republic-os/legal/us/code/title-25/chapter-18/section-1685.md

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LegalText	25 U.S.C. § 1685	Service of traditional foods in public facilities	us	united_states_code	code_section	25	INDIANS	18	INDIAN HEALTH CARE	1685	25 U.S.C. § 1685	current	119-100	2026-06-26	official	https://uscode.house.gov/download/releasepoints/us/pl/119/100/xml_usc25@119-100.zip	/us/usc/t25/s1685	data/legal/raw/us/code/title-25/usc25.xml	43e34f909deace7e28c5c024736f7dde0a3cd573e059e9320ff6cf2826513ffd	d4661d83bff6862be548ac8e843ba61e942ed983aade7cf83cb7dbc3dcd08168	bf125de2f3e0d80f4074fad694b441fa87fe6d9c84b6fa77bf9833cdde40e934	2026-07-04	official	legal us-code

25 U.S.C. § 1685 - Service of traditional foods in public facilities

Text

(a) Purposes The purposes of this section are—

(1) to provide access to traditional foods in food service programs;

(2) to encourage increased consumption of traditional foods to decrease health disparities among Indians, particularly Alaska Natives; and

(3) to provide alternative food options for food service programs.

(b) Definitions In this section:

(1) Alaska Native The term “Alaska Native” means a person who is a member of any Native village, Village Corporation, or Regional Corporation (as those terms are defined in section 1602 of title 43).

(2) Commissioner The term “Commissioner” means the Commissioner of Food and Drugs.

(3) Food service program The term “food service program” includes—

(A) food service at residential child care facilities that have a license from an appropriate State agency;

(B) any child nutrition program (as that term is defined in section 1769f(b) of title 42);

(C) food service at hospitals, clinics, and long-term care facilities; and

(D) senior meal programs.

(4) Indian; Indian tribe The terms “Indian” and “Indian tribe” have the meanings given those terms in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).11 See References in Text note below.

(5) Traditional food (A) In general The term “traditional food” means food that has traditionally been prepared and consumed by an Indian tribe.

(B) Inclusions The term “traditional food” includes—

(i) wild game meat;

(ii) fish;

(iii) seafood;

(iv) marine mammals;

(v) plants; and

(vi) berries.

(6) Tribal organization The term “tribal organization” has the meaning given the term in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 450b).1

(c) Program The Secretary and the Commissioner shall allow the donation to and serving of traditional food through food service programs at public facilities and nonprofit facilities, including facilities operated by Indian tribes and facilities operated by tribal organizations, that primarily serve Indians if the operator of the food service program—

(1) ensures that the food is received whole, gutted, gilled, as quarters, or as a roast, without further processing;

(2) makes a reasonable determination that—

(A) the animal was not diseased;

(B) the food was butchered, dressed, transported, and stored to prevent contamination, undesirable microbial growth, or deterioration; and

(C) the food will not cause a significant health hazard or potential for human illness;

(3) carries out any further preparation or processing of the food at a different time or in a different space from the preparation or processing of other food for the applicable program to prevent cross-contamination;

(4) cleans and sanitizes food-contact surfaces of equipment and utensils after processing the traditional food;

(5) labels donated traditional food with the name of the food;

(6) stores the traditional food separately from other food for the applicable program, including through storage in a separate freezer or refrigerator or in a separate compartment or shelf in the freezer or refrigerator;

(7) follows Federal, State, local, county, tribal, or other non-Federal law regarding the safe preparation and service of food in public or nonprofit facilities; and

(8) follows other such criteria as established by the Secretary and Commissioner.

(d) Liability (1) In general The United States, an Indian tribe, a tribal organization, a State, a county or county equivalent, a local educational agency, and an entity or person authorized to facilitate the donation, storage, preparation, or serving of traditional food by the operator of a food service program shall not be liable in any civil action for any damage, injury, or death caused to any person by the donation to or storage, preparation, or serving of traditional foods through food service programs.

(2) Rule of construction Nothing in paragraph (1) alters any liability or other obligation of the United States under the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 1450 et seq.).1

(Pub. L. 113–79, title IV, § 4033, Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 818; Pub. L. 115–334, title IV, § 4203, Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4656.)

Notes

Editorial Notes

References in TextThe Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act, referred to in subsecs. (b)(4), (6) and (d)(2), is Pub. L. 93–638, Jan. 4, 1975, 88 Stat. 2203, which was classified principally to subchapter II (§ 450 et seq.) of chapter 14 of this title prior to editorial reclassification as chapter 46 (§ 5301 et seq.) of this title. Section 4 of the Act was classified to section 450b of this title prior to editorial reclassification as section 5304 of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 5301 of this title and Tables.

Codification Section was enacted as part of the Agricultural Act of 2014, and not as part of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act which comprises this chapter. Section was formerly classified to section 443d of this title prior to editorial reclassification and renumbering as this section.

Amendments2018—Subsec. (d)(1). Pub. L. 115–334 substituted “a tribal organization, a State, a county or county equivalent, a local educational agency, and an entity or person authorized to facilitate the donation, storage, preparation, or serving of traditional food by the operator of a food service program” for “and a tribal organization” and “donation to or storage, preparation, or serving of traditional foods” for “donation to or serving of traditional foods”.