[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 57 (Friday, March 26, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 16181-16182]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06230]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Agricultural Marketing Service

[Doc. No. AMS-FGIS-21-0010]


United States Standards for Sorghum

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.

ACTION: Request for information.

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SUMMARY: The United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) 
Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is seeking comments from the 
public regarding the United States (U.S.) Standards for Sorghum under 
the United States Grain Standards Act (USGSA). To ensure that standards 
and official grading practices remain relevant, AMS invites interested 
parties to comment on whether the current sorghum standards and grading 
practices need to be changed.

DATES: We will consider comments we receive by June 24, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are invited to submit written comments 
concerning this notice. All comments must be submitted through the 
Federal e-rulemaking portal at http://www.regulations.gov and should 
reference the document number and the date and page number of this 
issue of the Federal Register. Instructions for submitting and reading 
comments are detailed on the site. All comments submitted in response 
to this notice will be included in the record and will be made 
available to the public. Please be advised that the identity of the 
individuals or entities submitting comments will be made public on the 
internet at the address provided above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Loren Almond, USDA AMS; Telephone: 
(816) 891-0422; email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 4 of the USGSA (7 U.S.C. 76(a)) 
grants the Secretary of Agriculture the authority to establish 
standards for sorghum and other grains regarding kind, class, quality, 
and condition. The sorghum standards, established by USDA on December 
1, 1924, were last revised in 2007 (72 FR 39732) and appear in the 
USGSA regulations at 7 CFR 810.1401-810.1405. The standards facilitate 
sorghum marketing and define U.S. sorghum quality in the domestic and 
global marketplace. The standards define commonly used industry terms; 
contain basic principles governing the application of standards, such 
as the type of sample used for a particular quality analysis; define 
the basis of determination; and specify grades and grade requirements. 
Official procedures for determining grading factors are provided in the 
Grain Inspection Handbook, Book II, Chapter 9, ``Sorghum.'' Together, 
the grading standards and official procedures allow buyers and sellers 
to communicate quality requirements, compare sorghum quality using 
equivalent forms of measurement, and assist in price discovery.
    FGIS grading and inspection services are provided through a network 
of Federal, state, and private laboratories that conduct tests to 
determine the quality and condition of sorghum. These tests are 
conducted in accordance with applicable standards using approved 
methodologies and can be applied at any point in the marketing chain. 
Furthermore, the tests yield rapid, reliable, and consistent results. 
In addition, FGIS-issued certificates describing the quality and 
condition of

[[Page 16182]]

graded sorghum are accepted as prima facie evidence in all federal 
courts. U.S. Standards for Sorghum and the affiliated grading and 
testing services offered by FGIS verify that a seller's sorghum meet 
specified requirements, and ensure that customers receive the quality 
of sorghum they purchased.
    In order for U.S. standards and grading procedures for sorghum to 
remain relevant, AMS is issuing this request for information to invite 
interested parties to submit comments, ideas, and suggestions on all 
aspects of the U.S. Standards for Sorghum and official procedures.

    Authority: 7 U.S.C. 71-87k.

Bruce Summers,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 2021-06230 Filed 3-25-21; 8:45 am]
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