On April 19-21 the Food and Drug Administration posted new and revised versions of the following Import Alerts on the detention without physical examination of:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service announced changes April 19 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 will hold a public meeting June 18 in Washington, D.C., to discuss U.S. negotiating positions in advance of the 36th Session of the Codex Alimentarius Commission. The Codex Commission is set to meet July 1-5 in Rome. To participate via conference call, dial 1-888-858-2144, participant code 6208658.
The Commodity Credit Corporation said it's accepting proposals by May 28 for its 2014 Foreign Market Development Cooperator program. Under the Cooperator program, the Foreign Agricultural Service enters into agreements with eligible non-profit U.S. trade organizations to share the cost of certain overseas marketing and promotion activities. Funding authority is set to expire at the end of fiscal year 2013, so awards will not be made unless program funding is reauthorized.
The Commodity Credit Corporation said it's accepting proposals by May 28 for its 2014 Market Access Program (MAP), which is designed to create, expand, and maintain foreign markets for U.S. agricultural commodities and products through cost-share assistance. Under the MAP, the CCC enters into agreements with eligible participants to share the cost of certain overseas marketing and promotion activities. Only non-profit U.S. agricultural trade organizations, nonprofit state regional trade groups, U.S. agricultural cooperatives, and state government agencies can participate directly in the brand program. Funding authority is set to expire at the end of fiscal year 2013, so awards will not be made unless program funding is reauthorized.
The Commodity Credit Corporation said it's accepting proposals by May 28 for its 2014 Technical Assistance for Specialty Crops (TASC) program, which is designed to assist U.S. organizations by providing funding for projects that address sanitary, phytosanitary, or related technical barriers (TBTs) that prohibit or threaten the export of U.S. specialty crops. U.S. specialty crops, for the purpose of the TASC program, are defined to include all cultivated plants, or the products thereof, produced in the U.S., except wheat, feed grains, oilseeds, cotton, rice, peanuts, sugar, and tobacco.
The Commodity Credit Corporation said it's accepting proposals by May 28 for its 2014 Quality Samples Program (QSP), which is designed to encourage the development and expansion of export markets for U.S. agricultural commodities by helping U.S. entities provide commodity samples to potential foreign importers. Participants may seek reimbursement from QSP for the sample purchase price and transportation costs.
The Commodity Credit Corporation said it's accepting proposals by May 28 for its 2014 Emerging Markets Program (EMP), which assists U.S. entities in developing, maintaining, or expanding exports of U.S. agricultural commodities and products by funding activities that improve emerging markets’ food and rural business systems, including reducing potential trade barriers in such markets. All U.S. agricultural commodities, except tobacco, are eligible for consideration. Agricultural products should be comprised of at least 50 percent U.S. origin content by weight to be eligible for funding.
A listing of recent antidumping and countervailing duty messages from the International Trade Administration posted to CBP's website April 19, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at addcvd.cbp.gov. (CBP occasionally adds backdated messages without otherwise indicating which message was added. ITT will include a message date in parentheses in such cases.)
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld April 19 the Department of Transportation’s pilot program that allows Mexican trucking companies to operate in the U.S., in the face of a challenge by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the Owner-Operators Independent Drivers Association.