where service is or would be performed, or (b) in case the service is or would be performed with respect to any livestock or product in which any corporation, partnership, or other person within (a) (1) of this subdivision has a contract or other financial interest.

(2) Procedure. All cases arising under this paragraph shall be conducted in accordance with the rules of practice governing withdrawal of inspection and grading service under the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 as contained in Part 50 of this chapter.

(b) For miscellaneous reasons. An application or a request for service may be rejected, or the benefits of the service may be otherwise denied to, or withdrawn from, any person, without a hearing, by the official in charge of the appropriate office of grading, with the concurrence of the Director or Chief (1) for administrative reasons such as the nonavailability of personnel to perform the service; (2) for the failure to pay for service; (3) in case the application or request relates to livestock or products which are not eligible for service under § 53.5, or which are unclean or are in an unclean establishment; (4) for other noncompliance with the conditions on which service is available as provided in the regulations, except matters covered by paragraph (a) of this section; or (5) in case the person is a partnership, corporation, or other person from whom the benefits of the service are currently being withheld under paragraph (a) of this section. Notice of such denial or withdrawal, and the reasons therefor, shall promptly be given to the person involved.

(c) Filing of records. The final orders in formal proceedings under paragraph (a) of this section to deny or withdraw the service under the regulations (except orders required for good cause to be held confidential and not cited as precedents) and other records in such proceedings (except those required for good cause to be held confidential) shall be filed with the Hearing Clerk and shall be available for inspection by persons having a proper interest therein.

[24 F.R. 5280, June 30, 1959, as amended at 30 F.R. 4157, Mar. 31, 1965; 34 F.R. 19337, Dec. 6, 1969]

§ 53.14 Financial interest of official grader.

No official grader shall grade or determine compliance of any livestock or products in which he or any of his relatives by blood or marriage is directly or indirectly financially interested.

[24 F.R. 5280, June 30, 1959, as amended at 30 F.R. 4157, Mar. 31, 1965]

§ 53.15 Accessibility and refrigeration of products; access to establishments. (a) The applicant shall cause livestock or products, with respect to which service is requested, to be made easily accessible for examination and to be so placed, with adequate illuminating facilities, as to disclose their class, grade, other quality, and compliance. Supervisors of grading and other employees of the Department responsible for maintaining uniformity and accuracy of service under the regulations shall have access to all parts of establishments covered by approved applications for service under the regulations, for the purpose of examining all livestock or products in the establishments which have been or are to be graded or examined for compliance with specifications or which bear any marks of grade or compliance.

(b) Grading service will be furnished for meat in carcass form or wholesale cuts only if properly chilled. Determination of class, grade, or other quality of carcass meat or wholesale cuts of meat under the standards in Subpart B of this part will not be made if such carcass meat or wholesale cuts are in a frozen state.

[24 F.R. 5280, June 30, 1959, as amended at 30 FR. 4157, Mar. 31, 1965]

§ 53.16 Official certificates.

(a) Required; exception. The official grader shall prepare, sign, and issue official certificates covering products graded by him, or for which he has determined compliance, unless through special arrangements approved by the Chief this is not required, in which case complete records of the service shall be furnished the office of grading.

(b) Form. (1) The following constitutes a form of official certificate for products under the regulations:

APPLICANT'S CODE

DATE

warded to a central office designated by the Chief, and such copies shall be kept on file until other disposition is ordered by the Administrator. Additional copies will be furnished to any person financially interested in the products involved upon the payment of fees as provided in § 53.29(g).

[34 F.R. 19337, Dec. 6, 1969]

§ 53.17

Advance information concerning service rendered.

Upon request of any applicant, all or any part of the contents of any certificate issued to him under the regulations, or other notification concerning the determination of class, grade, other quality, or compliance of livestock or products for such applicant may be transmitted by telegraph or telephone to him, or to any person designated by him, at his expense. [24 F.R. 5280, June 30, 1959, as amended at 30 F.R. 4157, Mar. 31, 1965]

§ 53.18 Marking of products.

All products for which class and grade under the standards in Subpart B of this part, or compliance, is determined under the regulations, or the immediate and shipping containers thereof, shall be stamped, branded, or otherwise marked with an appropriate official identification: Provided, That except as otherwise directed by the Chief, such marking will not be required when an applicant only desires official certificates. The marking of products, or their containers, as required by this section shall be done by official graders or under their immediate supervision.

or "Cull," as provided in the standards in Subpart B of this part and accompanied when necessary by the class designation "Stag," "Bull," "Veal," "Calf," "Yearling Mutton," or "Mutton," constitutes a form of official identification under the regulations to show the quality grade, and where necessary the class, under said standards, of steer, heifer, and cow beef, stag beef, bull beef, veal, calf, lamb, yearling mutton, and mutton. The code identification letters of the grader performing the service will appear intermittently outside the shield.

