Chemical Soil Conditioner Industry
16 CFR Part 222 · Trade practice rules · in the Code of Federal Regulations 1959-1977 (12 annual editions)
Scanned CFR pages, OCR text may contain errors; the linked Library of Congress PDF is the authority. Not legal advice; not affiliated with the FTC. These rules and guides are historical: most were rescinded or replaced, so do not assume any is in force.
Latest edition: Library of Congress, 1977 CFR · Earliest edition: 1959 CFR
Text (1977 edition, OCR)
$ 291.15
goods or otherwise unlawfully to restrain
trade: or to use any form of threat,
intimidation, or coercion to induce any
member of the industry or other person
or persons to engage in any such planned
common course of action, or to become a
party to any such understanding, agree-
ment, combination, or conspiracy. (Rule
14.)
§ 221.15
suits.
The circulation of threats of sult for
infringement of patents or trademarks
among customers or prospective cus-
tomers of competitors, not made in good
falth but for the purpose or with the
effect of harassing or intimidating such
customers or prospective customers, or
of unduly hampering, injuring, or prej-
udicing competitors in their business,
is an unfair trade practice. (Rule 15.)
§ 221.16 Exclusive deals.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry to contract to
sell or sell any industry product, or fix
@ price charged therefor, or discount
from, or rebate upon, such price, on the
condition, agreement, or understanding
that the purchaser thereof shall not use
wr deal in the products of a competitor
or competitors of such industry member,
where the effect of such sale or contract
for sale, or of such condition, agreement,
or understanding, may be substantially
to lessen competition or tend to create
# monopoly in any line of commerce.
ARule 16.)
$221.17 Push money.
It is an unfair trade practice for an
4Andustry member to pay or contract to
pay anything of value to a salesperson
employed by a customer of the industry
:‘member as compensation for, or as an
inducement to obtain, special or greater
2ffort or service on the part of the sales-
‘person in promoting the resale of prod-
-ucts supplied by the industry member
-to the customer—
(a) When the agreement or under-
standing under which the payment or
payments are made or are to be made
is without the knowledge and consent
of the salesperson’s employer; or
(b>) When the terms and conditions
of the agreement or understanding are
such that any benefit to the salesperson
ar customer is dependent on lottery; or
(c) When any provision of the agree-
ment or understanding requires or con-
Unfair threats of infringement
Title 14—Commercial Practices
templates practices or a course of cone
duct unduly and intentionally hamper-
ing sales of products of competitors of
an industry member; or
(d) When, because of the terms and
conditions of the understanding or
agreement, including its duration, or
the attendant circumstances, the effect
may be to substantially lessen competi-
tion or tend to create a monopoly; or
(e) When similar payments are not
accorded to salespersons of competing
customers on proportionally equal terms
in compliance with section 2 (d) and
(e) of the Clayton Act.
Nore: Payments made by an industry
member to a salesperson of a customer under
any egreement or understanding that all or
any part of such payments is to be trans-
ferred by the salesperson to the customor,
or is to result In a corresponding decrease
in the salesperson’s salary, are not to be
considered within the purview of this
§ 221.17, but are to be considered as subject
to the requirements and provisions of sec-
tion 2(a) of the Clayton Act. (Rule 17.)
PART 222—-CHEMICAL SOIL
CONDITIONER INDUSTRY
Sec.
222.0 Definition.
Group I
222.1 Misrepresentation and deception in
the sale of industry products.
222.2 Guarantees, warranties, etc.
222.3 Fictitious price lHsts.
222.4 Substitution of products.
222.6 Defamation of competitors or false
disparagement of their products.
222.6 Imitation of trade-marks, etc.
222.7 Misrepresentation as to character of
business.
222.8 Procurement of competitors’ confi-
dential information.
222.9 Selling below cost.
222.10 Prohibited discrimination.
222.11 Prohibited forms of trade restraints
(unlawful price fixing, etc.).
222.12 Aiding or abetting use of unfair
trade practices.
AvoTnoriry: The provisions of Part 222 ts-
sued under secs. 6, 5, 88 Stat. 721, 719; 15
U.S.C. 46, 45, unless otherwise noted.
