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Agricultural-Product-Disparagement Law is a statute that protects food producers from false and malicious reports of food contamination. It provides remedies for pecuniary harm resulting from such reports.
This law applies to false and disparaging public statements that imply or claim that a perishable food product is unsafe for human consumption. It is applicable when the speaker or writer knows that the statements are false because the claim or implication has no basis in reliable scientific inquiry, facts, or data.
Example 1: A food blogger writes a blog post claiming that a particular brand of milk is contaminated with harmful bacteria. The blogger has no scientific evidence to support this claim. This could be a violation of the Agricultural-Product-Disparagement Law.
Example 2: A restaurant owner spreads rumors that a competitor's meat is contaminated with a deadly virus. The owner has no evidence to support this claim. This could be a violation of the Agricultural-Product-Disparagement Law.
These examples illustrate how the Agricultural-Product-Disparagement Law protects food producers from false and malicious reports of food contamination.
Agricultural Marketing Service | Agricultural Research Service