[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 234 (Tuesday, December 6, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 87902-87903]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-29173]


 ========================================================================
 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
 appearing in this section.
 
 ========================================================================
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 234 / Tuesday, December 6, 2016 / 
Notices  

[[Page 87902]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[Doc. No. AMS-NOP-16-0085; NOP-16-06]


National Organic Program: Notice of Draft Guidance for 
Calculating the Percentage of Organic Ingredients in Multi-Ingredient 
Products

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability of draft guidance with request for 
comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing the 
availability of a draft guidance document intended for use by 
accredited certifying agents and certified handling operations. The 
draft guidance document is entitled as follows: Calculating Percentage 
Organic in Multi-Ingredient Products (NOP 5037). This draft guidance 
document is intended to inform the public of AMS' current thinking on 
this topic. AMS invites organic producers, handlers, certifying agents, 
material evaluation programs, consumers and other interested parties to 
submit comments.

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before February 6, 2017.

ADDRESSES: Submit written requests for hard copies of this draft 
guidance to Paul I. Lewis, Ph.D., Standards Division Director, National 
Organic Program (NOP), USDA-AMS-NOP, 1400 Independence Ave. SW., Room 
2646--So., Ag Stop 0268, Washington, DC 20250-0268. See the 
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for electronic access to the draft 
guidance document.
    You may submit comments on this draft guidance document by any of 
the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail: Paul I. Lewis, Ph.D., Standards Division Director, 
National Organic Program, USDA-AMS-NOP, 1400 Independence Ave. SW., 
Room 2646--So., Ag Stop 0268, Washington, DC 20250-0268.
    Instructions: Written comments responding to this request should be 
identified with the document number AMS-NOP-XX-XXXX; NOP-16-06. You 
should clearly indicate your position and the reasons supporting your 
position. If you are suggesting changes to the draft guidance document, 
you should include recommended language changes, as appropriate, along 
with any relevant supporting documentation. AMS is specifically 
requesting that stakeholders comment and quantify any impacts that the 
guidance will have on certified operations. AMS is also requesting 
comments from accredited certifying agents on the policy related to the 
calculation of multi-ingredient ingredients. How is the industry 
currently calculating organic products that use organic ingredients 
that contain several ingredients? What are the sound and sensible 
approaches currently being used?
    USDA intends to make available all comments, including names and 
addresses when provided, regardless of submission procedure used, on 
www.regulations.gov and at USDA, AMS, NOP, Room 2646--South building, 
1400 Independence Ave. SW., Washington, DC, from 9 a.m. to noon and 
from 1 to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday (except official Federal 
holidays). Persons wanting to visit the USDA South building to view 
comments from the public to this notice are requested to make an 
appointment by calling (202) 720-3252.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Paul I. Lewis, Ph.D., Standards 
Division Director, National Organic Program (NOP), USDA-AMS-NOP, 1400 
Independence Ave. SW., Room 2646--So., Ag Stop 0268, Washington, DC 
20250-0268; Telephone: (202) 720-3252; Fax: (202) 260-9151; Email: 
[email protected]; or visit the NOP Web site at: 
www.ams.usda.gov/nop.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    The draft guidance document announced through this notice was 
developed to respond to an April 2013 National Organic Standards Board 
(NOSB) request that the National Organic Program (NOP) correct and/or 
clarify the requirements codified at 7 CFR 205.302(a), calculating the 
percentage of organically produced ingredients. Section 205.302(a)(1) 
states the method of calculation as ``[d]ividing the total net weight 
(excluding water and salt) of combined organic ingredients at 
formulation by the total weight (excluding water and salt) of the 
finished product.'' Current interpretation of 205.302(a)(1) is to 
``[d]ivid[e] the total net weight (excluding water and salt) of 
combined organic ingredients at formulation by the total weight 
(excluding water and salt) of all ingredients.'' [Emphasis added.]
    The NOSB recommendation asked the NOP to: (1) Correct the 
regulatory language at Sec.  205.302(a) to clarify that organic 
percentages should be calculated by dividing the total net weight 
(excluding water and salt) of combined organic ingredients at 
formulation by the total net weight (excluding water and salt) of all 
ingredients. The NOSB asked that the NOP clarify that the percentage of 
organic ingredients in a product should be calculated based on the net 
weight of ``all ingredients'' in that product, and not the net weight 
of the ``finished product'' because most products lose weight during 
processing; (2) Clarify how to calculate the organic percentages of a 
multi-ingredient product that contains ingredients that are themselves 
composed of more than one ingredient; (3) Clarify when to exclude salt 
and water from ingredients; (4) Provide guidance on how to calculate 
raw agricultural product and processed single ingredient ingredients; 
and to (5) Develop and publish example self-calculating forms on items 
related to the organic percentage of each ingredient and the exclusion 
of salt and water. This guidance addresses the NOSB recommendation.
    The draft guidance is available from AMS on its Web site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/organic/draft-guidance. If 
finalized, any final guidance would be available in ``The Program 
Handbook: Guidance and Instructions for Accredited Certifying Agents 
(ACAs) and Certified Operations''. This Handbook provides those who 
own, manage, or certify organic operations with guidance and

[[Page 87903]]

instructions that can assist them in complying with the USDA organic 
regulations. The current edition of the Program Handbook is available 
online at http://www.ams.usda.gov/rules-regulations/organic/handbook.

II. Significance of Guidance

    This draft guidance document is being issued in accordance with the 
Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Bulletin on Agency Good Guidance 
Practices (GGPs) (January 25, 2007, 72 FR 3432-3440).
    The purpose of GGPs is to ensure that program guidance documents 
are developed with adequate public participation, are readily available 
to the public, and are not applied as binding requirements. The draft 
guidance, when finalized, will represent AMS' current thinking on these 
topics. It does not create or confer any rights for, or on, any person 
and does not operate to bind AMS or the public. Guidance documents are 
intended to provide a uniform method for operations to comply that can 
reduce the burden of developing their own methods and simplify audits 
and inspections. Alternative approaches that can demonstrate compliance 
with the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA), as amended (7 U.S.C. 
6501-6522), and its implementing regulations are also acceptable. AMS 
strongly encourages industry to discuss alternative approaches with the 
NOP before implementing them to avoid unnecessary or wasteful 
expenditures of resources and to ensure the proposed alternative 
approach complies with the Act and its implementing regulations.

III. Electronic Access

    Persons with access to Internet may obtain the draft guidance at 
either AMS' Web site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop or http://www.regulations.gov. Requests for hard copies of the draft guidance 
documents can be obtained by submitting a written request to the person 
listed in the ADDRESSES section of this Notice.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 6501-6522.

    Dated: November 30, 2016.
Elanor Starmer,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2016-29173 Filed 12-5-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P