Source: The provisions of this Part 222
appear at 19 F.R. 6626, Oct. 15, 1954, unless
otherwise noted.
§ 222.0 Definition.
As used in this part, the term “industry
product” or “industry products” means
any synthetic organic chemical sub-
stance, or chemically modified natural
substance, which is represented as having
a primary function of forming and/or
226
Chapter |I—Federal
etabilizing soil aggregates in soil to which
it has been applied and thereby improv-
ing the resistance of such soll to the
slaking action of water, increasing its
water and alr permeability, improving
the resistance of {ts surface to crusting,
improving its ease of cultivation, and/or
otherwise favorably modifying its struc-
tural or physical properties.
Nore: Present commercial products within
the above definition have as their active in-
gredients materials falling within the fol-
lowing groups: Polyelectroiytes such as poly-
vinyls and polyacrylics, and cellulose deriva-
tives, and lignin derivatives, which may with
more exactitude be descrlbed as follows:
Synthetic acidic or basle organic chemical
substances and salts thereof; any synthetic
organic substance which on contact with the
soil generates a synthetic acidic or basic
organic chemical substance or salt thereof;
acidic or basic non-nitrogenous naturally-
occurring products and salts thereof; and
acidic or basic non-nitrogenous chemically
modified naturally-occurring products and
salts thereof.
Group I
§ 222.1 Misrepresentation and deception
in the gale of industry products.
(a) In the sale, offering for sale, or
distribution of industry products, it is an
unfair trade practice to represent or im-
ply, either with or without accompany-
ing qualifications or statements, that an
industry product:
(1) Will effect a beneficial crop re-
sponse in each and every type and kind
of soil;
(2) Is a substitute, in any significant
degree, for nutrient material;
(3) Is a complete substitute for added
natural organic matter, except in its
potential to form and/or stabilize soil
aggregates;
(4) Will effect an appreciable modifi-
cation of the texture (i. e., sand-silt-
clay ratio) of any soil; and
(5) Will permanently exert a condi
tioning effect upon a treated soil.
(b) It is also an unfair trade practice
in the sale, offering for sale, or distri-
bution of industry products, to represent
or imply that:
(1) A particular quantity, or the con-
tents of any package or container of an
industry product, will effectively treat
any specified area of soil, without clear
and adequate disclosure, in conjunction
with such representation, of the depth
to which such area will be effectively
benefited;
(2) An industry product will effec-
tively form and/or stabilize soil aggre-
Trade Commission § 299.3
gates, when the maximum benefit is de-
pendent upon preparation of the soil for
application of the industry product or
adequate mixing of said product with
the soil, without clear disclosure of al?
relevant information regarding such
preparation and/or mixing;
(3) An industry product, which hag
been mixed, packaged or otherwise com-
bined with a plant nutrient, will exert
a beneficial effect as a soil conditioner
and/or fertilizer, without clear and ade-
quate disclosure, in conjunction with
such representation, of (1) the area and
depth of soil which will be effectively
conditioned (see subparagraph (1) of
this paragraph) and (ii) the percentage
of the weight of the entire mixture
which is represented by each fertilizing
constituent present in said mixture.
(4) Except to the extent that sur-
face crusting is reduced, erosion in some
degree controlled, and emergence of
germinating plants facilitated, the sur-
face application of industry products on
uncultivated or untilled soil, either by
dusting in the case of dry material, or
sprinkling in the case of a liquid, is suf-
ficient to “condition” the soil.
§ 222.2 Guarantees, warranties, etc.
(a) It is an unfair trade practice to
use, or cause to be used, any guarantee or
warranty which is false, misleading, de-
ceptive, or unfair to the purchasing or
consuming public.
(b) The inhibitions of this section are
applicable with respect to any guarantee
or warranty in which the terms and con-
ditions relating to the obligations of the
guarantor or warrantor are deceptively
minimized or stated, or in which the
obligations of the guarantor or war-
rantor are impractical of fulfillment:
and also applicable to the use of any
guarantee or warranty in respect of
which the guarantor or warrantor falis
or refuses to observe scrupulously his
obligations thereunder.
(c) It is also an unfair trade practice
to represent any industry product as
being “guaranteed” unless the nature
and extent of the undertaking, and ths
identity of the guarantor, are conjunec-
tively disclosed.
