[Federal Register Volume 59, Number 173 (Thursday, September 8, 1994)]
[Unknown Section]
[Page 0]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 94-22251]
[[Page Unknown]]
[Federal Register: September 8, 1994]
VOL. 59, NO. 173
Thursday, September 8, 1994
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
7 CFR Parts 905 and 944
[Docket No. FV94-905-2-PR]
Oranges, Grapefruit, Tangerines, and Tangelos Grown in Florida;
and Fruits, Import Regulations (Grapefruit); Proposed Higher Grade
Requirements for Florida-Grown and Imported Red and White Seedless
Grapefruit
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: This proposed rule would increase the minimum grade
requirements for Florida-grown and imported fresh red and white
seedless grapefruit to U.S. No. 1, from the current minimum grade
requirement of Improved No. 2 External-U.S. No. 1 Internal. This
proposed rule is designed to improve the quality and strengthen the
demand for fresh domestic, export, and import shipments of seedless
grapefruit in the interest of producers, handlers, and consumers of
such fruit.
DATES: Comments must be received by September 23, 1994.
ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments
concerning this proposed rule to: Docket Clerk, Fruit and Vegetable
Division, AMS, USDA, P.O. Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-
6456. Three copies of all written material shall be submitted, and they
will be made available for public inspection at the office of the
Docket Clerk during regular business hours. All comments should
reference the docket number, date, and page number of this issue of the
Federal Register.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mark Kreaggor, Marketing Order
Administration Branch, Fruit and Vegetable Division, AMS, USDA, P.O.
Box 96456, Room 2523-S, Washington, DC 20090-6456; telephone: 202-720-
2431; or William G. Pimental, Southeast Marketing Field Office, USDA/
AMS, P.O. Box 2276, Winter Haven, Florida 33883; telephone: 813-299-
4770.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This proposed rule is issued under Marketing
Agreement and Marketing Order No. 905 [7 CFR Part 905] regulating the
handling of oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos grown in
Florida, hereinafter referred to as the order. This order is effective
under the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended [7
U.S.C. 601-674], hereinafter referred to as the Act.
This proposed rule is also issued under section 8e [7 U.S.C.
Section 608e-1] of the Act. Section 8e of the Act provides that
whenever specified commodities, including grapefruit, are regulated
under a Federal marketing order, imports of these commodities into the
United States are prohibited unless they meet the same or comparable
grade, size, quality, or maturity requirements as those in effect for
the domestically produced commodities. Section 8e also provides that
whenever two or more marketing orders regulate the same commodity
produced in different areas of the United States, the Secretary shall
determine which area the imported commodity is in most direct
competition with and apply regulations based on that area to the
imported commodity. The Secretary has determined that grapefruit
imported into the United States are in most direct competition with
grapegruit grown in Florida regulated under the order, and has found
that the minimum grade and size requirements for imported grapefruit
should be the same as those established for grapefruit under the order.
The Department of Agriculture (Department) is issuing this rule in
conformance with Executive Order 12866.
This proposed rule has been reviewed under Executive Order 12778,
Civil Justice Reform. This proposed rule is not intended to have
retroactive effect. This proposed rule would not preempt any state or
local laws, regulations, or policies, unless they present an
irreconcilable conflict with this rule.
The Act provides that administrative proceedings must be exhausted
before parties may file suit in court. Under section 8c(15)(A) of the
Act, any handler subject to an order may file with the Secretary a
petition stating that the order, any provision of the order, or any
obligation imposed in connection with the order is not in accordance
with law and requesting a modification of the order or to be exempted
therefrom. A handler is afforded the opportunity for a hearing on the
petition. After the hearing, the Secretary would rule on the petition.
The Act provides that the district court of the United States in any
district in which the handler is an inhabitant, or has his or her
principal place of business, has jurisdiction in equity to review the
Secretary's ruling on the petition, provided a bill in equity is filed
not later than 20 days after the date of the entry of the ruling.
There are no administrative procedures which must be exhausted
prior to any judicial challenge to the provisions of this proposed rule
pertaining to grapefruit import requirements issued under section 8e of
the Act.
Pursuant to the requirements set forth in the Regulatory
Flexibility Act (RFA), the Administrator of the Agricultural Marketing
Service (AMS) has considered the economic impact of this action on
small entities.
The purpose of the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the scale of
business subject to such actions in order that small businesses will
not be unduly or disproportionately burdened. Marketing orders issued
pursuant to the Act, and rules issued thereunder, are unique in that
they are brought about through group action of essentially small
entities acting on their own behalf. Thus, both statutes have small
entity orientation and compatibility. Import regulations issued under
the Act are based on those established under Federal marketing orders.
There are about 100 Florida citrus handlers subject to regulation
under the order covering oranges, grapefruit, tangerines, and tangelos
grown in Florida, about 11,000 producers of these citrus fruits in
Florida, and about 25 grapefruit importers. Small agricultural service
firms, which includes grapefruit handlers and importers, have been
defined by the Small Business Administration [13 CFR 121.601] as those
having annual receipts are less than $5,000,000, and small agricultural
producers are defined as those whose annual receipts are less than
$500,000. A minority of these handlers and a majority of these
producers and importers may be classified as small entities.
