On March 8 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Agricultural Marketing Service proposed revised Country of Origin Labeling (COOL) requirements for muscle cut covered commodities, which would align labeling requirements for muscle cut meats wholly produced in the U.S. with current requirements for foreign beef. The proposed rule comes after the World Trade Organization held in July 2012 that current COOL requirements discriminate against cattle and hogs imported from Canada and Mexico. Comments on the proposed rule are due by April 11.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) scheduled a public meeting to discuss the agency's budget and program restructuring for April 11 from 10 a.m. to noon, it said in March 12 Federal Register notice. APHIS seeks to engage with stakeholders over several issues related to the decreasing budgets, it said. Issues include public/private partnerships, non-regulatory solutions and new technologies, it said. APHIS will accept comments through May 13 on the issues mentioned in the notice, it said.
On March 7 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced changes March 7 to Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) electronic manuals. While some changes are minor, other changes may affect the admissibility of the plant products, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service revised export requirements and plant lists for the following countries for March 1-7:
The Agricultural Marketing Service issued a final rule revising the standards for grades of almonds in the shell. The change would shift the basis from count to weight in the standards for determining the percentage of internal defects in an inspection sample of almonds in the shell. In addition to simplifying the grading process, AMS said, the weight basis would yield a more accurate percentage of internal defects. For example, due to its lower weight relative to a fully formed kernel, a shriveled kernel has a smaller impact on the percentage of internal defects when the sample is weighed rather than counted, AMS said. According to AMS, the revisions will "align the inspection procedures for incoming inspections (based on the marketing order) and outgoing inspections (based on the standards)," promoting greater uniformity and consistency with current marketing practices.
On March 6 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Food Safety and Inspection Service is removing sodium benzoate, sodium propionate, and benzoic acid from the list of substances prohibited for use in meat or poultry products. The substances will be allowed for use in meat and poultry products in limited quantities and under certain conditions. Under the FSIS final rule, which is effective May 6, use of these substances in or on meat or poultry products will continue to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration for safety and by FSIS for suitability. FDA will continue to establish parameters approved uses, and FSIS will list the approved uses in its table in Directive 7120.1, the final rule said.
On March 5 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports: