South Carolina Code 46-25-1150. Distribution of adulterated fertilizer prohibited
(1) It contains any deleterious or harmful ingredient in sufficient amount to render it injurious to beneficial plant life when applied in accordance with directions for use on the label or if adequate warning statements or directions for use, which may be necessary to protect plant life, are not shown on the label.
Terms Used In South Carolina Code 46-25-1150
- Commercial fertilizer: means a substance containing one or more recognized plant nutrients used for plant nutrient content and designed for use or claimed to have value in promoting plant growth, except unmanipulated animal and vegetable manures, marl, lime, limestone, wood ashes, and other products exempted by regulation of the commission. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Commission: means the State Crop Pest Commission or an officer or employee of the commission to whom it delegates its authority. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Common law: The legal system that originated in England and is now in use in the United States. It is based on judicial decisions rather than legislative action.
- Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
- Distributor: means a person who imports, consigns, manufactures, produces compounds of, mixes, or blends commercial fertilizer or who offers for sale, sells, barters, or otherwise supplies commercial fertilizer in this State. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Label: means the display of all written, printed, or graphic matter upon the immediate container or statement accompanying a commercial fertilizer. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Labeling: means all written, printed, or graphic matter upon or accompanying commercial fertilizer or advertisements, brochures, posters, television, and radio announcements used in promoting the sale of commercial fertilizers. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Person: includes individual, partnership, association, firm, and corporation. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
- Registrant: means the person who registers commercial fertilizer under this chapter. See South Carolina Code 46-25-20
(2) Its composition falls below or differs from that which it is purported to possess by its labeling.
(3) It contains unwanted crop seed or weed seed.
In the event a penalty is incurred as a result of a distributor altering the content of a commercial fertilizer shipped to him by a registrant in bulk so that the result of the alteration changes the analysis of the commercial fertilizer as originally guaranteed by the registrant, the commission is hereby empowered to relieve the registrant of the liability for payment of the penalty and in lieu thereof assess the penalty against the distributor who altered the commercial fertilizer in the same manner and under the same conditions as provided by this article for assessing penalties against a registrant.
The provisions of this section shall not be construed to limit, waive or in any manner modify the common law right of any person to sue for and collect damages resulting from the use of a defective or adulterated fertilizer product.