
 
22      "Retail store" means any establishment organized for
 
23 retailing goods including but not limited to food and grocery
 
24 stores.
 

 
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                                     H.B. NO.966        
                                                        
                                                        

 
 1      "State" has the same meaning as in article XV, section 1 of
 
 2 the Hawaii state constitution.
 
 3      "Wholesaler" means any person who buys or sells aquatic food
 
 4 or aquatic products in trade channels other than retail.
 
 5      SECTION 2   New statutory material is underscored.
 
 6      SECTION 3.  This Act shall take effect on December 31, 1999.
 
 7 
 
 8                         INTRODUCED BY:___________________________