[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 9, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Page 13519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-04880]


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 Notices
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  Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 44 / Tuesday, March 9, 2021 / 
Notices  

[[Page 13519]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[Doc. No. AMS-SC-19-0058, SC-21-326]


United States Standards for Grades of Frozen Corn on the Cob

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Final Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the Department of 
Agriculture (USDA) has revised the U.S. Standards for Grades of Frozen 
Corn on the Cob.

DATES: Effective April 8, 2021.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brian E. Griffin, USDA, Specialty 
Crops Inspection Division, 100 Riverside Parkway, Suite 101, 
Fredericksburg, VA 22406; by phone (202) 748-2155; fax (202) 690-1527; 
or email [email protected]. Copies of the U.S. Standards for 
Grades of Frozen Corn on the Cob are available on the Specialty Crops 
Inspection Division website at www.ams.usda.gov/grades-standards/vegetables.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 203(c) of the Agricultural Marketing 
Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621-1627) as amended, directs and authorizes the 
Secretary of Agriculture ``to develop and improve standards of quality, 
condition, quantity, grade, and packaging, and recommend and 
demonstrate such standards in order to encourage uniformity and 
consistency in commercial practices.''
    AMS is committed to carrying out this authority in a manner that 
facilitates the marketing of agricultural commodities and makes copies 
of official standards available upon request. The U.S. Standards for 
Grades of Fruits and Vegetables that no longer appear in the Code of 
Federal Regulations are maintained by AMS at: www.ams.usda.gov/grades-standards/vegetables. AMS is revising these U.S. Standards for Grades 
using the procedures that appear in part 36 of Title 7 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (7 CFR part 36).

Background

    AMS periodically reviews the grade standards for usefulness in 
serving the industry. More recently developed grade standards use a 
single term, such as ``U.S. Grade A'' or ``U.S. Grade B,'' to describe 
each level of quality within a grade standard. Older grade standards 
used dual nomenclature, such as ``U.S. Grade A or U.S. Fancy'' and 
``U.S. Grade B or U.S. Extra Standard'' to describe the same level of 
quality. The terms ``U.S. Fancy,'' and ``U.S. Extra Standard'' have 
been removed and the terms ``U.S. Grade A,'' U.S. Grade B,'' and 
``Substandard (Sstd)'' are used exclusively.
    AMS also made editorial changes to these grade standards, updating 
section headings omitted in previous revisions, and adding language and 
allowances for mixed color varieties to align the standards with use of 
mixed color varieties by industry. The addition of language and 
allowances differentiating between conventional sweet and supersweet 
types incorporates language from USDA internal guidance documents A-
412, September 1967 Frozen Whole Kernel Whole-Grain Corn Evaluation of 
Tenderness and Maturity, and A-493, October 1997, Interpretative Guide 
for Frozen Supersweet Whole Kernel Corn to Determine: Tenderness and 
Maturity; and Flavor. These internal USDA documents were created with 
the intention of incorporating them into the standards.
    On October 21, 2020, AMS published a notice inviting comments on 
proposed revisions to the U.S. Standards for Grades of Frozen Corn on 
the Cob in the Federal Register (85 FR 66926). No comments were 
received. This revision to these grade standards provides common 
language for trade and better reflects the current marketing of frozen 
corn on the cob.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1621-1627.

Bruce Summers,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-04880 Filed 3-8-21; 8:45 am]
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