§ 222.3 Fictitious price lists.
The publishing or circulating by any
member of the industry of false or mis=
leading price quotations, price lists, terms
or conditions of sale, or reports as to pro-
duction or sales, with the capacity and
tendency or effect of misleading or de-
297
§ 299.4
ceiving purchasers, prospective pur-
chasers, or the consuming public, is an
unfair trade practice.
§ 222.4 Substitution of products.
The practice of shipping or delivering
products which do not conform to sam-
ples submitted, to specifications upon
which the sale is consummated, or to
representations made prior to securing
the order, without the consent of the
purchasers to such substitutions and
with the capacity and tendency or effect
of misleading or deceiving the purchas-
ing or consuming public, is an unfair
trade practice.
§ 222.5 Defamation of competitors or
false disparagement of their prod-
ucts.
The defamation of competitors by
falsely imputing to them dishonorable
conduct, inability to perform contracts,
questionable credit standing, or by
other false representations, or the false
disparagement of the grade, quality, or
manufacture of the products of com-
petitors, or of their business methods,
selling prices, values, credit terms, poli-
cies, services, or conditions of employ-
ment, is an unfair trade practice.
§ 222.6 Imitation of trade-marks, etc.
The practice of imitating, or causing to
be imitated, or directly or indirectly pro-
moting or alding the imitation of, the
trade-marks, trade names, or other ex-
clusively owned symbols or marks of
identification of competitors which have
not been directiy, or by operation of
law, dedicated to the public, where such
{mitation has the capacity and tend-
ency or effect of misleading or deceiv-
ing purchasers, prospective purchasers,
or the consuming public, is an unfair
trade practice.
§ 222.7 Misrepresentation as to charac-
ter of business.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry to represent,
directly or indirectly, through use of the
word “mill” or “mills,” or the word
“manufacturer,” or any other word,
term, or representation of similar im-
port or meaning, in his corporate or
trade name, or otherwise, that he is a
manufacturer of industry products, or
that he is the owner or operator of a
mill, factory, or producing company
manufacturing industry products, when
guch is not the fact, or in any other
Title 16—Commercial Practices
manner to misrepresent the character,
extent, or type of his business.
§ 222.8 Procurement of competitors’
confidential information.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry to obtain infor-
mation concerning the business of a
competitor by bribery of an employee or
agent of such competitor, by false or
misleading statements or representa-
tions, by the impersonation of one in
authority, or by any other unfair means,
and to use the information so obtained
so a8 substantially to injure competition
or unreasonably restrain trade.
§ 222.9 Selling below cost.
The practice of selling industry prod-
ucts at a price less than the cost thereof
to the seller, with the purpose or intent,
and where the effect may be, to injure,
suppress, or stifle competition or tend to
create a monopoly in the production
or sale of such products, is an unfair
trade practice. As used in this section,
the term “cost” means the total cost to
the seller, including the costs of acqui-
sition, processing, preparation for mar-
keting, sale, and delivery.
§ 222.10 Prohibited discriminstion.’
(a) Prohibited discriminatory prices,
or rebates, refunds, discounts, credits,
commissions, etc., which effect unlawful
price discrimination. It is an unfair
trade practice for any member of the
industry engaged in commerce, in the
course of such commerce, to grant or
allow, secretly or openly, directly or indi-
rectly, any rebate, refund, discount,
credit, commission, or other form of
price differential, where such rebate, re-
fund, discount, credit, commission, or
other form of price differential, effects a
discrimination in price between different
purchasers of goods of like grade and
quality, where either or any of the pur-
2 As used tn § 222,10, the term “commerce”
means “trade or commerce among the several
States and with foreign nations, or between
the District of Columbia or any Territory of
the United States and any State, Territory,
or foreign nation, or between any insular pos~
sessions or other places under the jurisdiction
of the United States, or between any such
possession or place and any State or Territory
of the United States or the District of Colum.
bia or any foreign nation, or within the Dis-
trict of Columbia or any Territory or any in-
sular possession or other place under the
jurisdiction of the United States.”