The Citrus Administrative Committee (committee) met on June 21,
1994, and recommended the regulatory changes for Florida citrus. The
committee meets prior to and during each season to review the handling
regulations effective on a continuous basis for each citrus fruit
regulated under the order. Committee meetings are open to the public,
and interested persons may express their views at these meetings. The
Department reviews committee recommendations and information, as well
as information from other sources, and determines whether modification,
suspension, or termination of the handling regulations would tend to
effectuate the declared policy of the Act.
Section 905.306 [7 CFR 905.306] specifies minimum grade
requirements for different varieties of fresh Florida-grown grapefruit,
as authorized by Sec. 905.52 [7 CFR 905.52] of the order. Section
905.306 specifies such grade requirements in TABLE I of paragraph (a)
for domestic markets (fruit shipped from the production area to any
point outside thereof in the 48 contiguous States and the District of
Columbia of the United States), and in TABLE II of paragraph (b) for
export markets (fruit shipped from any point in the 48 contiguous
States and the District of Columbia of the United States to any
destination).
This proposed rule would amend Sec. 905.306 by revising the entries
for grapefruit in TABLE I and in TABLE II, effective September 1, 1994.
Under the proposal, the minimum grade requirements for domestic and
export shipments of Florida-grown red and white seedless grapefruit
would be increased to U.S. No. 1, from the current minimum grade
requirement of Improved No. 2 External--U.S. No. 1 Internal, beginning
with 1994-95 season shipments.
The current minimum size requirements for Florida-grown red and
white seedless grapefruit for both domestic and export shipment would
remain unchanged under this rule. Also, the current minimum grade and
size requirements for Florida-grown red and white seeded grapefruit for
both domestic and export shipments would remain unchanged.
This proposed rule would remove entries and seeded pink grapefruit
and seedless pink grapefruit in TABLE I and in TABLE II of
Sec. 905.306. Such removal is necessary because such pink grapefruit
were reclassified as red grapefruit and the entries in such tables for
pink grapefruit were changed to red grapefruit by a final rule
published in the Federal Register [55 FR 41659, October 15, 1990], but
such changes were not incorporated in the Code of Federal Regulations.
The committee recommended that the minimum grade requirements for
domestic and export market shipments of fresh Florida-grown red and
white seedless grapefruit be increased, as specified. The committee
reports that it expects that the proposed higher minimum grade
requirements will result in better quality Florida-grown red and white
seedless grapefruit being shipped to the fresh market, and that such
fruit should receive greater consumer support, increase consumer
demand, and improve grower returns. The consumer demand for such
grapefruit should be strengthened, because consumers prefer the higher
quality grapefruit which this proposed rule should require be shipped.
Minimum grade requirements under the order are designed to provide
fresh markets with fruit of acceptable grade and maturity, thereby
maintaining consumer confidence in fresh Florida-grown grapefruit. This
helps create buyer confidence and contributes to stable marketing
conditions.
The proposed higher grade requirements for Florida-grown red and
white seedless grapefruit are based on the committee's assessment of
the prospective crop and market conditions for the 1994-95 season
Florida-grown seedless grapefruit crop. The proposed requirements are
designed to enable Florida grapefruit shippers to ship red and white
seedless grapefruit to the domestic and export markets consistent with
anticipated demand in those markets.
Processing outlets are an important market for Florida-grown
seedless grapefruit, with nearly one-half of the seedless grapefruit
crop produced in Florida normally utilized in processing. Any
grapefruit which do not meet the proposed higher grade requirements
could be utilized in processing outlets.
The committee reports that it expects that more red and white
seedless grapefruit will be produced in Florida during the 1994-95
season than last season. The committee also expects that supplies of
fresh Florida-grown red and white seedless grapefruit meeting the
higher grade requirements will adequately meet consumer demand during
the entire 1994-95 season. The Florida seedless grapefruit shipping
season normally begins in September and continues until the following
July, but occasionally it begins in late August.
This proposed rule is designed to establish and maintain orderly
marketing conditions in the United States for fresh Florida-grown red
and white seedless grapefruit in the interest of producers, handlers,
and consumers, and it expected to increase returns to Florida
grapefruit producers.
Under the order, handlers may ship up to 15 standard packed cartons
(12 bushels) of fruit per day exempt from grade and size requirements.
Fruit shipped in gift packages which are individually addressed and not
for resale, and fruit shipped for animal feed are also exempt from
grade and size requirements under specific conditions. Also, fruit
shipped to commercial processors for conversion into canned or frozen
products or into a beverage base are not subject to the handling
requirements under the order.
Minimum grade and size requirements for grapefruit imported into
the United States are currently in effect under Sec. 944.106 [7 CFR
944.106]. This proposed rule would amend Sec. 944.106 by revising
paragraph (a) and the table in that section by modifying the entries
for imported red and white seedless grapefruit. This would increase the
minimum grade requirements for such grapefruit to U.S. No. 1, from the
current minimum grade requirement of Improved No. 2 External--U.S. No.
