The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service issued emails July 23 announcing changes to some 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 reports that the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) invites member countries and observer organizations to participate in the following eight electronic working groups:

On July 27 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced in an email, sent July 30, that on July 18 it postponed the use of risk-based sampling (RBS) procedures on shipments of plants for planting at plant inspection stations (PIS) after only two days of implementation. PIS managers were instructed to return to the use of traditional sampling methods until further notice, it said.

The Agricultural Marketing Service issued a correction to its June 6 final rule amending the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances for the 2012 sunset review. As published, the modification to the introductory text for the listing for colors at 7 CFR 205.606(d) inadvertently removed paragraphs (d)(1) through (d)(19). These paragraphs are necessary to identify the specific nonorganic colors that can be used as ingredients in processed products labeled as “organic” if organic forms are not commercially available, AMS said. AMS corrected the final regulations by reinserting paragraphs (d)(1) through (19).

On July 26 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:

The Food Safety and Inspection Service revised export requirements and plant lists for the following countries for July 20-27:

On July 25 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports:

The Animal and Plant Health and Inspection Service issued a final rule to amend the regulations that govern the import of animals and animal products by consolidating the list of factors APHIS considers when evaluating the animal health status of a foreign region from 11 factors to 8 factors, and by setting out new factors APHIS will consider when evaluating a region as historically free of a specific disease. APHIS made no changes to its Dec. 28, 2011 proposed rule. This final rule is effective Aug. 27.

On July 24 the Foreign Agricultural Service issued the following GAIN reports: