National Fertilizer Assn., Inc. v. Bradley

Background

A group of fertilizer manufacturers sued to block a new South Carolina law that took effect in August 1936. The law added an “Open Formula” rule requiring a tag on each sack or container stating the amount and analysis of each material or source of each plant food element, in pounds per hundred pounds, in addition to the usual chemical analysis. The manufacturers argued the law violated the Fourteenth Amendment and would force them to reveal secret formulas. They filed a joint bill on July 22, 1936, before state enforcing officers had issued rules or the State’s highest court had interpreted the amendment.

Reasoning

The core question was whether the labeling requirement was arbitrary, unreasonable, or an unlawful taking of secret business information. The lower court found a reasonable construction: a tag could show the general average of materials put into the factory’s storage or curing pile (piles ranging from about 100 to 5,000 tons). Under that interpretation the Court said the law was not clearly arbitrary, could be complied with without prohibitive expense, and served the Legislature’s purpose of informing farmers. The opinion also relied on prior authority that a manufacturer’s right to secrecy yields to the State’s power to require truthful product information for fair dealing.

Real world impact

The decision lets the State require more detailed ingredient disclosure on fertilizer packages while permitting practical averaging methods to meet the rule. Manufacturers may need larger storage or better bookkeeping but not prohibitive expense. Because enforcement rules and state court interpretations were not yet settled, exact enforcement details could still change.