[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 125 (Monday, June 29, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38841-38843]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-13913]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. FSIS-2020-0012]
Retail Exemptions Adjusted Dollar Limitations
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing
the dollar limitations on the amount of meat and meat food products and
poultry and poultry products that a retail store can sell to hotels,
restaurants, and similar institutions without disqualifying itself for
exemption from Federal inspection requirements. Because Siluriformes
fish have been regulated, along with traditional meat products, under
the Federal Meat Inspection Act since 2016, FSIS has included
Siluriformes fish and fish products in its calculations for the retail
dollar limitation for meat products in this announcement. FSIS requests
comments on the inclusion of Siluriformes fish and fish products with
meat products.
DATES: Applicable July 29, 2020. Comments on this notice must be
received on or before August 28, 2020.
ADDRESSES: FSIS invites interested persons to submit comments on this
Federal Register notice. Comments may be submitted by one of the
following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: This website provides
commenters the ability to type short comments directly into the comment
field on the web page or to attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to
http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions at that
site for submitting comments.
Mail, including CD-ROMs, etc.: Send to Docket Clerk, U.S.
Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Mailstop 3758, Room 6065, Washington, DC 20250-
3700.
Hand- or courier-delivered submittals: Deliver to 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Room 6065, Washington, DC 20250-3700.
Instructions: All items submitted by mail or electronic mail must
include the Agency name and docket number FSIS-2020-0012. Comments
received in response to this docket will be made available for public
inspection and posted without change, including any personal
information, to http://www.regulations.gov.
Docket: For access to background documents or comments received,
call (202)720-5627 to schedule a time to visit the FSIS Docket Room at
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Room 6065, Washington, DC 20250-3700.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Gina Kouba, Office of Policy and
Program Development, Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA, 1400
Independence Avenue SW, Room 6065, South Building, Washington, DC
20250-3700; (202) 720-5627.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) and the
Poultry Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 451 et seq.) provide a
comprehensive statutory framework to ensure that meat and meat food
products and poultry and poultry products prepared for commerce are
wholesome, not adulterated, and properly labeled and packaged.
Statutory provisions requiring inspection of the processing of meat and
meat food products and poultry and poultry products do not apply to
operations of types traditionally and
[[Page 38842]]
usually conducted at retail stores and restaurants in regard to
products offered for sale to consumers in normal retail quantities (21
U.S.C. 661(c)(2) and 454(c)(2)). FSIS's regulations (9 CFR 303.1(d) and
381.10(d)) elaborate on the conditions under which requirements for
inspection do not apply to retail operations involving the preparation
of meat and meat food products and the processing of poultry and
poultry products.
Sales to Hotels, Restaurants, and Similar Institutions
Under the aforementioned regulations, sales to hotels, restaurants,
and similar institutions (other than household consumers) disqualify a
retail store from exemption if the retail product sales exceed either
of two maximum limits: 25 percent of the dollar value of the total
retail product sales of the amenable product or the calendar year
retail dollar limitation set by the FSIS Administrator. The retail
dollar limitation is adjusted automatically during the first quarter of
the year if the Consumer Price Index (CPI), published by the Bureau of
Labor Statistics, shows an increase or decrease of more than $500 in
the price of the same volume of product for the previous year. FSIS
publishes a notice of the adjusted retail dollar limitations in the
Federal Register. (See 9 CFR 303.1(d)(2)(iii)(b) and
381.10(d)(2)(iii)(b).)
The CPI for 2019 reveals an annual average price increase for meat
and meat food products at 1.30 percent and an annual average price
decrease for poultry and poultry products at 0.3 percent. When rounded
to the nearest $100 dollar, the retail dollar limitation for meat and
meat food products increased by $1,000 and the retail dollar limitation
for poultry and poultry products decrease by $200. In accordance with 9
CFR 303.1(d)(2)(iii)(b) and 381.10(d)(2)(iii)(b), because the retail
dollar limitations for meat and meat food products increased by more
than $500 and FSIS then included an additional $2,500 \1\ to account
for Siluriformes fish and fish product retail sales in the 2020
calculation, FSIS is increasing the dollar limitation on sales to
hotels, restaurants, and similar institutions to $79,200 for meat and
meat food products for calendar year 2020.
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\1\ Please see Adjustment to Account for Siluriformes
Methodology section for more information about how this amount was
calculated.
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Because the decrease in poultry prices is less than $500, FSIS is
making no adjustment in the dollar limitation for poultry and poultry
products. The dollar limitation for poultry and poultry products
remains unchanged at $56,600 for calendar year 2020.
Adjustment to Account for Siluriformes Methodology
FSIS used the 2012 Economic Census,\2\ the 2017 Economic Census,\3\
the 2017 Food Industry Association's (FMI) Supermarket Sales,\4\ the
2017 National Fisheries Institute's (NFI) consumption data,\5\ and the
Bureau of Labor Statistics' CPI \6\ to estimate the total sales of
Siluriformes fish and fish products at retail. FSIS then used the
methodology in the October 3, 1970 ``Revision Pursuant to Wholesome
Meat Act'' final rule (35 FR 15552), which established the initial
baseline value used for the meat and poultry retail exemptions, to
determine the percentage of exempted sales.\7\
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\2\ 2012 Economic Census of the United States. Table EC1244SSSZ1
Retail Trade: Subject Series--Estab & Firm Size: Summary Statistics
by Sales Size of Establishments for the U.S. NAICS 44511
Supermarkets and other grocery (except convenience) stores.