228
Chapter —Federal Trade Commission
chases involved therein are in commerce,
and where the effect thereof may be sub-
stantially to lessen competition or tend
to create a monopoly in any line of com-
merce, or to injure, destroy, or prevent
competition with any person who either
grants or knowingly receives the bene-
fit of such discrimination, or with cus-
tomers of either of them: Provided,
however—
(1) That the goods involved in any
such transaction are sold for use, con-~
sumption, or resale within any place
under the jurisdiction of the United
States;
(2) That nothing contained in this
paragraph shall prevent differentials
which make only due allowance for dif-
ferences in the cost of manufacture, sale,
or delivery resulting from the differing
methods or quantities in which such
commodities are to such purchasers sold
or delivered;
(3) That nothing contained in this
paragraph shall prevent persons engaged
in selling goods, wares, or merchandise
in commerce from selecting their own
customers in bona fide transactions and
not in restraint of trade;
(4) That nothing contained in this
paragraph shall prevent price changes
from time to time where in response to
changing conditions affecting the mar-
ket for or the marketability of the goods
concerned, such as but not limited to
actual or imminent deterioration of
perishable goods, distress saies under
court process, or sales in good faith in
discontinuance of business in the goods
concerned.
(b) Prohibited brokerage and com-
missions. It is an unfair trade practice
for any member of the industry engaged
in commerce, in the course of such com-
merce, to pay or grant, or to receive or
accept, anything of value as a commis-
sion, brokerage, or other compensation,
or any allowance or discount in lieu
thereof, except for services rendered in
connection with the sale or purchsse of
goods, wares, or merchandise, either to
the other party to such transaction or
to an agent, representative, or other
intermediary therein where such inter-
mediary is acting in fact for or in behalf,
or is subject to the direct or indirect
control, of any party to such transaction
other than the person by whom such
compensation is so granted or paid.
(ce) Prohibited advertising or promo-
tional allowances, etc. It is an unfair
trade practice for any member of the
§ 229.10
industry engaged in commerce to pay or
contract for the payment of advertis-
ing or promotional allowances or any
other thing of value to or for the bene-
fit of a customer of such member in the
course of such commerce as compensa-
tion or in consideration for any services
or facilities furnished by or through
such customer in connection with the
processing, handling, sale, or offering for
sale of any products or commodities
manufactured, sold, or offered for sale by
such member, unless such payment or
consideration is available on proportion-
ally equal terms to all other customers
competing in the distribution of such
products or commodities.
(a) Prohibited discriminatory services
or facilities. It is an unfair trade prac-
tice for any member of the industry en-
gaged in commerce to discriminate in
favor of one purchaser against another
purchaser or purchasers of 3 commodity
bought for resale, with or without proc-
essing, by contracting to furnish or fur-
nishing, or by contributing to the
furnishing of, any services or facilities
connected with the processing, handling,
sale, or offering for sale of such com-
modity so purchased upon terms not
accorded to all competing purchasers on
proportionally equal terms.
(e) Inducing or receiving an illegal
discrimination in price. It is an unfair
trade practice for any member of the
industry engaged in commerce, in the
course of such commerce, knowingly to
induce or receive a discrimination in
price which is prohibited by the fore-
going provisions of this section.
(f) Exemptions. ‘The inhibitions of
this section shall not apply to purchases
of their supplies for their own use by
schools, colleges, universities, public li-
braries, churches, hospitals, and char-
itable institutions not operated for profit.
(g) Purchases by U. S. Government;
applicability of Robinson-Patman Antt-
discrimination Act to same. In an opin-
ion submitted to the Secretary of War
under date of December 28, 1936, the
U. 8. Attorney General advised that the
Robinson-Patman Antidiscrimination
Act “is not applicable to Government
contracts for supplies.” (38 Opinions
Attorney General 539.)
Nore: In complaint proceedings charging
discrimination in price or services or facll-
ities furnished, and upon proof having been
made of such discrimination, the burden of
rebutting the prima facie case thus made by
showing justification shall be upon the per-
229
§ 299.11
eon charged; and unless justification shall be
affirmatively shown, the Commission is au-
thorized to issue an order terminating the
discrimination: Provided, however, That
nothing herein contained shall prevent a
eeller rebutting the prima facle case thus
made by showing that his lower price or the
furnishing of services or facilities to any pur-
chaser or purchasers was made in goed faith
to meet an equally low price of a competitor,
or the services or facilities furnished by a
competitor. See section 2 (b}, Clayton Act.
