Producer-handler means a person who:

(a) Operates a dairy farm and a distributing plant from which there is route disposition in the marketing area, and from which total route disposition and packaged sales of fluid milk products to other plants during the month does not exceed 3 million pounds;

(b) Receives fluid milk from own farm production or milk that is fully subject to the pricing and pooling provisions of the order in this part or any other Federal order;

(c) Receives at its plant or acquires for route disposition no more than 150,000 pounds of fluid milk products from handlers fully regulated under any Federal order. This limitation shall not apply if the producer-handler's own farm production is less than 150,000 pounds during the month;

(d) Disposes of no other source milk as Class I milk except by increasing the nonfat milk solids content of the fluid milk products; and

(e) Provides proof satisfactory to the market administrator that the care and management of the dairy animals and other resources necessary to produce all Class I milk handled (excluding receipts from handlers fully regulated under any Federal order) and the processing and packaging operations are the producer-handler's own enterprise and at its own risk.

(f) Any producer-handler with Class I route dispositions and/or transfers of packaged fluid milk products in the marketing area described in §1131.2 of this chapter shall be subject to payments into the Order 1131 producer settlement fund on such dispositions pursuant to §1000.76(a) and payments into the Order 1131 administrative fund provided such dispositions are less than three million pounds in the current month and such producer-handler had total Class I route dispositions and/or transfers of packaged fluid milk products from own farm production of three million pounds or more the previous month. If the producer-handler has Class I route dispositions and/or transfers of packaged fluid milk products into the marketing area described in §1131.2 of this chapter of three million pounds or more during the current month, such producer-handler shall be subject to the provisions described in §1131.7 of this chapter or §1000.76(a).

[64 FR 47978, Sept. 1, 1999, as amended at 71 FR 25499, May 1, 2006; 75 FR 21160, Apr. 23, 2010]