Grading of Agricultural ProduceE+W+S

1 Prescription and use of grade designations.E+W+S

(1)The Minister may by regulations made under this Act prescribe such designations (in this Act referred to as “grade designations”) as he may consider appropriate to indicate the quality of any articles of agricultural produce, [F1or fishery produce] and any such regulations shall contain a definition (in this Act referred to as “the statutory definition”) of the quality indicated by every grade designation thereby prescribed.

(2)Where any person sells any article of agricultural produce [F1or fishery produce] to which a grade designation is applied, then, notwithstanding any contract or notice to the contrary, it shall be deemed to be a term of the contract of sale that the quality of the article accords with the statutory definition indicated by the grade designation.

(3)For the purposes of this Act, a grade designation shall be deemed to be applied to an article if it is used by or on behalf of the vendor, when the article is sold or delivered or exposed or offered for sale, in any manner calculated to lead to the belief that the quality of the article in connection with which it is used accords with the statutory definition indicated by the grade designation.

2 Grade designation marks. E+W+S

(1)Regulations made by the Minister under this Act may prescribe such mark (in this Act referred to as a “grade designation mark”) as he may consider appropriate to represent any grade designation, and may make provision for authorising, or empowering any person or body of persons to authorise, subject to such conditions as may be attached to the authorisation, the marking with a grade designation mark of any article in respect of which such a mark has been prescribed or of any covering containing, or label attached to, any such article.

(2)Any person who sells or delivers or exposes or offers for sale any article marked with a grade designation mark, or who uses any covering or label so marked, whether the article, covering or label was so marked by him or by some other person, shall be deemed for the purposes of the last foregoing section to use, in connection with the article marked or in connection with any article which is contained in the covering or to which the label is attached, as the case may be, the grade designation represented by the mark.

(3)Any person who—

(a)forges any grade designation mark; or

(b)makes, disposes of, or has in his possession, any die, block, machine, or other instrument, for the purpose of forging a grade designation mark; or

[F2(c)uses in connection with any article whatsoever, any mark of such a character or in such manner as to be calculated, by reason of the resemblance of that mark to a grade designation mark, to deceive;]

shall, unless he proves that he acted without intent to [F3deceive], be liable on summary conviction to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to a fine not exceeding [F4£100], or, on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine, or to both imprisonment and fine.

(4)No person shall mark any article, covering or label with a grade designation mark unless he is authorised to do so by or under regulations made under this Act, and any person who acts in contravention of this subsection shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding [F5level 3 on the standard scale].

Special provisions as to EggsE+W+S

3 Marking of preserved eggs. E+W+S

Subject as hereinafter provided, it shall not, . . . F6be lawful to sell or expose for sale any egg which has been subjected to any process of preservation unless the egg is marked in the prescribed manner, and any person who acts in contravention of this section shall be liable on summary conviction in the case of a first offence to a fine not exceeding [F7[F8£20]][F7level 3 on the standard scale], and in the case of a second or subsequent offence to a fine not exceeding [F7[F8£100]:][F7level 3 on the standard scale]

4 Cold and chemical storage of eggs. E+W+S

(1)Any premises used or intended to be used by way of trade or for purposes of gain for the cold storage or chemical storage of eggs may be registered in the prescribed manner in a register kept by the council of the county . . . F9in which the premises are situated, in accordance with regulations made by the Minister under this Act.

(2)If and so long as any Order in Council made under section two of the M1Merchandise Marks Act, 1926, is in force prohibiting the sale or the exposure for sale in the United Kingdom of imported eggs unless they bear an indication of origin [F10or an order under section 8 of the M2Trade Descriptions Act 1968 [F11or any regulation of the European Communities directly applicable in Great Britain]is in force imposing requirements for securing that such eggs are marked with or accompanied by such an indication] the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say:—

(a)no premises shall be used by way of trade or for the purposes of gain for the cold storage or chemical storage of eggs, unless the premises are registered premises, and, if any premises are used in contravention of the provisions of this section, the occupier of the premises shall be guilty of an offence under this section:

[F12(b)it shall not be lawful to cause British eggs to be placed in cold storage or chemical storage in any registered premises unless notice in writing containing the prescribed particulars is given at or before the time of the placing to the council by which the premises are registered, and either—

(i)the eggs are marked in the prescribed manner; or

(ii)the eggs are not intended for sale by retail in shell and are kept in a container which is marked in the prescribed manner;

and if any person contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of this paragraph he shall be guilty of an offence under this section:]

[F12(ba)where British eggs have been placed in cold storage or chemical storage in any registered premises without being marked in the prescribed manner it shall not be lawful to cause them to be removed from those premises unless not less than forty-eight hours’ notice in writing containing the prescribed particulars has been given to the council by which the premises are registered, and either—