§ 222.11 Prohibited forms of trade re-
straints (unlawful price fixing, etc.).*
It is an unfair trade practice for any
member of the industry, either directly
or indirectly, to engage in any planned
common course of action, or to enter
into or take part in any understanding,
agreement, combination, or conspiracy,
with one or more members of the indus-
try, or with any other person or persons,
to fix or maintain the price of any
goods or otherwise unlawfully to restrain
trade; or to use any form of threat, in-
timidation, or coercion to induce any
member of the industry or other person
or persons to engage in any such planned
common course of action, or to become a
party to any such understanding, agree-
ment, combination, or conspiracy.
§ 222.12 Aiding or abetting use of un-
fair trade practices.
It is an unfair trade practice for any
person, firm, or corporation to aid, abet,
coerce, or induce another, directly or
indirectly, to use or promote the use of
any unfair trade practice specified in the
*The inhibitions of this section are sub-
ject to Public Law 642, approved July 14,
1952—66 Stat. 632 (the McGuire Act) which
provides that with respect to a commodity
which bears, or the label or container of
which bears, the trade-mark, brand, or name
of the producer or distributor of such com-
modity and which ts in free and open com-
petition with commodities of the same gen-
eral class produced or distributed by others,
a@ seller of such a commodity may enter into
& contract or agreement with a buyer there-
of which establishes a minimum or stipu-
lated price at which such commodity may
be resold by such buyer when such contract
or agreement is lawful as applied to intra-
state transactions under the laws of the
State, Territory, or territorial jurisdiction in
which the resale is to be made or to which
the commodity is to be transported for such
resale, and when such contract or agres-
ment is not between manufacturers, or be-
tween wholesalers, or between brokers, or
between factors, or between retailers, or
between persons, firms, or corporations in
competition with each other.
Title 16—Commercial Practices
rules in this part, or of any other unfair
method of competition or unfair or
deceptive act or practice.
PART 223—ORTHOPEDIC APPLIANCE
INDUSTRY
Bec.
223.0 Definitions.
Group I
223.1 Deception (general).
223.2 Representation or promise that
product will “fit.”
223.3 Protection of public with respect to
apparent agency.
223.4 Deceptive testimonials or depic-
tions.
223.5 Deceptive demonstrations.
323.6 Misuse of terms “custom-made,”
“custom-bullt,” etc.
228.7 Guaranties, warranties, eto.
223.8 Misrepresenting products as con-
forming to standard.
223.9 Deception as to being “new.”
223.10 Substitution of products.
223.11 + Faise invoicing,
223.12 Misrepresentation as to installment
sales contracts, their terms, con-
ditions, etc.
223.18 Misrepresentation as to character of
business.
223.14 Defamation of competitors or false
disparagement of their products.
223.15 Procurement of competitors’ con-
fidential information by unfair
means and wrongful use thereof.
223.16 Unfair threats of infringement
suits.
223.17 Deceptive use of trade or corporate
names, trade-marks, etc.
223.18 Use of the word “free.”
223.19 Coercing purchase of one product
as @ prerequisite to the purchase
of other products,
223.20 Fictitious prices.
223.21 Prohibited allowances or commis-
sions to doctors.
223.22 Inducing breach of contract.
223.29 Enticlng away employees of com-
petitors.
223.24 Prohibited forms of trade restraints
(unlawful price fixing, etc.)
223.25 Prohibited discrimination.
223.26 Aiding or abetting use of unfair
trade practices.
Grour I.
228.10] Disapproval of solicitation when
benefits unlikely.
228.102 Cooperation with doctors.
223.103 Importance of personal fitting.
223.104 Sharing of improved techniques.
AvrHoriry: The provisions of this Part 293
issued under secs. 6, 8, 88 Stat. 721, 719: 15
U.S.O, 46, 45, unless otherwise noted.
Source: The provisions of this Part 223
appear at 19 FR. 7344, Nov. 18, 1984, unlesy
otherwise noted.
230