Under Tennessee's custom-slaughter and on-farm meat exemptions, is there a limit on how many co-owners can share an animal that is custom slaughtered or processed on the farmer's farm?

Plain-English summary

Tennessee allows two routes to get meat out of an animal without going through a USDA-inspected slaughter plant. The first is custom slaughter under Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-202(6): a person can slaughter and process animals "for profit" if the meat is not sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet. The second is the on-farm producer exemption under Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-209(a)(1): livestock and poultry producers can slaughter and process animals of their own raising on their own farms for their own consumption.

A state senator asked four questions about how many co-owners these provisions allow. The AG's answers, all consistent:

• § 53-7-202(6) does not cap the number of owners a custom slaughterer can serve. The only limit is that the slaughtered meat cannot be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet.
• § 53-7-202(6) does not bar group ownership. A cooperative, association, or other group can be the owner whose animal is custom slaughtered, again so long as the meat does not move through a commercial outlet.
• § 53-7-209(a)(1) does not require the producer to fully own the animal. The statute exempts livestock and poultry producers who process animals "of their own raising on their own farms, for their own consumption." Ownership of the animal isn't an element of the exemption at all.
• § 53-7-209(a)(1) does not cap the number or type of partial owners. Group co-ownership is fine.

The AG also flagged that the Commissioner of Agriculture has discretion to write regulations setting "labeling, and sanitary standards, practices, and procedures" as conditions on the (a)(1) exemption, but had not done so. Without those regulations, the exemption operates as written.

Currency note

This opinion was issued in 2017. Subsequent statutory amendments, court decisions, or later AG opinions may have changed the analysis. Federal USDA inspection rules and Tennessee Department of Agriculture regulations may have been promulgated or amended since. Treat this page as historical context, not current legal advice. Verify current law before relying on any specific rule, deadline, or remedy mentioned here.

Background and statutory framework

The Tennessee Meat and Poultry Inspection Act, Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-201 et seq., parallels the federal meat inspection framework but governs intrastate commerce. The default rule is that meat sold to the public must come from an inspected slaughter facility. The custom-slaughter and producer-exemption provisions are deliberate exceptions for non-commercial channels (cow shares, herdshares, freezer beef arrangements, home-consumption farming).

Custom slaughterer definition (§ 53-7-202(6)). "A person engaged for profit in this state in the business of slaughtering or dressing animals for human consumption that are not to be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet, and may include the boning or cutting up of carcasses of such animals and the grinding, chopping and mixing of the carcasses of animals."

That single sentence does the work of allowing for-profit slaughter outside the inspected-plant system, conditioned only on the eventual destination of the meat: not a commercial outlet. The AG's reading was textual. The statute does not require a single owner. It does not require the owners to be related, to live in proximity, to be incorporated in any particular form, or to have any minimum or maximum number. So a group of 50 buyers who jointly purchase a steer and hire a custom slaughterer to break it down for their freezers fits within the definition, provided the meat goes home with the 50 buyers and not to a retail store.

The line between custom and commercial is at the output: where the meat ends up after the slaughterer is done. If it goes through a commercial outlet (a butcher shop selling to walk-in customers, a restaurant, a grocery store), that's commercial and the inspection requirements apply. If it goes home with the owners, custom slaughter is permitted.

On-farm producer exemption (§ 53-7-209(a)(1)). This is a different category. It allows livestock and poultry producers to "process[]" their own animals "for their own consumption, the excess of which may be sold directly to consumers . . . ." The statute then includes a discretionary regulatory hook: "The commissioner shall, by regulation and under conditions as to labeling, and sanitary standards, practices, and procedures that the commissioner may prescribe, exempt from specific provisions of this part [the listed producer activities]."

The AG drew two important conclusions about this provision:

1. The Commissioner's regulatory hook is conditional but the exemption itself is mandatory. "Shall . . . exempt" is mandatory. The Commissioner may condition the exemption with regulations, but in the absence of regulations the statutory exemption operates as written. Bellamy v. Cracker Barrel, 302 S.W.3d 278, 281 (Tenn. 2009) (quoting Stubbs v. State, 393 S.W.2d 150 (Tenn. 1965)), confirms that "shall" is mandatory. As of the opinion, no such regulations had been promulgated. See Tenn. Comp. R. and Regs. 0080-04-14.01 et seq.

2. Ownership of the animal is not an element. The statute talks about livestock and poultry "of their own raising on their own farms." That phrase describes the raising, not legal ownership. A producer who has only a partial ownership interest in an animal still raised it on the farm, and the exemption still applies. The statute also does not limit the number or type of partial owners.

