Packaging and Labeling Legislation

The subcommittee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:05 a.m., in room 2228, New Senate Office Building, Senator Philip A. Hart presiding. Present: Senators Hart, Long of Missouri, and Hruska.

Also present: Senator Sam J. Ervin, Jr., Judiciary Committee. S. Jerry Cohen, assistant counsel; Peter N. Chumbris, counsel for the minority; Ronald D. Raitt, counsel for the minority; James E. Bailey, counsel for the minority; George E. Clifford, assistant counsel; Dorothy D. Goodwin, assistant counsel; Paul S. Green, editorial director; and Gladys E. Montier, clerk.

Senator HART (presiding). The committee will be in order. Today we open hearings on S. 387, the truth-in-packaging bill. (S. 387 follows:)

[S. 387, 88th Cong., 1st sess.]

A BILL To amend the Clayton Act to prohibit restraints of trade carried into effect through the use of unfair and deceptive methods of packaging or labeling certain consumer commodities distributed in commerce, and for other purposes

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That (a) the Act entitled "An Act to supplement existing laws against unlawful restraints and monopolies, and for other purposes", approved October 15, 1914 (38 Stat. 730 et seq.; 15 U.S.C. 12 et seq.), commonly known as the Clayton Act, is amended by inserting therein, immediately after section 3 thereof, the following new section:

"SEC. 3A. (a) It shall be unlawful for any person engaged in the packaging or labeling of any consumer commodity (as defined by this section) for distribution in commerce, or for any person (other than a common carrier for hire, a contract carrier for hire, or a freight forwarder for hire) engaged in the distribution in commerce of any packaged or labeled consumer commodity, to distribute or to cause to be distributed in commerce any such commodity if such commodity is contained in a package, or if there is affixed to that commodity a label, which does not conform to regulations promulgated pursuant to this section.

"(b) The prohibition contained in this subsection shall not apply to persons engaged in business as wholesale or retail distributors of consumer commodities except to the extent that such persons (1) are engaged in the packaging or labeling of such commodities, or (2) determine by any means the nature, form, or content of packages in which such commodities are contained or labels affixed to such commodities.

"(c) As soon as practicable after the effective date of this section, regulations shall be promulgated to

"(1) require the net quantity of contents (in terms of weight, measure, or count, or any combination thereof) of consumer commodities to be stated upon the front panel of packages containing such commodities, and upon any labels affixed to such commodities;

"(2) establish minimum standards with respect to the location and prominence of statements of the net quantity of contents (including minimum standards as to the type size and face in which such statements shall be made) appearing upon packages containing any consumer commodity and upon labels affixed to any such commodity;

"(3) prohibit the addition to such statements of net quantity of contents of any qualifying words or phrases;

"(4) prohibit the placement upon any package containing such commodity, or upon any label affixed thereto, of any printed matter stating or representing by implication that such commodity is offered for retail sale at a price lower than the ordinary and customary retail sale price, or that a retail sale price advantage is accorded to retail purchasers thereof by reason of the size of that package or the quantity of its contents, except that no regulation promulgated under this section shall prevent any person engaged at any time in the sale of any consumer commodity at retail to ultimate purchasers thereof from placing upon any such commodity, or upon any package containing that commodity, any marking which states the true and correct retail sale price at which such person at that time is offering that commodity for sale to such purchasers;

"(5) contain such exceptions to the foregoing requirements as the promulgating authority may determine to be required by the nature, form, or quantity of particular consumer commodities, except that no exception may be made if that exception would deprive consumers of reasonable opportunity to make rational comparisons between or among competing products; and

"(6) prevent the placement, upon any package in which such commodity is distributed for retail sale, of any illustration or pictorial matter which may deceive retail purchasers in any respect as to the contents of that package.

“(d)(1) Regulations under this section shall be promulgated by—

"(A) the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare, with respect to any consumer commodity which is a food, drug, device, or cosmetic, as each such term is defined by section 201 of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 321); and

"(B) the Federal Trade Commission with respect to any other consumer commodity.

“(2) Such regulations adopted by the Secretary and by the Commission shall be uniform in content and application to the greatest practicable extent, as determined by consultation between the Secretary and the Commission.

"(e) Whenever the Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare (as to any food, drug, device, or cosmetic), or the Federal Trade Commission as to any other consumer commodity, determines that additional regulations are necessary to establish or preserve fair competition between or among competing products by enabling consumers to make rational comparison with respect to price and other qualities, or to prevent the deception of consumers as to such product, the Secretary or the Commission, as the case may be shall promulgate under this subsection with respect to that commodity regulations effective to

"(1) establish reasonable weights or quantities, or fractions or multiples thereof, in which that commodity shall be distributed for retail sale; "(2) prevent the distribution of that commodity for retail sale in packages of sizes, shapes, or dimensional proportions which may deceive retail purchasers as to the net quantity of the contents thereof (in terms of weight, measure, or count);

"(3) establish and define standards of designations of size (other than statements of net quantity of contents) which may be used to characterize quantitatively the contents of packages containing that commodiy;

"(4) establish and define the net quantity of any commodity (in terms of weight, measure, or count) which shall constitute a serving, if that commodity is distributed to retail purchasers in a package or with a label which bears a representation as to the number of servings provided by the net quantity of contents contained in that package or to which that label is affixed;

"(5) establish and define standards for the quantitative designation of the contents of packages containing any consumer commodity of a kind the net quantity of contents of which cannot meaningfully be designated in terms of weight, measure, or count; and

« iepriekšējā Turpināt »

Grāmatas

Packaging and Labeling Legislation: Hearings...88-1