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Belgian Fertilisers Law. 



Belgian Law on the Adulteration of Fertilisers 

 and Feeding Stuffs. 



The Board of Agriculture have received through the 

 Foreign Office a copy of the Belgian law of 21st December, 

 1896, concerning the adulteration of fertilisers and feeding- 

 stuffs, together with the regulations for its execution. The 

 main provisions of this new law, which repeals that of 1887, 

 and of the accompanying regulations, are as follows :— 



Every delivery of a simple or compound fertiliser contain- 

 ing at least one of the essential fertilising principles 

 (nitrogen, phosphoric acid, potash) must be accompanied by 

 an invoice setting out the nature of the material, the per- 

 centage of the fertilising ingredients, and the chemical state 

 of these ingredients. Feeding-stuffs containing essential 

 nutritive principles (albumen, fats) must be accompanied by 

 a similar invoice when the quantity delivered exceeds 

 50 kilogrammes (no lbs.) of an uncompounded substance, or 

 25 kilogrammes (55 lbs.) of a compound substance. The 

 invoice, if not actually sent with the goods, must be sent to 

 the consignee within the next four days at latest. 



These provisions do not apply to fertilisers which are 

 the produce of the natural resources of the farm or the 

 spontaneous produce of the soil, or to feeding stuffs which are 

 derived directly from the soil, or which are by-products from 

 certain industries, provided they are delivered under their 

 exact denomination and in their natural state. Among such 

 fertilisers are ashes ; soot ; sweepings of houses, slaughter- 

 houses, and agricultural factories ; simple farmyard manure, 

 etc. ; and, among feeding stuffs exempted are by-products 

 from sugar-refineries, breweries and distilleries. 



If the fertiliser is sold or delivered as containing also an 

 ingredient for which special stimulating properties are 

 claimed (such as insecticides, cultivations of useful microbes, 

 etc.), the specific property of such ingredient, and its pro- 

 portion to the whole quantity, must also be stated. A similar 

 provision applies to feeding stuffs containing ingredients 

 specially favourable to animals, such as aromatic, tonic, or 

 aperient substances, sea-salt, phosphates or other chemical 

 compounds, etc. 



