The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is adding Malta to its list of regions that are free of foot-and-mouth disease, rinderpest, African swine fever and swine vesicular disease, and its list of regions considered free of or at low risk for classical swine fever, it said in a notice. The determination, which takes effect Sept. 11, loosens restrictions on importation of swine, pork and pork products from Malta.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service loosened restrictions on importation of live bovines and bovine products from several countries, it said. The agency said it concurs with the Organization for Animal Health’s decision to classify Costa Rica, Germany, Lithuania, Mexico, Namibia, Romania and Spain as having negligible risk for bovine spongiform encephalopathy. The determination was made Aug. 2.

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is proposing to end a ban on importation of fresh pork and pork products for classical swine fever (CSF) reasons from most of Mexico, after finding the entire country to be essentially free of the illness. APHIS already recognizes nine Mexican states as free of CSF: Baja California, Baja California Sur, Campeche, Chihuahua, Nayarit, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa, Sonora and Yucatan. Under the proposal, fresh pork and pork products would be eligible for importation from every Mexican state, and APHIS would add the entire country of Mexico to its Web list of regions considered to be free of CSF but from which live pork, swine and pork products can be imported to the U.S. under conditions specified in 9 CFR 94.32. Comments are due Oct. 7.

The Department of Agriculture is increasing the fiscal year 2017 tariff rate quota for raw cane sugar by 244,690 metric tons raw value, it said (here). The increase brings the total FY 2017 TRQ, originally set at the 1,117,195 MTRV minimum mandated by the World Trade Organization (see 1605050018), to 1,361,885 MTRV, USDA said. Raw cane sugar under this quota must be accompanied by a certificate for quota eligibility. USDA also announced sugar may be entered under the FY 2017 TRQ until Oct. 31, 2017, one month later than the usual last entry date. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative will allocate the increase among supplying countries and customs areas.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and Chinese officials reached an agreement to allow for the U.S. to export rice to China "for the first time ever," the USDA said in a July 20 news release (here). The exports can begin after an audit of U.S. rice facilities by China’s General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine, the USDA said. "This market represents an exceptional opportunity today, with enormous potential for growth in the future,” Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue said. “The agreement with China has been in the works for more than a decade and I’m pleased to see it finally come to fruition, especially knowing how greatly it will benefit our growers and industry."

The Agriculture Department requests public comments through July 17, 2018, on how it can give “better customer service” and remove unintended barriers to participation in its programs “in ways that least interfere with our customers and allow us to accomplish our mission,” USDA said (here). The department wants ideas to modify, expand, repeal, or “streamline” regulations, guidance, or “any other policy documents” needing reform, it said. It will collect comments in four “batches,” it said. USDA noted that a Feb. 24 executive order (here) directs agencies to identify regulations that eliminate jobs or inhibit job creation; are outdated, unnecessary or ineffective; and that impose costs that exceed benefits. “USDA is committed to creating a culture of consistent, efficient service to our customers while easing regulatory burdens to make it easier to invest, produce, and build in rural America in a way that creates jobs and economic prosperity while ensuring the safety of our food supply, and protecting and safeguarding our land, water, and other natural resources for future generations,” USDA said.

The Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration is amending U.S. standards for beans and lentils. In its final notice amending beans standards (here), GIPSA is creating a class and grade requirement chart for chickpeas, also known as garbanzo beans, and is establishing a new grade determining factor, definition, factor limits and visual reference image for “contrasting chickpeas.” In another final notice amending lentil standards (here), the agency is establishing an additional grading factor, definition, grade requirements and visual reference images for “wrinkled lentils,” as well as a special grade, definition, special grade requirements, designation and visual reference images for “green lentils.” Both notices take effect Aug. 1.

The Agricultural Marketing Service is amending the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Circumstances in its organic regulations to prohibit eight substances and maintain three exemptions for non-organic products, it said (here). The agency is newly prohibiting the use in organic foods of lignin sulfonate (for use as a floating agent), furosemide, magnesium carbonate, and the non-organic forms of chia, dillweed oil, frozen galangal, frozen lemongrass and chipotle chile peppers, it said. AMS is also renewing listings allowing the use of non-organic forms of oligofructose enriched inulin, Turkish bay leaves and whey protein concentrate in organic products. The changes, which result from the National Organic Standards Board’s 2017 sunset review, take effect Aug. 7.

The Department of Agriculture announced the establishment of the tariff rate quotas for raw cane sugar and refined and specialty sugars (including syrups and molasses) for fiscal year 2018 (Oct. 1, 2017 - Sept. 30, 2018) (here).

The Department of Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation on June 29 announced Special Import Quota #10 for upland cotton will be established on July 6, allowing importation of 13,890,026 kilograms (63,796 bales) of upland cotton (here). It will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than Oct. 3, 2017, and entered into the U.S. by Jan. 1, 2018. The quota is equivalent to one week's consumption of cotton by domestic mills at the seasonally adjusted average rate for the period January 2017 through March 2017, the most recent three months for which data is available.