---
kind: "section"
citation: "21 U.S.C. § 467a"
title: "21"
title_heading: "Food and Drugs"
number: "467a"
heading: "Administrative detention; duration; pending judicial proceedings; notification of government authorities; release; removal of official marks"
release: "119-102"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/21/467a"
units:
  - "Chapter 10 — Poultry and Poultry Products Inspection"
---

# §467a. Administrative detention; duration; pending judicial proceedings; notification of government authorities; release; removal of official marks


Whenever any [poultry product](/usc/21/453.md?p=f), or any product exempted from the definition of a [poultry product](/usc/21/453.md?p=f), or any dead, dying, disabled, or diseased [poultry](/usc/21/453.md?p=e) is found by any [authorized](/usc/21/360eee–1.md?p=a-6) representative of the [Secretary](/usc/21/453.md?p=i) upon any premises where it is held for purposes of, or during or after [distribution](/usc/21/360eee.md?p=5) in, [commerce](/usc/21/453.md?p=a) or otherwise subject to this chapter, and there is reason to believe that any such article is [adulterated](/usc/21/453.md?p=g) or [misbranded](/usc/21/453.md?p=h) and is [capable of use as human food](/usc/21/453.md?p=v), or that it has not been inspected, in violation of the provisions of this chapter or of any other Federal law or the laws of any [State](/usc/21/453.md?p=b) or [Territory](/usc/21/453.md?p=c), or the District of Columbia, or that it has been or is intended to be, distributed in violation of any such provisions, it may be detained by such representative for a period not to exceed twenty days, pending action under [section 467b of this title](/usc/21/467b.md) or notification of any Federal, [State](/usc/21/453.md?p=b), or other governmental authorities having jurisdiction over such article or [poultry](/usc/21/453.md?p=e), and shall not be moved by any [person](/usc/21/453.md?p=j), from the place at which it is located when so detained, until released by such representative. All [official marks](/usc/21/453.md?p=l) may be required by such representative to be removed from such article or [poultry](/usc/21/453.md?p=e) before it is released unless it appears to the satisfaction of the [Secretary](/usc/21/453.md?p=i) that the article or [poultry](/usc/21/453.md?p=e) is eligible to retain such marks.


## Source credit

(Pub. L. 85–172, § 19, as added Pub. L. 90–492, § 17, Aug. 18, 1968, 82 Stat. 805.)