The AG was careful with the cooperative/association question because that is exactly how herdshares and meat-share arrangements are typically structured. The implication of the opinion: a cooperative that buys a quarter or half of a hog from a farmer-producer, with members consuming the meat, fits within both provisions; § 53-7-202(6) if the slaughterer is a custom slaughterer, and § 53-7-209(a)(1) if the producer-farmer does the processing on the farm.

The opinion did not address federal preemption (USDA's Federal Meat Inspection Act and Federal Poultry Inspection Act). State exemptions cannot expand interstate commerce options that federal law restricts, and federal inspection requirements generally apply to meat moving in interstate commerce. So an arrangement that's lawful under Tennessee law may still trigger federal jurisdiction if the meat crosses state lines.

Common questions

Q: I want to organize a cow share where 20 families collectively buy a steer. Is that legal under Tennessee law?
A: Based on this opinion, yes. There is no statutory cap on co-owners under either § 53-7-202(6) or § 53-7-209(a)(1). The key constraint is that the meat cannot be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet. The 20 families take their cuts and consume them; that's not a commercial outlet.

Q: Can the cow share advertise to attract new members?
A: The opinion did not address advertising. But "commercial outlet" is about where the meat is sold, not about how members are recruited. Advertising to find people who will become co-owners before slaughter is structurally different from selling cut meat to customers after slaughter.

Q: What about poultry?
A: § 53-7-209(a)(1) applies to both livestock and poultry. The federal Poultry Products Inspection Act has its own exemptions (often called "producer-grower" or "personal use" exemptions), and Tennessee's framework operates alongside those.

Q: Can a farmer who only owns 50% of an animal still use the § 53-7-209(a)(1) exemption?
A: According to this opinion, yes. The statute does not require the producer to own the animal at all; it requires the animal to be of the producer's raising on the producer's farm.

Q: If the cooperative later wanted to sell some leftover cuts at a farmers market, would that change the analysis?
A: That would push the activity into a commercial outlet, which is outside the custom-slaughter definition. The § 53-7-209(a)(1) exemption does permit direct sale "to consumers" for surplus, but the statute may need to be read carefully against modern farmers-market arrangements, and the Commissioner may impose conditions.

Citations and references

Statutes (as cited in the opinion):

• Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-201 et seq. (Tennessee Meat and Poultry Inspection Act)
• Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-202(6) (custom slaughterer)
• Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-209(a)(1) (producer exemption)
• Tenn. Comp. R. and Regs. 0080-04-14.01 et seq.

Cases:

• Arden v. Kozawa, 466 S.W.3d 758 (Tenn. 2015)
• Shore v. Maple Lane Farms, LLC, 411 S.W.3d 405 (Tenn. 2013)
• Waldschmidt v. Reassure Am. Life Ins. Co., 271 S.W.3d 173 (Tenn. 2008)
• Bellamy v. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., 302 S.W.3d 278 (Tenn. 2009)
• Stubbs v. State, 393 S.W.2d 150 (Tenn. 1965)

Source

• Landing page: https://www.tn.gov/attorneygeneral/opinions.html
• Original PDF: https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/attorneygeneral/documents/ops/2017/op17-011.pdf

Original opinion text

STATE OF TENNESSEE
OFFICE OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL
February 17, 2017
Opinion No. 17-11
Custom Slaughter of Animals Under Tennessee Meat and Poultry Inspection Act

Question 1
Is there any limit on the number of owners for whom a custom slaughterer, as defined in
Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-202(6), can legally slaughter and process an animal or animals?

Opinion 1
No. For purposes of Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-202(6), as long as the owners for whom a
custom slaughterer slaughters or processes an animal or animals do not constitute a commercial
outlet and do not sell or offer for sale the slaughtered animal through a commercial outlet, there is
no limit on the number of owners for whom a custom slaughterer may legally slaughter and process
an animal or animals.

Question 2
Can a custom slaughterer, as defined in Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-202(6), legally
slaughter and process an animal or animals when one or more owners of the animal(s) are a group,
such as a cooperative or association, all of the members of which obtained membership before the
slaughter of the animal(s)?

Opinion 2
Yes. For purposes of Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-202(6), as long as the owners for whom a
custom slaughterer slaughters or processes an animal do not constitute a commercial outlet and do
not sell or offer for sale the slaughtered animal through a commercial outlet, the owner of the
animal may be a group.

Question 3
Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-209(a)(1), can livestock farmers slaughter and
process animals of their own raising on their own farms when they have only a partial ownership
interest in the slaughtered and processed animal(s)? Can there be one or more owners for the
remaining interest in the animal(s)? If so, is there any limit on the number of owners for the
remaining interest in the animal(s)?

