21 U.S.C. § 466 — Imports

(a) Compliance with standards and regulations; status after importation: No slaughtered poultry, or parts or products of it, may be imported into the United States unless it is healthful, wholesome, fit for human food, not adulterated, and free of any dye, chemical, preservative, or ingredient that would make it unhealthful, unwholesome, adulterated, or unfit to eat. It must also follow the rules the Secretary of Agriculture makes to ensure imported poultry meets the standards set in this chapter. Once imported poultry clears these rules, it is treated exactly like domestic slaughtered poultry — covered by this chapter, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, and related laws. (b) Rules and regulations; destruction and exportation of refused imports: The Secretary of Agriculture may write rules to carry out this section, including rules for destroying poultry that is offered for import and refused entry — unless the person receiving the poultry ("consignee") exports it within the time the rules set. (c) Storage, cartage and labor charges for imports refused admission: If poultry is refused entry under this section, the owner or consignee must pay all storage, cartage, and labor charges for it. If they don't pay, that unpaid amount becomes a lien (legal claim) against any other products that owner or consignee later imports. (d) Domestic standards and processing facilities applicable; enforcement: (1) Despite any other law, all poultry or poultry parts offered for import that could be used as human food must (A) meet inspection, sanitary, quality, species-verification, and residue standards equal to U.S. standards, and (B) be processed in facilities and under conditions that are equally sanitary to U.S. facilities. (2)(A) The Secretary may treat a foreign country's standard as equal to the U.S. standard if that country gives the Secretary scientific evidence, following risk-assessment methods the Secretary approves, showing its standard reaches the same level of "sanitary protection" — protection that safeguards public health. (B) The Secretary may also determine, on a scientific basis, that a foreign standard does not meet the level of protection the Secretary considers appropriate, and must explain that decision in writing to the foreign country on request. (3) Any imported poultry that doesn't meet these standards may not enter the United States. (4) The Secretary enforces this subsection by (A) randomly inspecting for species verification and for residues, and (B) randomly sampling and testing internal organs and fat from carcasses for residues, done by the exporting country at the point of slaughter, using methods the Secretary approves.