La. Admin. Code tit. 76 § I-704

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 9, September 20, 2024

Section I-704 - Product Registration and Supply Chain Verification

A. Seafood or seafood products that are packaged for retail sale shall be registered with LDWF. No packaged retail seafood product shall possess the LWSCP logo unless it has been registered. Seafood products which are produced, packaged, and sold exclusively at the location of retail sale shall be exempt from the registration requirement.

1. Applications for product registration shall only be submitted by the person who owns the brand.

2. Product registrations are valid for 1 year and expire 12 months from the date of registration.

3. Applications for product registration shall be accepted at any time of the year.

4. Persons applying to register a product shall submit to LDWF the following information:

a. the brand name of the product to be registered;

b. the person who owns the brand name listed;

c. the person who packages the product;

d. species or species group indicated on product packaging;

e. invoices from the previous three months showing LWSCP-certified seafood purchases specific to the product being registered from a vendor who possesses an LWSCP permit. Exceptions to invoice submission requirements may be considered on a case-by-case basis for the following reasons:

i. bulk purchases;

ii. purchases from a vendor who has applied for, but does not yet possess an LWSCP permit, upon application approval and issuance of an LWSCP permit to the vendor;

f. photo or image of package containing product brand and name.

5. When a person registering a product does not directly purchase the seafood to be used in the product, the packager of the product may submit invoices to satisfy the invoice submission requirements of this Subsection.

B. Retailers and restaurants selling and/or serving unpackaged seafood, prepared or not prepared, who wish to identify such seafood with the LWSCP logo shall provide, at the time of initial application, invoices from the previous three months showing LWSCP-certified seafood purchases from a vendor who possesses an LWSCP permit at the time of their application.

1. At each annual permit renewal thereafter, invoices meeting these provisions from 6 months out of the last 12 months shall be submitted.

2. Exceptions to invoice submission requirements may be considered on a case-by-case basis for the following reasons:

a. bulk purchases;

b. purchases from a vendor who has applied for, but does not yet possess an LWSCP permit, upon application approval and issuance of an LWSCP permit to the vendor;

c. persons possessing an LWSCP less than 12 months at the time or renewal.

C. Invoices required under the provisions of this Section shall not be required to disclose pricing information. Pricing information may be redacted, so long as the remainder of the invoice remains unaltered and intact. Invoices provided under the provisions of this Section are for verification purposes only and the only record to be maintained shall be a digital image of the submitted invoice. With the exception of invoice date, LDWF shall not enter information contained on submitted invoices into any database or other electronic format whatsoever. Invoices submitted under the provisions of this Section shall be considered fisheries-dependent data under LAC 76:I.321.F and held confidential and shall not be subject to public records requests.

D. Persons participating in an LDWF-approved electronic traceability program and who allow LDWF access for verification purposes shall be exempt from all invoice submission provisions of this Section.

La. Admin. Code tit. 76, § I-704

Promulgated by the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, Wildlife and Fisheries Commission, LR 40:805 (April 2014), repromulgated LR 40:1391 (July 2014).

AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 56:578.15 and R.S. 56:23.