Untitled Texas Attorney General Opinion ( 1946 )

OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL OF TEXAS
AUSTIN
iionorable George 2. cox
state iiealth Officer
Teras State 30ard of Xealth
amtin 2, Zexso
Dear sir:
, i-On81 Code Of
of Texs8, grovidea in part
Qt” &lk, or&m, or ekiamd xU.k, whether or rot
c&densed, evaporated, oonoentrated, powdered,
dried or deeeloated. irovided, that this
definition shall sot bs construed to include
an;- uistinctivc ;roarietary food coqound
gxpsred, end deeig;csr;etifor ieedinr; irLi%nta
md younr; children, aixi custo.mrlly ;Ised on
t.3 order of a I:hFsic.len.
;onorobla George 2. Cox, L;G@ 2
“>rtO,c. It shall IiereasXu bo u~Aa:vful t3
hEiIidl9 far Gi88, iiiUlUfCUtUi?c:, Or Sl.l.0 Wltlii2 tM.S
utote my tol"m of fillsa zilk. It is declared that
filled tilk ia an ndulteratod articla oi food ln-
J!rrious to t?,e public health, erd its sale aon-
stituteo e fraud upon the public. ;t SIlGll be
uzlnwful ror eny person to mnuD3cturv :rit!An
this jtate or to ship or deliver for dipzent ‘31
intraatata con5erce any filled Lzllk.*
The uiilk food product in question is identified 53 th
trade rmse, ncT.W!Iix? Ides1 Toppingn, ana the iiiatrutions
for mlxlng the iqredlenta, ~8 shown by a copy attached to
your letter, are substantially se follows: TO 4 30-@llon
batch, .zix li+$ gallons of mean (40*), 15$ gallons of skLned
dlk, 45 pound6 of vegetabls rat and 30 oulc8s Of LiTA-'XII."
R. ,Yl
p(j;;'s2 Ahe batch should be paeteurized to 150 degrees 2.
ror thirty minutae. i'ha vegetabla fat shoulri be added at
100 degrees 2. The 'betchshould be homi;:erized at :xessura
of 800-1200 lbe. The iz~-``~;;n sxmix ueea in the co;rr~.o~u~d
cootairs gelaria, corn starch, tapioca Z10ur aud gm trzy.a-
canth. The compound is to be sold in bottlee txthfully
labeled to show its trsde z~me, its L3~rodient.s a:id is3truc-
tions on how to >repSre, k88p nrd UYB it. i'rozaits hacri?tim
asd zixing instructions, it is SascuLjd to hevu tae taste, con-
sistsnoy, oolor acd eppearanoe of pure aman CO ba whippea and
uasd as a top#h(; for plea, aaLea;,fruits, paetriee and doesarts.
';iehove been unable to find any cases or fomer opinions
l,nvolvLng the violatioa of Article 713a, lenol Code of T’exns;
therefore, we hsve turned to the Federal Jilled ;lllk Act;
21 2. s* 2. A. i&o* 61. The wordi- ueed in the Federal
statute defining filled silk la e%uaost identical with the
Texes statute.
In the case of the United States vs. Carolarie Products so.,
1'51,3. ad, 969, the seventh 3lrcuF t ,"ourt of Appeals affirmd
a conviction for vi0letinG ttiaSederal statute gzohibitfng the
shi;mnt of fiiba nilk oh the Jvidence that G sroduot uicer
the trade ~BPJL ":~iib;ut", 100kini; li20 &? ivhlta ~suLLs``~I,CZ$&J:T
in appearance, 13cd coctiilninf;5.7 ;mr osht fat, cbizi'ly COCOiUt
oil and only l34 ;:cr cent buttclr fat, Is n ;;rO&aot i::tendad :o
sizullate LAlk. e q-uote tha Ianqua!; oL3 a ?0rtion 3f the
opirlon:
"?"'rO;l tiles% UllOOOtl-&dicted ;'3OtS 3 COUZt JZ 3.
Jury ;uoulC, of necessity, find tt,ot::ihut ma in-
tended to simulate milic and that it wan injurious
to pub110 health beoause the nurchasor obtained a
produot whioh looked like milk and ;Yae accepted as
a milk equivalent, whereas coaoahut oil had been
eubetituted for oream or butter fat, the virtuea
of butter fat being well known to a raad that de-
send6 80 completely on aowe* milk with a tiinlmum,
fixed by law, of butter fat or oream content."
The SourthCirouit Court of Appeals Fn the oaae of the
United State8 va. Carolene ‘c'roductoCo., 140 Barb. 26, 61, held
that e compound of skimmed tilk, cotton seed oil and fish llvar
011, being virtually indiatlngulshable rrom evaI:oratsd nilk in
taste, odor, aolor, appserenoe and consiatenog Is a compound Ln
sezIbblMO8 of milk ivithi=it!xaBilled Xilx Aot prohlbitlng the
shipment in ihterstate oonmeraa of skimmed zilk compounded with
any fat, or oil other than ailis fat. This opinion waa afriraed
by the Supreme Court oFthe &Lted Statas. (65 2. ct. 1, 323
‘U. 3. 13, 29 L. Ld. , 155 A. i. ii. 1371) XLso a68 sae:8
i2tO-238co. vs. State~iaastls, 69 i. &dc -.
It was held by the Seventh Clrouit s'ourt Of Aypals iii tile
aaaa of Caroh% ErOdUatS Co. Ye. jvaporattid ,ilk Aesc. et al,
93 y. 26 202, that filled lillk ae milk, xrorks a fraud on tae pub-
lic with restitihg danger to health, ahd the Paat that labels on
cans of Pilled milk tell the tz%th ae to the contents, does not
nullify the illegality of its shipment in isteretate commerae.
Apprfmtly the compound in question, sTj+;'tII?'
Ideal Topping,
is lhtehded ana rapresented to be an ipitation or semblance of
milk or aream and contain8 a hi&h percentage of vergetable oil..
In vbw of the Federal oaeee cited above, it is the opinion of
thie department that it fallf3 within the statutory definition
of filled milk, the nanufaoture ox? sale 0s Whi%h WOdd OOKL-
rtitute a vlolatfoo or art&ale 713a, Fenal Code of Texas.