[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 7 (Tuesday, January 12, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1386-1387]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00440]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
[Doc. No. AMS-LPS-15-0029]
Withdrawal of United States Standards for Livestock and Meat
Marketing Claims
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of withdrawal.
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[[Page 1387]]
SUMMARY: This Notice informs the public that the Agricultural Marketing
Service (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is
withdrawing the U.S. Standards for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims.
Specifically, AMS is withdrawing: (1) The Grass (Forage) Fed Claim for
Ruminant Livestock and the Meat Products Derived from Such Livestock
(Grass (Forage) Fed Marketing Claim Standard); and (2) the Naturally
Raised Claim for Livestock and the Meat and Meat Products Derived From
Such Livestock (Naturally Raised Marketing Claim Standard).
DATES: Effective Date: January 12, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Bowden, Jr. Chief,
Standardization Branch, Quality Assessment Division; Livestock,
Poultry, and Seed Program; Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA, Room
2096-S, STOP 0249, 1400 Independence Avenue SW.; Washington, DC 20250-
0249, [email protected], 202/720-5705.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Section 203(c) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, (7 U.S.C.
1621-1627), directs and authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture ``to
develop and improve standards of quality, condition, quantity, grade,
and packaging, and recommend and demonstrate such standards in order to
encourage uniformity and consistency in commercial practices.'' USDA is
committed to carrying out this authority in a manner that facilitates
the marketing of agricultural products. One way AMS achieves this
objective is through the development and maintenance of voluntary
standards.
The U.S. Standards for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims were
initiated through a Federal Register Notice (67 FR 79553) published on
December 30, 2002. The Notice was published as a result of increasing
demand from the livestock and meat industries wishing to distinguish
their products in the marketplace. The Notice proposed minimum
requirements for livestock and meat industry production/marketing
claims that, when adopted, would become the U.S. Standards for
Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims. As a means of increasing the
credibility of the production/marketing claims, AMS provides the
industries with an option to have their production/marketing claims
verified using voluntary USDA-Certified or USDA-Verified programs in
accordance with procedures contained in Part 62 of Title 7 of the Code
of Federal Regulations (7 CFR part 62). Consequently, the Grass
(Forage) Fed Marketing Claim Standard was published on October 16, 2007
(72 FR 58631), and the Naturally Raised Marketing Claim Standard was
published on January 21, 2009 (74 FR 3541).
Questions & Answers
Why is AMS withdrawing the U.S. Standards for Livestock and Meat
Marketing Claims?
AMS continually reviews the services it provides. During the course
of this review, AMS has determined that certain services do not fit
within the Agency's statutory mandate to facilitate the marketing of
U.S. agricultural products. One such issue that has risen is the use of
the U.S. Standards for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims, which AMS
believes does not facilitate the marketing of agricultural products in
a manner that is useful to stakeholders or consumers. When AMS verifies
a production/marketing claim, a company often seeks to market the USDA-
verified production/marketing claim on a food product label. However,
the company must receive pre-approval from the USDA Food Safety and
Inspection Service (FSIS) or meet the Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) labeling requirements. These agencies regulate food labels for
the vast majority of agricultural commodities produced in the U.S. and
ensure the labels are truthful and not misleading. The authority over
production/marketing claim verification and food labeling approval
presents challenges to companies wishing to market USDA-verified
production/marketing claims on food labels, because there is no
guarantee that an USDA-verified production/marketing claim will be
approved by FSIS or FDA.
Additionally, AMS seeks to adhere to the requirements outlined in
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-119 and The
National Technology Transfer and Advancement Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-
113 or NTTAA), http://www.nist.gov/standardsgov/. The OMB Circular A-
119 establishes policies on Federal use and development of voluntary
consensus standards and on conformity assessment activities. The NTTAA
directs Federal agencies to use technical standards that are developed
or adopted by voluntary consensus standards bodies, using such
technical standards as a means to carry out policy objectives or
activities determined by the agencies and departments, except where
inconsistent with applicable law or impractical. Going forward, in the
absence of a Congressional mandate to develop and maintain a marketing
claim standard, such as AMS does for organic products and Country of
Origin Labeling, AMS will collaborate with standards development
organizations (SDO) to establish marketing claims standards. The
International Tenderness Marketing Claims, which are eligible to
receive USDA Certification, are an example of the type of collaboration
between AMS and ASTM International, formerly known as American Society
for Testing and Materials, a SDO.
Therefore, AMS acknowledges that the U.S. Standards for Livestock
and Meat Marketing Claims do not always help facilitate the marketing
of agricultural products and will develop and maintain U.S. Standards
for Livestock and Meat Marketing Claims when there is a statutory
mandate to do so.
What does this mean for current users of the USDA Grass (Forage) Fed
Marketing Claim Standard?
Current users of the USDA Grass (Forage) Fed Marketing Claim
Standard have several options. USDA ISO Guide 65/ISO/IEC 17065 and USDA
Process Verified Program applicants must identify a new Grass-fed
Standard their company intends to meet by February 11, 2016 and must
implement the new standard by April 11, 2016. This may be accomplished
by (1) converting the USDA Grass (Forage) Fed Marketing Claim Standard
into their private grass-fed standard, (2) using another recognized
grass-fed standard, or (3) developing a new grass-fed standard. For the
Small and Very Small Producer Program, applicants will see minimal
change, as the requirements will be included in a procedural document.
AMS will list each company and the grass-fed standard it uses on
the appropriate Official Listing.
What does this mean for current users of the USDA Naturally Raised
Marketing Claim Standard?
There are no current users of the USDA Naturally Raised Marketing
Claim Standard and therefore, there is no impact.
Dated: January 7, 2016.
Rex A. Barnes,
Associate Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-00440 Filed 1-11-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P