1 Internal. The proposed higher grade requirements for imported red and
white seedless grapefruit are the same as those being proposed in this
rule under Sec. 905.306 for red and white seedless grapefruit grown in
Florida.
The current minimum size requirements for imported red and white
seedless grapefruit would remain unchanged under this proposed rule.
Also, the current minimum grade and size requirements for imported red
and white seeded grapefruit would remain unchanged.
In accordance with section 8e of the Act, the United States Trade
Representative has concurred with the issuance of this proposed rule,
as it pertains to red and white seedless grapefruit imported into the
United States.
This proposed rule reflects the committee's and the Department's
appraisal of the need to increase the minimum grade requirements for
fresh Florida-grown red and white seedless grapefruit, as specified.
The Department's view is that this proposed rule could have a
beneficial impact on Florida producers and handlers of fresh seedless
grapefruit, since it would enable such producers and handlers to make
available those grades of grapefruit needed to meet consumer needs
consistent with 1994-95 season crop and market conditions.
This proposed rule also reflects the Department's appraisal of the
need to increase the grade requirements for imported red and white
seedless grapefruit, so that such fruit would meet the same higher
grade requirements proposed for Florida-grown red and white seedless
grapefruit, consistent with the Act.
Based on the above, the Administrator of the AMS has determined
that this proposed rule would not have a significant economic impact on
a substantial number of small entities.
A comment period of 15 days is deemed appropriate because the
higher grade requirements for Florida-grown red and white seedless
grapefruit need to be in effect when shipment of Florida's 1994-95
season fresh seedless grapefruit crop is expected to begin on or about
September 1, 1994.
List of Subjects
7 CFR Part 905
Grapefruit, Marketing agreements, Oranges, Reporting and
recordkeeping requirements, Tangelos, Tangerines.
7 CFR Part 944
Avocados, Food grades and standards, Grapefruit, Grapes, Imports,
Kiwifruit, Limes, Olives, Oranges.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 7 CFR Parts 905 and 944
are proposed to be amended as follows:
PART 905--ORANGES, GRAPEFRUIT, TANGERINES, AND TANGELOS GROWN IN
FLORIDA
1. The authority citation for 7 CFR parts 905 and 944 continues to
read as follows:
Authority: 7 U.S.C. 601-674.
2. Section 905.306 is amended by revising the entries in TABLE I of
paragraph (a) and in TABLE II of paragraph (b) for ``seeded, except red
grapefruit'', ``seeded, red grapefruit'', ``seedless, except red
grapefruit'', and ``seedless, red grapefruit''; and by removing the
entries for ``seeded, except pink grapefruit'', ``seeded, pink
grapefruit'', ``seedless, except pink grapefruit'', and ``seedless,
pink grapefruit'' to read as follows:
Sec. 905.306 Orange, grapefruit, tangerine and tangelo regulation.
(a) * * *
Table I
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Minimum
Variety Regulation period Minimum grade diameter
(inches)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) (2)........................................... (3)................. (4)
* * * * * * *
GRAPEFRUIT
* * * * * * *
Seeded, except red........ On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\12/16\
Seeded, red............... On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\12/16\
Seedless, red............. On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
Seedless, except red...... 09/01/94-11/06/94............................. U.S. No. 1.......... 3\5/16\
On and after 11/07/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
* * * * * * *
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(b) * * *
Table II
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Minimum
Variety Regulation period Minimum grade diameter
(inches)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(1) (2)........................................... (3)................. (4)
* * * * * * *
GRAPEFRUIT
* * * * * * *
Seeded, except red........ On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
Seeded, red............... On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
Seedless, except red...... On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\5/16\
Seedless, red............. On and after 09/01/94......................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\5/16\
* * * * * * *
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* * * * *
PART 944--FRUITS; IMPORT REGULATIONS
3. Section 944.106 is amended by revising paragraph (a), and by
redesignating the second appearing paragraph (h) as paragraph (i) to
read as follows:
Sec. 944.106 Grapefruit import regulation.
(a) Pursuant to Section 8e [7 U.S.C. Section 608e-1] of the
Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, as amended [7 U.S.C. 601-
674], and Part 944--Fruits; Import Regulations, the importation into
the United States of any grapefruit is prohibited unless such
grapefruit meet the following minimum grade and size requirements for
each specified grapefruit classification:
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Minimum
Grapefruit classification Regulation period Minimum grade diameter
(inches)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Seeded.................... On & after 09/01/94........................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\12/16\
Seedless, red............. 09/01/94-11/06/94............................. U.S. No. 1.......... 3\5/16\
On & after 11/07/94........................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
Seedless, except red...... On & after 09/01/94........................... U.S. No. 1.......... 3\9/16\
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
* * * * *
Dated: September 6, 1994.
Martha B. Ransom,
Acting Deputy Director, Fruit and Vegetable Division.
[FR Doc. 94-22251 Filed 9-7-94; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-M