Agricultural Marketing Service August 2012 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents
Results 1 - 10 of 10
Beef Promotion and Research; Amendment to the Order
This final rule expands the contracting authority of the Beef Promotion and Research Order (Order). The Beef Research and Information Act (Act) requires that the Beef Promotion Operating Committee (BPOC) enter into contracts with established national non-profit industry- governed organizations including the Federation of State Beef Councils to implement programs of promotion, research, consumer information, and industry information. The Act does not define ``national non-profit industry governed organization,'' however, the Order states that these organizations must be governed by a board of directors representing the cattle or beef industry on a national basis and that they were active and ongoing prior to enactment of the Act. This final rule changes the date requirement in the Order so that organizations otherwise qualified could be eligible to contract with the BPOC for the implementation and conduct of Beef Checkoff programs if they have been active and ongoing for at least two years.
Cranberries Grown in States of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York; Changing Reporting Requirements
This rule revises the reporting requirements currently prescribed under the marketing order that regulates the handling of cranberries grown in the States of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Oregon, Washington, and Long Island in the State of New York (order). The order is administered locally by the Cranberry Marketing Committee (Committee). This rule changes the dates covered by the third reporting period and the date by which the Handler Inventory Report (Form HIR) is due to the Committee. These changes will help ensure the Committee has current and complete information available for its discussions during its annual August meeting, while providing handlers sufficient time to submit their reports.
Notice of Meeting of the National Organic Standards Board
In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, (5 U.S.C. App.), the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing an upcoming meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). Written public comments are invited in advance of the meeting, and the meeting will include scheduled time for oral comments from the public.
Cotton Board Rules and Regulations: Adjusting Supplemental Assessment on Imports
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is amending the Cotton Board Rules and Regulations by increasing the value assigned to imported cotton for calculating supplemental assessments collected for use by the Cotton Research and Promotion Program. An amendment is required to adjust the assessments collected on imported cotton and the cotton content of imported products to be the same as those paid on domestically produced cotton. In addition, AMS is changing the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) statistical reporting numbers that were amended since the last assessment adjustment.
United States Standards for Grades of Grapefruit Juice
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has revised the United States Standards for Grades of Grapefruit Juice. The grade standards for grapefruit juice have been changed to remove the parameters for maximum ``free and suspended pulp'' to account for advances in industry processing technology.
Olives Grown in California; Increased Assessment Rate
This rule increases the assessment rate established for the California Olive Committee (Committee) for 2012 and subsequent fiscal years from $16.61 to $31.32 per assessable ton of olives handled. The Committee locally administers the marketing order which regulates the handling of olives grown in California. Assessments upon olive handlers are used by the Committee to fund reasonable and necessary expenses of the program. The fiscal year began January 1 and ends December 31. The assessment rate will remain in effect indefinitely unless modified, suspended, or terminated.
Specialty Crops; Import Regulations; New Pistachio Import Requirements
This rule establishes a minimum quality regulation for lots of pistachios imported into the United States. The regulation specifies maximum aflatoxin tolerance levels as well as mandatory aflatoxin testing and certification requirements. These import quality requirements are the same as or comparable to those in effect for the domestically produced commodity. Under this regulation, aflatoxin levels in imported pistachios may not exceed 15 parts per billion (ppb), as certified by aflatoxin inspection certificates issued by an accredited laboratory. This action is intended to assure consumers that all pistachios offered for sale in the United States meet the same aflatoxin standards, thus promoting high quality product in the market place and fostering consumer satisfaction.
Milk in the Mideast Marketing Area; Order Amending the Order
This final rule amends the Pool Plant provisions of the Mideast Federal milk marketing order regulating distributing plants physically located within the marketing area, with a Class I utilization of at least 30 percent and with combined route disposition and transfers of at least 50 percent distributed into Federal milk marketing areas, as Pool Distributing Plants under the terms of the order. More than the required number of producers for the Mideast marketing area approved the issuance of the final order as amended.
Livestock Mandatory Reporting Program; Establishment of the Reporting Regulation for Wholesale Pork
On April 2, 2001, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) implemented the Livestock Mandatory Reporting (LMR) program as required by the Livestock Mandatory Reporting Act of 1999 (1999 Act). In October 2006, the LMR program was reauthorized by Congress through September 2010. On September 28, 2010, the Mandatory Price Reporting Act of 2010 (2010 Reauthorization Act) reauthorized LMR for an additional 5 years and added a provision for mandatory reporting of wholesale pork cuts. The 2010 Reauthorization Act directed the Secretary to engage in negotiated rulemaking to make required regulatory changes for mandatory wholesale pork reporting and establish a negotiated rulemaking committee to develop these changes. This final rule reflects the work of the USDA Wholesale Pork Reporting Negotiated Rulemaking Committee (Committee).
National Organic Program; Amendments to the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (Crops, Livestock and Processing)
This final rule amends the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA's) National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances (National List) to enact recommendations submitted to the Secretary of Agriculture (Secretary) by the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) on October 28, 2010, and April 29, 2011. This final rule amends the annotation for tetracycline for use in organic crop production and adds two substances: formic acid and attapulgite, along with any restrictive annotations, for use in organic livestock production and organic processing, respectively.
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