Opinion 3
Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-209(a)(1) does not require an ownership interest in an
animal, merely that it be livestock or poultry of their own raising on their own farms, for their own
consumption. The statute likewise does not restrict the number or type of owners.

Question 4
Under Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-209(a)(1), if the farmer who raised, slaughtered,
and processed the animal(s) on his own farm is a partial owner of the animal(s), can a group, such
as a cooperative or association, all of the members of which obtained membership before the
slaughter of the animal(s), be a partial owner of the same animal(s)?

Opinion 4
Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-209(a)(1) does not restrict the type or number of partial
owners of an animal.

ANALYSIS

The Tennessee Meat and Poultry Inspection Act, Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-201,
et seq., generally provides standards for the slaughtering, labeling, and sale of meat and poultry
products in Tennessee.

In construing a statute, courts must carry out the legislative intent and purpose of the
General Assembly without unduly restricting or expanding a statute's coverage beyond its
intended scope. Arden v. Kozawa, 466 S.W.3d 758, 764 (Tenn. 2015); Shore v. Maple Lane
Farms, LLC, 411 S.W.3d 405, 420 (Tenn. 2013); Waldschmidt v. Reassure Am. Life Ins. Co., 271
S.W.3d 173, 176 (Tenn. 2008). The best indicator of the General Assembly's intent and purpose
is the plain and ordinary meaning of the statutory language. Shore, 411 S.W.3d at 420.

1-2. Limit on the number and type of owners for whom a custom slaughterer can
slaughter and process an animal.

Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-202(6) defines "custom slaughterer" to mean:

[a] person engaged for profit in this state in the business of
slaughtering or dressing animals for human consumption that are
not to be sold or offered for sale through a commercial outlet, and
may include the boning or cutting up of carcasses of such animals
and the grinding, chopping and mixing of the carcasses of animals.

By its plain terms, the statute requires only that a custom slaughterer not sell the slaughtered
or dressed animal or offer it for sale through a commercial outlet. The statute does not otherwise
limit who may engage the services of a custom slaughterer. Thus, Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-202(6)
imposes no limit to the number of owners for whom a custom slaughterer may slaughter and
process an animal or animals, so long as the animal or animals are not thereafter sold or offered
for sale through a commercial outlet.

Likewise, the plain terms of the statute do not limit who may engage the services of a
custom slaughterer. The statute does not bar a custom slaughterer from slaughtering and
processing an animal that is owned by a group, so long as the animal is not thereafter sold or
offered for sale through a commercial outlet.

3-4. Limit on the ownership of animals slaughtered by producers.

Tennessee Code Annotated § 53-7-209(a) provides, as pertinent to whether livestock
producers can slaughter and process animals of their own raising on their own farms when they
have only a partial ownership interest in the slaughtered and processed animal, as follows:

(a) The commissioner shall, by regulation and under conditions as
to labeling, and sanitary standards, practices, and procedures that the
commissioner may prescribe, exempt from specific provisions of
this part:

(1) Livestock producers and poultry producers with respect to
livestock and poultry carcasses and parts of livestock and poultry
carcasses, meat food products, and poultry products, processed by
them from livestock or poultry of their own raising on their own
farms, for their own consumption, the excess of which may be sold
directly to consumers . . . .

No such regulations have been implemented by the Commissioner of Agriculture. See
Tenn. Comp. R. and Regs. 0080-04-14.01 et seq. While the Commissioner has discretion to
prescribe conditions for exemption, the statute refers to conditions the Commissioner "may"
prescribe, Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-209(a) does not afford the Commissioner discretion in
exempting from the requirements of the Act those producers identified in (a)(1). See Bellamy v.
Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Inc., 302 S.W.3d 278, 281 (Tenn. 2009) (quoting Stubbs v.
State, 393 S.W.2d 150, 154 (Tenn. 1965) ("When 'shall' is used . . . it is ordinarily construed as
being mandatory and not discretionary.")). Thus, livestock and poultry producers are exempt from
the Act, and although that exemption may be conditioned on certain regulations, at present no such
regulations concerning labeling and sanitary standards exist to limit the exemption.

Thus, there is no requirement in Tenn. Code Ann. § 53-7-209(a) that the livestock or
poultry producer have any ownership interest in the animal processed. They may slaughter
livestock or poultry they have raised on their own farm for their own consumption, even if they
merely have a partial ownership interest in the animal. Tennessee Code Ann. § 53-7-209(a)
likewise places no limitations on the number or type of owners.

HERBERT H. SLATERY III
Attorney General and Reporter

ANDRÉE SOPHIA BLUMSTEIN
Solicitor General

BRIAN A. PIERCE
Assistant Attorney General

Requested by:
The Honorable Frank Niceley
State Senator
9 Legislative Plaza
Nashville, TN 37243