---
kind: "section"
citation: "21 U.S.C. § 344"
title: "21"
title_heading: "Food and Drugs"
number: "344"
heading: "Emergency permit control"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/21/344"
units:
  - "Chapter 9 — Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act"
  - "Subchapter IV — Food"
---

# §344. Emergency permit control

- (a) **Conditions on manufacturing, processing, etc., as health measure—** Whenever the [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d) finds after investigation that the [distribution](/usc/21/360eee.md?p=5) in [interstate commerce](/usc/21/321.md?p=b) of any class of [food](/usc/21/321.md?p=f) may, by reason of contamination with micro-organisms during the manufacture, processing, or packing thereof in any locality, be injurious to health, and that such injurious nature cannot be adequately determined after such articles have entered [interstate commerce](/usc/21/321.md?p=b), he then, and in such case only, shall promulgate regulations providing for the issuance, to [manufacturers](/usc/21/360hh.md?p=3), processors, or packers of such class of [food](/usc/21/321.md?p=f) in such locality, of permits to which shall be attached such conditions governing the manufacture, processing, or packing of such class of [food](/usc/21/321.md?p=f), for such temporary period of time, as may be necessary to protect the public health; and after the effective date of such regulations, and during such temporary period, no [person](/usc/21/321.md?p=e) shall introduce or deliver for introduction into [interstate commerce](/usc/21/321.md?p=b) any such [food](/usc/21/321.md?p=f) manufactured, processed, or packed by any such [manufacturer](/usc/21/360hh.md?p=3), processor, or packer unless such [manufacturer](/usc/21/360hh.md?p=3), processor, or packer holds a permit issued by the [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d) as provided by such regulations.
- (b) **Violation of permit; suspension and reinstatement—** The [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d) is [authorized](/usc/21/360eee.md?p=2) to suspend immediately upon notice any permit issued under authority of this section if it is found that any of the conditions of the permit have been violated. The holder of a permit so suspended shall be privileged at any time to apply for the reinstatement of such permit, and the [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d) shall, immediately after prompt hearing and an inspection of the establishment, reinstate such permit if it is found that adequate measures have been taken to comply with and maintain the conditions of the permit, as originally issued or as amended.
- (c) **Inspection of permit-holding establishments—** Any officer or employee duly designated by the [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d) shall have access to any factory or establishment, the operator of which holds a permit from the [Secretary](/usc/21/321.md?p=d), for the purpose of ascertaining whether or not the conditions of the permit are being complied with, and denial of access for such inspection shall be ground for suspension of the permit until such access is freely given by the operator.

## Source credit

(June 25, 1938, ch. 675, § 404, 52 Stat. 1048.)

## Notes

### Executive Documents

### Transfer of Functions

For transfer of functions of Federal Security Administrator to Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare [now Health and Human Services], and of Food and Drug Administration in the Department of Agriculture to Federal Security Agency, see notes set out under section 321 of this title.