2024                             Laws of Maryland                       Ch. 725

(a) Drugs and food generally.—The standards for the quality,
purity and strength of drugs under Sections 187 to 197 of this sub-
title shall be the standard set by the United States Pharmacopoeia
or the National Formulary. In case of foods and drugs not already
standardized by the United States Pharmacopoeia or the National
Formulary, the standards of quality, purity and strength prescribed
by regulations lawfully adopted from time to time by the Food and
Drug Administration of the Department of Health, Education and
Welfare are hereby declared to be the standards of quality, purity
and strength for such foods and drugs in the State of Maryland, ex-
cept in the case[s] of [ice cream, artificially sweetened ice cream,
artificially sweetened ice milk, ice milk, frozen custard, sherbet, water
ice or fruit ice, milk products, stabilizer, artificial sweetener, imita-
tion ice cream, and quiescently frozen confections and quiescently
frozen dairy confections in which cases the standards are declared
to be as follows:] frozen desserts.

To carry out the purposes of this act, to prevent deception in the
sale of frozen desserts and to safeguard the welfare and health of
consumers, the Secretary of Health and Mental Hygiene shall after
public hearing adopt, promulgate, and enforce definitions and
standards of identity for frozen desserts and the mixes used in the
manufacture thereof together with rules and regulations governing
the packaging, labeling, sanitary requirements and all other condi-
tions relating to the manufacture, processing, distribution, and sale
of frozen desserts, whether manufactured or processed in a regular
manufacturing plant, in a counter freezer or otherwise. All defini-
tions and standards of identity and rules and regulations promul-
gated by the Secretary shall be based on the record of the hearing,
and following any hearing to consider definitions and standards of
identity or rules and regulations, the Secretary shall issue a recom-
mended decision and shall afford interested parties an opportunity
to file exceptions based on the hearing record. The Secretary, in
issuing a final decision, shall rule on any exceptions filed, setting
forth his reasons therefor. Such regulations, when finally promul-
gated, shall have the force and effect of law. The Secretary is hereby
authorized to adopt the standards of identity and definitions for
frozen desserts from time to time promulgated by the Secretary of
Health, Education and Welfare of the United States under Federal
acts defining and standardizing frozen desserts.

[(b) (i) Ice cream means the pure, clean, frozen products made
from a combination of "milk products," sugar, dextrose, corn syrup
in dry or liquid form, water, with or without egg or egg products,
with harmless flavoring and with or without harmless coloring, and
with or without added "stabilizer" or "emulsifier" composed of whole-
some edible material. It shall contain not more than one half of one
per centum by weight of "stabilizer" and not more than one fifth of
one per centum by weight of "emulsifier," not less than ten per
centum by weight of milk fat, and not less than twenty per centum
by weight of total milk solids; except when fruit, nuts, cocoa, choco-
late, maple syrup, cakes or confection are used for the purpose of
flavoring, then such reduction in milk fat and in total milk solids as
is due to the addition of such flavors shall be permitted, but in no
such case shall it contain less than eight per centum by weight of
milk fat nor less than sixteen per centum by weight of total milk