(c) A shield enclosing the letters "USDA" and the words "Yield Grade," as shown below, with the appropriate cutability (yield) grade designation "1," "2," "3," "4," or "5" as provided in the standards in Subpart B of this part constitutes a form of official identification under the regulations to show the cutability (yield) grade under said standards. The code identification letters of the grader performing the service will appear outside the shield.

Figure 5

The letters "AC," "XE," and "UF" shown in figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 are examples, respectively, of the code identification letters of the official grader performing the service.

[34 FR. 19338, Dec. 6, 1969]

§ 53.20 Custody of identification devices.

All identification devices used in marking products or the containers thereof under the regulations, including those indicating compliance with specifications approved by the Chief, shall be kept in the custody of the Branch, and accurate records shall be kept by the Branch of all such devices. Each office of grading shall keep a record of the devices assigned to it. Such devices shall be distributed only to persons authorized by the Department, who shall keep the devices in their possession or control at all times and maintain complete records of such devices.

[34 F.R. 19339, Dec. 6, 1969]

§ 53.21

APPEAL SERVICE

What is appeal service; marking products on appeal; requirements for appeal; certain determinations not appealable.

(a) Appeal service is a redetermination of the class, grade, other quality, or compliance of product when the applicant for the appeal service formally challenges the correctness of the original determination.

Only a person who has title to, or is a party to a contract for the sale of, a product may request appeal service with respect to such product and if the original determination of class, grade, other quality or compliance is found on appeal to have been in error all incorrect marks of class, grade, other quality and compliance will be removed from the product, and if the person having title to the product so requests, correct marks as determined on the appeal will be applied to the product. Examination requested to determine the class, grade, other quality, or compliance of a product which has been altered or has undergone a material change since the original service, or examination of product requested for the purpose of obtaining an up-to-date certificate and not involving any question as to the correctness of the original service for the product involved, shall be considered equivalent to original service and not appeal service.

(b) Grade determinations for the following cannot be appealed: any lot of a product consisting of less than ten similar units; wholesale cuts, or other subdivisions of meat originally graded as larger units; and veal and calf carcasses originally graded with hides on. Moreover, appeal service will not be furnished with respect to product that has been altered or has undergone any material change since the original service. § 53.22

Request for appeal service.

Except as otherwise provided in § 53.21, a request for appeal service with respect to any product under the regulations may be made by any person who is financially interested in the product when he disagrees with the determination as to class, grade, other quality, or compliance of the product as shown by the markings on the product or its containers, or as stated in the applicable

certificate. A request for appeal service shall be filed with the Chief, directly or through the official grader who performed the original service or the official in charge of the office of grading to which such grader was assigned at the time of the service, or through the nearest office of grading. The request shall state the reasons therefor and may be accompanied by a copy of any previous certificate or report, or any other information which the applicant may have received regarding the product at the time of the original service. Such request may be made orally (including by telephone) or in writing (including by telegram). If made orally, the person receiving the request may require that it be confirmed in writing. Requests for appeal service received through an offcial grader or an office of grading shall be transmitted promptly to the Chief for instructions.

§ 53.23 When request for appeal service may be withdrawn.

A request for appeal service may be withdrawn by the applicant at any time before the appeal service has been performed, upon payment of any expenses already incurred under the regulations by the Branch in connection therewith. § 53.24 Denial or withdrawal of appeal service.

A request for appeal service may be rejected or such service may be otherwise denied to or withdrawn from any person, without a hearing, in accordance with the procedure set forth in § 53.13(b), if it shall appear that the person or product involved is not eligible for appeal service under § 53.21, or that the identity of the product has been lost; or for any of the causes set forth in § 53.13(b). Appeal service may also be denied to, or withdrawn from, any person in any case under § 53.13(a), in accordance with the procedure set forth in said section.

§ 53.25 Who shall perform appeal

service.

Appeal service for products shall be performed by official graders designated by the Chief or by the official in charge of an office of grading when so authorized by the Chief, and shall be conducted jointly by two official graders, or more