(i)the eggs are marked in the prescribed manner; or

(ii)the eggs are kept in a container marked in the prescribed manner and such evidence has been furnished to that council as is reasonably sufficient to satisfy the council that they are not intended for sale by retail in shell;

and if any person contravenes or fails to comply with the provisions of this paragraph he shall be guilty of an offence under this section:]

[F12(bb)the occupier of any registered premises and any person who causes British eggs to be placed in cold storage or chemical storage in such premises shall keep the prescribed records and permit any duly authorised officer of the council of the county . . . F13to inspect those records at all reasonable times; and if any person fails to comply with the provisions of this paragraph he shall be guilty of an offence under this section]

(c)an officer of the council of any county . . . F13, if authorised in that behalf and on production if so required of his authority, may at any time during the hours when the premises are open for business enter any premises in which he has reason to believe that eggs are kept in cold storage or chemical storage, and may search for and inspect eggs in the premises, and may require any person whom he finds in or about the premises to give such information as may reasonably be demanded of him as to any name and address required by the officer for the purposes of enabling him to carry out his duties under this Act, and any person who obstructs an officer so authorised in the execution of the powers conferred on him by this section or wilfully withholds any information which any such officer is empowered by this Act to require of him shall be guilty of an offence under this section:

(d)if any person removes, alters or obliterates any mark which, in compliance with the requirements of the foregoing provisions of this section, was borne by any egg at the time when it was stored in any such premises as aforesaid, or sells or exposes for sale any egg from which such a mark has been removed or on which such a mark has been altered or obliterated, he shall, unless he proves that he acted without intent to defraud, be guilty of an offence under this section, and in the case of a second or subsequent offence under this paragraph the court may, in addition to any other penalty, order any eggs in relation to which the offence has been committed to be forfeited:

(e)any person guilty of an offence under this section shall be liable on summary conviction in the case of a first offence to a fine not exceeding [F14five pounds][F14level 3 on the standard scale]and in the case of a second or subsequent offence to a fine not exceeding [F14twenty pounds]. [F14level 3 on the standard scale]

SupplementaryE+W+S

5 Enforcement and expenses. E+W+S

Subject as hereinafter provided, it shall be the duty of the council of every county . . . F15to enforce within their county . . . F15the provisions of this Act, and for that purpose to appoint such officers as may be necessary, and any expenses incurred by a council under this Act shall be defrayed . . . F15as part of their expenses for general county purposes . . . F15:

6 Provisions as to regulations and orders.E+W+S

(1)All regulations made under this Act shall be laid before Parliament as soon as may be after they are made, and if either House of Parliament, within the next subsequent twenty-one days on which the House sat next after the regulations are laid before it presents an Address to His Majesty praying that the regulations of any part of them may be annulled, they shall thenceforth be void, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder or to the making of new regulations.

(2)Any order made or notice served under this Act may be varied or revoked by any subsequent order made or notice served in like manner.

(3). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F17

7 Interpretation. E+W+S

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the meanings hereby respectively assigned to them, that is to say:—

• [F18“Agricultural produce” and “fishery produce” include respectively all produce of agriculture or horticulture and of the fishing industry, all articles of food or drink wholly, or partly manufactured or derived from any such produce as aforesaid, and fleeces and the skins of animals]

• “British eggs” means eggs produced in the United Kingdom:

• “Chemical storage” means storage for the purpose of preserving eggs by any process which does not alter the composition of the shells, including storage in any gas, vapour, or gaseous mixture:

• “Covering” includes any vessel, box, crate, wrapper, tray, or other container:

• “Egg” means an egg laid by a domestic fowl or domestic duck:

• “Grade designation” means a grade designation prescribed under this Act:

• “Label” includes any band or ticket:

• “Minister” means the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries:

• “Prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister under this Act:

• “Quality,” in relation to any articles, includes the state and condition of those articles:

• “Registered premises” means premises for the time being registered in manner provided by this Act.

8 Application to Scotland. E+W+S

In the application of this Act to Scotland, references to the Board of Agriculture for Scotland shall be substituted for references to the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, references to a [F19council constituted under section 2 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 shall be substituted for references to a council of a county], and the expenses of any council shall be defrayed out of such rate as the council may appoint.

9 Saving for other Acts.E+W+S

The provisions of this Act shall be in addition to and not in derogation of the provisions of any other enactment relating to or affecting merchandise marks or the sale of any article with respect to which this Act applies.

10 Short title and extent.E+W+S

(1)This Act may be cited as the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, 1928.

(2)This Act shall not extend to Northern Ireland.