The Agricultural Marketing Service is amending the Cotton Board Rules and Regulations to decrease the value assigned to imported cotton for the purposes of calculating supplemental assessments on imports collected under the Cotton Research and Promotion Program, it said in a direct final rule released Aug. 25. The revised value is 1.1136, a decrease of .0426 cent per kilogram. The decrease reflects a fall in the average price of upland cotton received by U.S. farmers during the period January through December 2020. AMS's notice also includes a table of adjusted assessments corresponding to each Harmonized Tariff Schedule subheading for which they are due. The changes take effect Oct. 25, unless adverse comments are received by Sept. 27.

The Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing to end exemptions that allow the use in organic products of 12 non-organic substances, it said. Exemptions for use in organic crop and livestock production would end for non-organic sucrose octanoate esters, vitamin B, oxytocin, procaine and sucrose octanoate esters, AMS said in a notice released Aug. 23. The agency would also end exemptions for use in organic handling for non-organic alginic acid, colors (black currant juice color, blueberry juice color, carrot juice color, cherry juice color, grape juice color, paprika color, pumpkin juice color, turmeric extract color), kelp, konjac flour, sweet potato starch, Turkish bay leaves and whey protein concentrate. AMS is considering the changes as part of its 2022 sunset review of the organic National List. Comments are due Oct. 25.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is increasing the fiscal year 2021 tariff rate quota for raw cane sugar by 90,100 metric tons raw value, it said in a notice released Aug. 23. The increase brings the total FY21 TRQ, originally set at the 1,117,195 MTRV minimum mandated by the World Trade Organization, to 1,207,295 MTRV, USDA said. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will allocate the increase among supplying countries and customs areas. Raw cane sugar under this quota must be accompanied by a certificate for quota eligibility. USDA is also extending the period for entry under the FY21 raw cane sugar TRQ by one month, until Oct. 31.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation announced Aug. 19 that Special Import Quota #18 for upland cotton will be established Aug. 26, allowing importation of 12,031,960 kilograms (55,262 bales) of upland cotton, the same as the previous quota period. The quota will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than Nov. 23, 2021, and entered into the U.S. by Feb. 21, 2022. CCC had announced Special Import Quota #17 on Aug. 12. Established Aug. 19, the quota will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than Nov. 16, 2021, and entered into the U.S. by Feb. 14, 2022. The allowed amount in the #17 quota was up from Special Import Quota #16 for upland cotton, established Aug. 12, allowing importation of 11,607,075 kilograms (53,310 bales) of upland cotton (see 2108060006). The #17 and #18 quotas are equivalent to one week's consumption of cotton by domestic mills at the seasonally adjusted average rate for the April through June 2021 period, the most recent three months for which data is available. The #16 is based on March through May 2021.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is updating its animal and animal product regulations to reflect the exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union, it said Aug. 16. Effective on that date, its revised regulations will treat Great Britain, consisting of England, Scotland and Wales, as separate from Northern Ireland in various lists and definitions. Because of Northern Ireland’s intention to continue to follow EU animal health regulations and policies, it will be treated the same as EU member states. Great Britain will continue to be subject to the same treatment that previously applied to the United Kingdom for an interim period, and APHIS will publish another notice when that interim period ends, the agency said. APHIS is also amending its definition of the EU to add Croatia as a member state, it said.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will allow imports of citrus fruit from additional regions in Australia, it said Aug. 18. The agency will immediately allow in citrus fruits from the inland region of Queensland, the shires of Bourke and Narromine in New South Wales, and all of Western Australia, in addition to the already authorized regions of Riverina in New South Wales, the Riverland region of South Australia and Northwest Victoria's Sunraysia region. Imports from the three new regions will still require treatment in some cases, and must be accompanied by phytosanitary certificates.

The Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing to amend its requirements for the maturity of imported avocados, as well as avocados grown in South Florida, it said Aug. 12. Under the proposal, the beginning and end dates of annual maturity shipping schedules would run April 16 to April 15 of the following year, with the exception of requirements or Guatemalan avocados, which would run June 9 to June 8 the following year. AMS says new varieties of avocados harvested in the spring have generated confusion as to which maturity schedules may apply to a given shipment. Under Section 8e of the Agricultural Marketing Act, imported avocados must conform to the same maturity, size and grade requirements as those set by certain domestic marketing orders, including for avocados.

The Agricultural Marketing Service is proposing to remove Section 8e size, grade, quality and maturity requirements for onions imported during the spring season, it said in a proposed rule issued Aug. 5. The agency says domestic onion producers in South Texas failed to support a marketing order for onions grown in the region in a recently held referendum. “USDA believes termination of this program would be appropriate as the Order is no longer favored by industry producers,” it said. Comments are due Oct. 4.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service added Croatia, Senegal and Algeria to the list of regions it considers to be affected by highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) effective, respectively, Nov. 25, 2020; Jan. 12, 2021; and Feb. 10, 2021, it said in an Aug. 9 notice.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation announced Aug. 5 that Special Import Quota #16 for upland cotton will be established Aug. 12, allowing importation of 11,607,075 kilograms (53,310 bales) of upland cotton, the same as the previous quota period. The quota will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than Nov. 9, 2021, and entered into the U.S. by Feb. 7, 2022. The quota is equivalent to one week's consumption of cotton by domestic mills at the seasonally adjusted average rate for the March through May 2021 period, the most recent three months for which data is available.