\3\ 2017 Economic Census of the United States. Table
EC1700BASIC. NAICS 44511 Supermarkets and other grocery (except
convenience) stores.
\4\ Food Industry Association (2017) Supermarket Sales by
Department-Percent of Total Supermarket Sales. Accessed on March 6,
2020: https://www.fmi.org/docs/default-source/research/supermarket-sales-by-department-2018fd94300324aa67249237ff0000c12749.pdf?sfvrsn=2c3e576e_0
\5\ National Fisheries Institute. (2018, December 13). Top 10
List Shows Significant Increase in Seafood Consumption. Accessed on
March 9, 2020: https://www.aboutseafood.com/press_release/top-10-list-shows-significant-increase-in-seafood-consumption/ .
\6\ Bureau of Labor Statistics. Consumer Price Index. Fish and
seafood in U.S. city average, all urban consumers, not seasonally
adjusted (CUUR0000SEFG).
\7\ In the final rule, the exemption percentage was half the
percentage of sales.
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According to the 2017 Economic Census there were $625 billion in
supermarket sales. The 2017 FMI report noted that 12.64 percent, or $79
billion, of supermarket sales were for meat, poultry, and fish. FSIS
assumed a third of these sales, or $26 billion, were for fish products.
FSIS then used NFI's 2017 Top Ten List to estimate the total sales of
Siluriformes at retail. NFI's Top Ten List breaks down the pounds per
capita consumption rate of fish in the U.S.; the sum of the consumption
of Catfish and Pangasius was 7.75 percent of total fish consumption.
FSIS assumed that the percentage of the domestic consumption of Catfish
and Pangasius represented the percentage of Siluriformes retail sales,
thus Siluriformes sales were estimated to be $26 billion multiplied by
7.75 percent, or $2 billion. Following the final rule's methodology to
exempt half of the percentage of Siluriformes sales, in this case 3.88
percent, the fish retail exemption total is $79 million.
The 2012 Economic Census has sales revenue ranges for supermarket
sales. FSIS applied the 2017 Economic Census numbers to the proportions
in the 2012 Economic Census. FSIS then calculated the midpoint sales
for each range and multiplied the midpoint by the number of retail
establishments in each sales category to estimate total sales per
category. FSIS then used the same calculations above to determine the
Siluriformes sales per category. Finally, FSIS used the midpoint sales
amounts to sum the number of retail establishments in each sales
category until the total Siluriformes fish and fish products revenue
amount was less than or equal to $79 million. This calculation would
exempt approximately 33,722 retail establishments. The exemption amount
per retail establishment would equal $79 million divided by 33,722
retail establishments, or about $2,376 \8\ per retail establishment.
This number was inflated to $2,466 \9\ and then rounded to the nearest
hundred to equal $2,500 per establishment. FSIS requests comments on
the inclusion of Siluriformes fish and fish products in the retail
exemption dollar limitation for all meat products.
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\8\ Calculations may differ due to rounding.
\9\ Bureau of Labor Statistics: CPI-All Urban Consumers (Current
Series): CUUR0000SEFG: Not Seasonally Adjusted: Fish and seafood
U.S. city average: Annual. CPI (2017) = 287.676; CPI (2019) =
298.493; (298.493-287.676)/287.676=3.8%; $2,376+($2,376*0.038) =
$2,466.
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Congressional Review Act
Pursuant to the Congressional Review Act at 5 U.S.C. 801 et seq.,
the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs has determined that
this notice is not a ``major rule,'' as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804(2).
Additional Public Notification
Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy
development is important. Consequently, FSIS will announce this Federal
Register notice on-line through its web page located at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register.
FSIS will also announce and provide a link to this Federal Register
notice through the FSIS Constituent Update, which is used to provide
information regarding FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal
Register notices, FSIS public meetings, and other types of information
that could affect or would be of interest to our constituents and
stakeholders. The Constituent Update is
[[Page 38843]]
available on the FSIS web page. Through the FSIS web page, the Agency
can provide information to a much broader, more diverse audience. In
addition, FSIS offers an email subscription service which provides
automatic and customized access to selected food safety news and
information. This service is available at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/subscribe. Options range from recalls to export information,
regulations, directives, and notices. Customers can add or delete
subscriptions themselves and have the option to password protect their
accounts.
USDA Non-Discrimination Statement
No agency, officer, or employee of the USDA shall, on the grounds
of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual
orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status,
income derived from a public assistance program, or political beliefs,
exclude from participation in, deny the benefits of, or subject to
discrimination any person in the United States under any program or
activity conducted by the USDA.
How to File a Complaint of Discrimination
To file a complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program
Discrimination Complaint Form, which may be accessed online at http://www.ocio.usda.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2012/Complain_combined_6_8_12.pdf, or write a letter signed by you or your
authorized representative.
Send your completed complaint form or letter to USDA by mail, fax,
or email: Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of
Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410,
Fax: (202) 690-7442, Email: [email protected].
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for
communication (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.), should contact
USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).
Paul Kiecker,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2020-13913 Filed 6-26-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P