When used in this Article:

(1)        The term “Board” means the North Carolina State Board of Agriculture.

(2)        The term “brand name” means any word, name, symbol, or device, or any combination thereof, identifying the commercial feed of a distributor or registrant and distinguishing it from that of others.

(3)        The term “canned pet food” means any commercial feed packed in cans or hermetically sealed containers, and used or intended for use as food for pets.

(4)        The term “commercial feed” means all materials, except whole unmixed seed such as corn, including physically altered entire unmixed seeds when not adulterated within the meaning of N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-284.38(1), which are distributed for use as feed or for mixing in feed; provided, that the Board by regulation may exempt from this definition, or from specific provisions of this Article, hay, straw, stover, silage, cobs, husks, hulls, unpasteurized milk, and individual chemical compounds or substances which are not intermixed or mixed with other materials, and are not adulterated within the meaning of N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-284.38(1).

(4a)      The term “contract feeder” means a person who, as an independent contractor, feeds commercial feed to animals pursuant to a contract between that person and a manufacturer of commercial feeds whereby such commercial feed is supplied, furnished, or otherwise provided to such person by the said manufacturer and whereby such person’s remuneration is determined all or in part by feed consumption, mortality, profits, or amount or quality of product produced by the independent contractor.

(5)        The term “customer-formula feed” means commercial feed, each batch of which is mixed according to the formula of the customer, furnished in writing over the signature of the customer or his designated agent with each batch moved directly from the manufacturer to the customer and not stocked or displayed in a dealer’s warehouse or sales area and not resold or redistributed to any person.

(6)        The term “distribute” means to offer for sale, sell, exchange, or barter, commercial feed.

(7)        The term “distributor” means any person who distributes.

(8)        The term “drug” means any article intended for use in the diagnosis, cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease in animals other than man and articles other than feed intended to affect the structure or any function of the animal body.

(9)        The term “feed ingredient” means each of the constituent materials making up a commercial feed.

(10)      The term “label” means a display of written, printed, or graphic matter upon or affixed to the container in which a commercial feed is distributed, or on the invoice or delivery slip with which a commercial feed is distributed.

(11)      The term “labeling” means all labels and other written, printed, or graphic matter (i) upon a commercial feed or any of its containers or wrapper or (ii) accompanying such commercial feed, or advertisement, brochures, posters, television and radio announcements used in promoting the sale of such commercial feed.

(12)      The term “manufacture” means to grind, mix or blend, or further process a commercial feed for distribution.

(13)      The term “mineral feed” means a commercial feed intended to supply primarily mineral elements or inorganic nutrients.

(14)      The term “official sample” means a sample of feed taken by the Commissioner or his agent in accordance with the provisions of N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-284.42(a), (c) or (e).

(15)      The terms “percent” or “percentage” means percentage by weight, except in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 106-284.42 where these terms refer to the retail value of the lot of commercial feed.

(16)      The term “permitted analytical variation” means allowance for the inherent variability in sampling and laboratory analysis in guaranteed components. Manufacturing variations and their effect on the guaranteed components are not included in such values.

(17)      The term “person” means an individual, a partnership, a corporation, an association, and any other legal entity.

(18)      The term “pet” means any domesticated animal normally maintained in or near the household(s) of the owner(s) thereof.

(19)      The term “pet food” means any commercial feed prepared and distributed for consumption by pets.

(20)      The term “product name” means the name of the commercial feed which identifies it as to kind, class, or specific use.

(21)      The term “specialty pet” means any domesticated animal pet normally maintained in a cage or tank, such as, but not limited to, gerbils, hamsters, canaries, psittacine birds, mynahs, finches, tropical fish, goldfish, snakes and turtles.

(22)      The term “specialty pet food” means any commercial feed prepared and distributed for consumption by specialty pets.

(23)      The term “ton” means a net weight of 2,000 pounds avoirdupois. ?(1973, c. 771, s. 4; 1975, c. 900, s. 1; c. 961, s. 1; 2008-88, s. 3.)