Each person, handler, firm or corporation shall clearly mark each container of milk or milk product, cream, yogurt, cream cheese, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese, soft cheese, eggnog or sour cream offered for retail sale with a last sale date. In accordance with the provisions of chapter 54, the Milk Regulation Board shall adopt regulations establishing standards and criteria for label type size, color and wording that is consistent with national standards and said board may incorporate by reference The Nutritional Education and Labeling Act, 21 CFR 101. The commissioner may impose a civil penalty, in accordance with the provisions of section 22-7, for a violation of this section.

(P.A. 73-269, S. 1, 3; P.A. 81-161, S. 1, 2; P.A. 82-102, S. 1, 2; P.A. 84-19, S. 1; P.A. 91-312, S. 30; P.A. 98-12, S. 20, 22; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, S. 146(e); P.A. 04-189, S. 1; P.A. 05-175, S. 12, 25; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-3, S. 97; P.A. 06-19, S. 4.)

History: P.A. 81-161 amended Subsec. (a) by adding cream, yogurt, cream cheese, cottage cheese, ricotta cheese and sour cream to products requiring container dating, changed “January 1, 1974” to “January 1, 1982” and specified that last sale date shall not exceed 10 days from pasteurization date if milk or cream pasteurized at less than 212 degrees Fahrenheit and amended Subsec. (b) to require that regulations be in accordance with chapter 54 and to empower board to change last sale date; P.A. 82-102 amended Subsec. (a) to extent the last sale date from 10 to 12 days and amended Subsec. (b) to authorize the milk regulation board to establish a procedure whereby the commissioner could extend the last sale date beyond 12 days for an individual milk processor; P.A. 84-19 amended Subsec. (b) by increasing the pasteurization temperature from 200 degrees Fahrenheit to 212 degrees Fahrenheit; P.A. 91-312 amended Subsec. (a) to require each container of eggnog to be marked with the last sale date; P.A. 98-12 deleted reference to repealed Sec. 22-135, effective July 1, 1998; June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6 replaced Commissioner of Agriculture with Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective July 1, 2004; P.A. 04-189 repealed Sec. 146 of June 30 Sp. Sess. P.A. 03-6, thereby reversing the merger of the Departments of Agriculture and Consumer Protection, effective June 1, 2004; P.A. 05-175, in Sec. 12, replaced former section with new provisions re last sale date on containers, regulations to be adopted by Milk Regulation Board and commissioner's authority to impose civil penalty for violation of section and, in Sec. 25, repealed the section; June Sp. Sess. P.A. 05-3 amended Sec. 25 of P.A. 05-175 to remove section from list of sections to be repealed; P.A. 06-19 made technical changes, effective May 2, 2006.