[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 61 (Thursday, March 30, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Page 16428]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-7724]



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 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
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  Federal Register / Vol. 60, No. 61 / Thursday, March 30, 1995 / 
Notices  
[[Page 16428]]

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service
[Docket No. PY-95-001]


Tentative Voluntary Poultry Grade Standards

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing that it 
is approving the test marketing of USDA grade identified boneless/
skinless poultry legs and drumsticks, based on tentative grade 
standards.

DATES: This test-market period begins March 30, 1995 and ends April 1, 
1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Larry W. Robinson, Chief, Grading 
Branch, Poultry Division, 202-720-3271.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Poultry grading is a voluntary program provided under the 
Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946, as amended, and is offered on a 
fee-for-service basis. It is designed to assist the orderly marketing 
of poultry products. Quality in practical terms refers to the 
usability, desirability, and value of a product, as well as its 
marketability. Poultry grade standards identify and measure degrees of 
quality in poultry products. They permit important quality attributes 
to be evaluated uniformly and accurately; they provide a way for buyers 
and sellers to negotiate using a common language.
    Once poultry has been graded according to these standards, it may 
be identified with the USDA grademark. Over the years, processors have 
found it advantageous to market grade-identified poultry products and 
consumers have come to rely on the USDA grademark as assurance that 
they are getting the quality they want.
    Poultry producers and processors are continually developing new, 
innovative products. Chicken and turkey, in particular, have been 
transformed into a myriad of boneless and/or skinless products, 
increasing poultry's share of the consumer's food dollar and responding 
to consumer demand for food with more built-in convenience and less 
fat. Current regulations (7 CFR Part 70) provide grade standards for 
boneless poultry breasts, thighs, and tenderloins (Sec. 70.231), as 
well as for skinless carcasses and parts (Sec. 70.232).
    The Agency has received several industry requests to permit the 
grade identification of boneless/skinless poultry legs and drumsticks. 
These products are currently being marketed ungraded because there are 
no grade standards for them. The Agency has worked with members of the 
industry to develop tentative grade standards which will result in a 
high-quality product. The Agency is ready to move forward to a test 
marketing phase for boneless/skinless poultry legs and drumsticks.
    The Agency recognizes that before new standards of quality can be 
established or current standards of quality can be amended, appropriate 
investigation is needed. This includes the test marketing of 
experimental packs of grade-identified poultry products to determine 
production requirements and consumer acceptance, and to permit the 
collection of other necessary data. Current regulations (Sec. 70.3) 
provide the Agency with the flexibility needed to permit such 
experimentation, so that new procedures and grading techniques may be 
tested.
    The Agency is granting permission for the test marketing of grade-
identified boneless/skinless poultry legs and drumsticks based on 
tentative standards for one year. At the expiration of this one-year 
period, the Agency will then evaluate the test results to determine if 
the current poultry grading regulations should be amended, through 
notice-and-comment rulemaking, to include the following tentative 
standards.

Tentative Poultry Grade Standards for Boneless/Skinless Poultry Legs 
and Drumsticks--A Quality

    1. The leg or drum shall be cut as specified in Sec. 70.210(e)(6).
    2. The skin and bones shall be removed in a neat manner, without 
undue mutilation of adjacent muscle.
    3. Boneless/skinless legs and drumsticks shall be free of tendons 
extending more than one-half inch beyond the meat tissue, cartilage, 
blood clots, bruises, and discolorations other than slight 
discolorations, provided they do not detract from the appearance of the 
product.
    4. Minor flesh abrasions on the outer muscle surface due to 
preparation techniques and trimming are permitted provided the outer 
surface remains smooth with no angular cuts or tears. Holes resulting 
from the removal of the patella (knee cap) are permitted, provided the 
bulk of the thigh and drum remain intact and connected.
    5. Trimming on the inner muscle surface is permitted, provided it 
results in a relatively smooth appearance.
    6. Trimming is permitted around the outer edges of the muscle, 
provided the trimming results in a portion that approximates the same 
symmetrical appearance and meat yield of the original part.
    7. Boneless/skinless drumsticks may be further separated by a 
single cut parallel to the tibiotarsus and labeled as boneless/skinless 
drumstick halves.

    Dated: March 22, 1995.
Kenneth C. Clayton,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 95-7724 Filed 3-29-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P