21 U.S.C. § 604 — Post mortem examination of carcasses and marking or labeling; destruction of carcasses condemned; reinspection

For the purposes hereinbefore set forth the Secretary^* shall cause to be made by inspectors appointed for that purpose a post mortem examination and inspection of the carcasses and parts thereof of all amenable species^* to be prepared at any slaughtering, meat-canning, salting, packing, rendering, or similar establishment in any State^*, Territory^*, or the District of Columbia as articles of commerce^* which are capable of use as human food; and the carcasses and parts thereof of all such animals found to be not adulterated shall be marked, stamped, tagged, or labeled as “Inspected and passed”; and said inspectors shall label, mark, stamp, or tag as “Inspected and condemned” all carcasses and parts thereof of animals found to be adulterated; and all carcasses and parts thereof thus inspected and condemned shall be destroyed for food purposes by the said establishment in the presence of an inspector, and the Secretary may remove inspectors from any such establishment which fails to so destroy any such condemned carcass or part thereof, and said inspectors, after said first inspection, shall, when they deem it necessary, reinspect said carcasses or parts thereof to determine whether since the first inspection the same have become adulterated, and if any carcass or any part thereof shall, upon examination and inspection subsequent to the first examination and inspection, be found to be adulterated, it shall be destroyed for food purposes by the said establishment in the presence of an inspector, and the Secretary may remove inspectors from any establishment which fails to so destroy any such condemned carcass or part thereof.