Two Canadian ministers will "closely review" proposed voluntary “Product of USA” labeling regulations for meat, poultry and egg products issued by the USDA Food Safety Inspection Service March 7 (see 2303070053), making sure “that new definitions and rules allow farmers, processors and consumers in both countries to continue to benefit from efficient, stable and competitive markets,” their joint statement March 7 said. Minister of Agriculture Marie-Claude Bibeau and Minister of Trade Mary Ng also said they would oppose “any proposition from the United States to renew a mandatory country of origin [labeling] system for pork and beef.”
The Agricultural Marketing Service is updating tariff schedule numbers listed for importer assessments under the marketing order on paper and paper-based packaging. The agency’s final rule brings the list of Harmonized Tariff Schedule numbers subject to assessments in line with the latest changes to the tariff schedule. AMS also is amending the regulations to provide that, going forward, if any HTS number under the order “is changed and such change is merely a replacement of a previous number and has no impact on the description of the paper and paper-based packaging involved, assessments will continue to be collected based on the new number.” The final rule takes effect March 10.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service on March 6 released a pre-publication version of a proposed rule that would set new requirements for labeling meat, poultry and egg products as “Product of USA” or “Made in USA.” Under the proposed rule, the claims could only be made on products “derived from animals born, raised, slaughtered and processed” in the U.S. The notice has not as of press time been scheduled for publication in the Federal Register.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will classify eight Mexican regions for bovine tuberculosis, it announced in a March 3 notice. These are: the state of Sonora as Level II; the Yucatan Peninsula region (states of Yucatan and Quintana Roo, and part of Campeche), the Huasteca region (parts of Puebla, Veracruz and Hidalgo), part of Chuhuahua, and part of Durango as Level III; and part of the state of Coahuila, part of Nuevo Leon and the whole state of Tamaulipas as Level IV. APHIS proposed the classifications in August 2022 with comments due in October (see 2208250048) but said it did not receive any comments. APHIS in March 2022 classified Sonora as a Level I for bovine brucellosis and Canada as a Level I for both bovine brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis (see 2203040021).
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will allow importation of fresh oha leaves from Nigeria and mangoes from Grenada into the U.S., both subject to certain phytostanitary requirements, it said in a pair of notices released Feb. 14. Imports of the oha leaves and mangoes may be authorized beginning Feb. 15, APHIS said.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is developing a new Harmonized Tariff Schedule flag for use in ACE that the agency says will eliminate the need for filers to disclaim entries under tariff subheadings potentially subject to the APHIS Core partner government agency message set, it said in an emailed bulletin Feb. 9. The new “AQ3” flag will alert filers that the relevant tariff subheading may require APHIS Core PGA data, but it will not prohibit filers from successfully submitting an entry without the data or a disclaim.
The Agricultural Marketing Service is amending handling requirements for imported kiwifruit and kiwifruit grown in California, it said in a notice released Jan. 27. The final rule revises size and uniformity requirements under the California kiwifruit federal marketing order for all varieties of Actinidia chinensis species kiwifruit, which is commonly known as golden kiwifruit, AMS said. Under Section 8e of the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act, imported kiwifruit must conform to the same maturity, size and grade requirements as those set by the domestic marketing order. The changes take effect March 1.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has stopped the import of fresh bell peppers from Spain, as of Dec. 29, because it wants to prevent the Mediterranean fruit fly from spreading in the U.S. In-bond transfers of the peppers are also prohibited, south of 39 degree latitude and west of 104 degrees longitude. Fruit flies were detected during multiple CBP inspections of the subject goods at ports of entry to the U.S.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service announced the 2023 rates it will charge meat and poultry establishments, egg products plants, and importers and exporters for providing voluntary, overtime and holiday inspection and identification, certification and laboratory services. Effective Jan. 1, the agency's base time rate will be $67.12, and its overtime rate $82.80. The 2022 holiday rate will be $98.44, and the laboratory rate will be $87.36. FSIS said the export application fee will be $4.01 per application, unchanged from last year's fee.
USDA and the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative are accepting applications for new members to sit on agricultural trade advisory committees, the agencies said this week. Applications are being accepted for six Agricultural Technical Advisory Committees -- covering animals, fruits and vegetables, grains and more -- as well as the Agricultural Policy Advisory Committee, which advises the administration on the implementation and enforcement of trade agreements and trade policy. Members serve four-year terms without compensation. Applications are due by 5 p.m. Jan.31.