Except where the context otherwise requires, for the purposes of this subpart the following terms shall be construed, respectively, to mean:

Egg/meat-type bird. Birds grown under confinement for the primary purpose of producing eggs and/or meat for human consumption.

Game birds. Domesticated fowl such as pheasants, partridge, quail, grouse, and guineas, but not doves and pigeons.

Raised-for-release bird. Birds grown under confinement for the primary purpose of producing eggs, chicks, started, or mature birds for release on game preserves or in the wild.

Participating flocks of egg/meat-type game birds, raised-for-release game birds, and the products produced from them shall comply with the applicable general provisions of subpart A of this part and the special provisions of this subpart. Participation is broken into the following categories of operation and products:

(a) The categories for operation are:

(1) Breeder. An individual or business that maintains a breeding flock for the purpose of producing eggs, chicks, started, or mature birds. A breeder that is also a hatchery and/or grower shall be categorized as a breeder.

(2) Hatchery. A category of operations in which an individual or business does not have a breeding flock, but hatches eggs for the purpose of producing chicks, started, or mature birds. A hatchery that is also a grower shall be categorized as a hatchery.

(3) Grower. A category of operations in which an individual or business does not have a breeding flock or hatchery, but raises birds for the purpose of selling started or mature birds.

(4) Dealer. An individual or business that resells eggs, chicks, started, or mature birds. Products a dealer handles are typically resold within 30 days or less.

(b) The categories for products are:

(1) Egg. An egg laid by a female bird for the purpose of hatching a chick.

(2) Chick. A bird that is newly hatched from an egg.

(3) Started bird. A bird that is between the age of a newly hatched chick and a mature bird.

(4) Mature bird. A bird that is fully colored and has reached the average maximum size specific to each species.

(c) Products shall lose their identity under Plan terminology when not maintained by Plan participants under the conditions prescribed in § 145.5(a).

(d) Hatching eggs produced by breeding flocks shall be nest clean, fumigated, or otherwise sanitized in accordance with part 147 of this subchapter.

(e) It is recommended that gallinaceous flocks and waterfowl flocks be kept separate.

(f) Any nutritive material provided to baby poultry must be free of the avian pathogens that are officially represented in the Plan disease classifications listed in § 145.10.

(g) A flock of game birds that are not breeders, but are located on the same premise as game bird breeders, shall be covered under the same NPIP hatchery approval number as long as the appropriate testing requirements have been met.

(h) All participating raised-for-release game bird flocks, regardless of whether they are breeders or non-breeders, shall be enrolled under this subpart.

(i) A breeder, hatchery, or grower may also be a dealer without being categorized as a dealer. To resell products under the assigned NPIP number and avoid losing NPIP flock classifications, products must be purchased from an NPIP participant with equal or greater classifications or from a flock with equivalent or greater testing requirements under official supervision.

(j) Subject to the approval of the Service and the Official State Agencies in the importing and exporting States, participating flocks may report poultry sales to importing States by using either VS Form 9-3, “Report of Sales of Hatching Eggs, Chicks, and Poults,” or by using an invoice form (9-3I) approved by the Official State Agency and the Service to identify poultry sales to clients. If the 9-3I form is used, the following information must be included on the form:

(1) The form number “9-3I”, printed or stamped on the invoice;

(2) The seller name and address;

(3) The date of shipment;

(4) The invoice number;

(5) The purchaser name and address;

(6) The quantity of products sold;

(7) Identification of the products by bird variety or by NPIP stock code as listed in the NPIP APHIS 91-55-078 appendix; and

(8) The appropriate NPIP illustrative design in § 145.10. One of the designs in § 145.10(b) or (g) must be used. The following information must be provided in or near the NPIP design:

(i) The NPIP State number and NPIP approval number; and

(ii) The NPIP classification for which product is qualified (e.g., U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean).

Participating flocks, and the eggs, chicks, started, and mature birds produced from them, which have met the respective requirements specified in this section may be designated by the following terms and the corresponding designs illustrated in § 145.10.

(a) [Reserved]

(b) U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean. A flock in which freedom from pullorum and typhoid has been demonstrated to the Official State Agency under paragraph (b)(1), (2), or (3) of this section. (See § 145.14 relating to the official blood test where applicable.):

(1) It has been officially blood tested within the past 12 months with either no reactors or reactors that, upon further bacteriological examination conducted in accordance with part 147 of this subchapter, fail to isolate S. pullorum or S. gallinarum.

(2) It is a started or mature bird flock that meets the following specifications as determined by the Official State Agency and the Service:

(i) The flock is located in a State where all persons performing poultry disease diagnostic services within the State are required to report to the Official State Agency within 48 hours the source of all poultry specimens from which S. pullorum or S. gallinarum is isolated;

(ii) The flock is composed entirely of birds that originated from U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean breeding flocks or from flocks that met equivalent requirements under official supervision; and

(iii) The flock is located on a premises where a flock not classified as U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean was located the previous year; Provided, That an Authorized Testing Agent must blood test up to 300 birds per flock, as described in § 145.14, if the Official State Agency determines that the flock has been exposed to pullorum-typhoid. In making determinations of exposure and setting the number of birds to be blood tested, the Official State Agency shall evaluate the results of any blood tests, described in § 145.14(a)(1), that were performed on an unclassified flock located on the premises during the previous year; the origins of the unclassified flock; and the probability of contacts between the flock for which qualification is being sought and infected wild birds, contact between the flock for which qualification is being sought and contaminated feed or waste, or contact between the flock for which qualification is being sought and birds, equipment, supplies, or personnel from flocks infected with pullorum-typhoid.

(3) It is a breeding flock that originated from U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean breeding flocks or from flocks that met equivalent requirements under official supervision, and in which a sample of 300 birds from flocks of more than 300, and each bird in flocks of 300 or less, has been officially tested for pullorum-typhoid with no reactors or reactors that upon bacteriologic examination fail to reveal Pullorum-Typhid: Provided, That a bacteriological examination monitoring program or serological examination monitoring program for game birds acceptable to the Official State Agency and approved by the Service may be used in lieu of annual blood testing: And provided further, That it is located in a State in which it has been determined by the Service that:

(i) All hatcheries within the State are qualified as “National Plan Hatcheries” or have met equivalent requirements for pullorum-typhoid control under official supervision;

(ii) All hatchery supply flocks within the State are qualified as U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean or have met equivalent requirements for pullorum-typhoid control under official supervision: Provided, That if other domesticated fowl, except waterfowl, are maintained on the same premises as the participating flock, freedom from pullorum-typhoid infection shall be demonstrated by an official blood test of each of these fowl;

(iii) All shipments of products other than U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean, or equivalent, into the State are prohibited;

(iv) All persons performing poultry disease diagnostic services within the State are required to report to the Official State Agency within 48 hours the source of all poultry specimens from which S. pullorum or S. gallinarum is isolated;

(v) All reports of any disease outbreak involving a disease covered under the Plan are promptly followed by an investigation by the Official State Agency to determine the origin of the infection; Provided, That if the origin of the infection involves another State, or if there is exposure to poultry in another State from the infected flock, then the National Poultry Improvement Plan will conduct an investigation;

(vi) All flocks found to be infected with pullorum or typhoid are quarantined until marketed or destroyed under the supervision of the Official State Agency, or until subsequently blood tested, following the procedure for reacting flocks as contained in § 145.14(a)(5), and all birds fail to demonstrate pullorum or typhoid infection;

(vii) All poultry, including exhibition, exotic, and game birds, but excluding waterfowl, going to public exhibition shall come from U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean or equivalent flocks, or have had a negative pullorum-typhoid test within 90 days of going to public exhibition; and

(viii) The flock is located in a State in which pullorum disease or fowl typhoid is not known to exist nor to have existed in hatchery supply flocks within the State during the preceding 24 months.

(ix) Discontinuation of any of the conditions or procedures described in paragraphs (b)(3)(i) through (viii) of this section, or the occurrence of repeated outbreaks of pullorum or typhoid in poultry breeding flocks within or originating within the State shall be grounds for the Service to revoke its determination that such conditions and procedures have been met or complied with. Such action shall not be taken until a thorough investigation has been made by the Service and the Official State Agency has been given an opportunity to present its views.

(c) U.S. H5/H7 Avian Influenza Clean. The program in this paragraph (c) is intended to be the basis from which the game bird industry may conduct a program for the prevention and control of the H5 and H7 subtypes of avian influenza. It is intended to determine the presence of the H5 and H7 subtypes of avian influenza in game bird flocks through routine surveillance of each participating flock. A flock or premises, and the hatching eggs, chicks, started, and mature birds produced from it, will qualify for the classification in this paragraph (c) when the Official State Agency determines that it has met the following requirements:

(1) It is a flock in which a minimum of 30 birds has been tested negative to the H5 and H7 subtypes of avian influenza as provided in § 145.14(d) when more than 4 months of age. To retain the classification in this paragraph (c):

(i) A sample of at least 30 birds must be tested negative at intervals of 90 days; or

(ii) A sample of fewer than 30 birds may be tested, and found to be negative, at any one time if all pens are equally represented and a total of 30 birds are tested within each 90-day period.

(2) For participants with non-breeding flocks retained for raised-for-release or other purposes on the same premises as a breeding flock, a representative sample of at least 30 birds from the participating premises must be tested negative to the H5 and H7 subtypes of avian influenza as provided in § 145.14(d) when more than 4 months of age, every 90 days.

(d) U.S. Salmonella Monitored. The program in this paragraph (d) is intended to be the basis from which the game bird industry may conduct a program for the prevention and control of salmonellosis. It is intended to reduce the incidence of Salmonella organisms in day-old poultry through an effective and practical sanitation program in the hatchery. This will afford other segments of the poultry industry an opportunity to reduce the incidence of Salmonella in their products. The following requirements must be met for a flock to be of this classification in this paragraph (d):

(1) An Authorized Agent shall collect a minimum of five environmental samples, e.g., chick papers, hatching trays, and chick transfer devices, from the hatchery at least every 30 days. Testing must be performed at an authorized laboratory.

(2) To claim products are of the classification in this paragraph (d), all products shall be derived from a hatchery that meets the requirements of the classification.

(3) The classification in this paragraph (d) may be revoked by the Official State Agency if the participant fails to follow recommended corrective measures.

(a) U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean State. (1) A State will be declared a U.S. Pullorum-Typhoid Clean State when it has been determined by the Service that:

(i) The State is in compliance with the provisions contained in §§ 145.23(b)(3)(i) through (vii), 145.33(b)(3)(i) through (vii), 145.43(b)(3)(i) through (vi), 145.53(b)(3)(i) through (vii), 145.73(b)(2)(i), 145.83(b)(2)(i), 145.93(b)(3)(i) through (vii), and 145.103(b)(3)(i) through (ix).

(ii) No pullorum disease or fowl typhoid is known to exist nor to have existed in hatchery supply flocks within the State during the preceding 12 months: Provided, That pullorum disease or fowl typhoid found within the preceding 24 months in waterfowl, exhibition poultry, and game bird breeding flocks will not prevent a State, which is otherwise eligible, from qualifying.

(2) If there is discontinuation of any of the conditions described in paragraph (a)(1)(i) of this section, or repeated outbreaks of pullorum or typhoid occur in hatchery supply flocks described in paragraph (a)(1)(ii) of this section, or if an infection spreads from the originating premises, the Service shall have grounds to revoke its determination that the State is entitled to this classification in this paragraph (a). Such action shall not be taken until a thorough investigation has been made by the Service and the Official State Agency has been given an opportunity for a hearing in accordance with rules of practice adopted by the Administrator.

(b) [Reserved]