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contains regulatory documents having general

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are keyed to and codified in the Code of

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Rules and Regulations Federal Register

251 

Vol. 76, No. 2 

Tuesday, January 4, 2011 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 52 

[Document No. AMS–FV–08–0075] 

RIN 0581–AC89 

Country of Origin Labeling of Packed 

Honey 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: This final rule adopts an 

interim rule, with change, establishing 

new regulations addressing country of 

origin labeling for packed honey bearing 

any official USDA mark or statement. 

Also, the rule added a new cause for 

debarment from inspection and 

certification service for honey if country 

of origin labeling requirements are not 

met for packages of honey containing 

official USDA grade marks or 

statements. The rule was necessary 

because section 10402 of the Food, 

Conservation and Energy Act of 2008 

(2008 Farm Bill) amended the 

Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to 

require country of origin labeling for 

honey if it contains official USDA grade 

marks or statements. 

DATES: Effective Date: February 3, 2011. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Chere L. Shorter by phone at (202) 720– 

4693 or e-mail to 

Chere.Shorter@ams.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

regulations governing inspection and 

certification of processed fruits and 

vegetables 7 CFR part 52, were amended 

by an interim final rule published in the 

Federal Register on July 8, 2009 (74 FR 

32389) to include provisions for country 

of origin labeling requirements for 

packed honey; and for debarment of 

services if the country of origin labeling 

requirements are not met for packages of 

honey containing official USDA grade 

marks or statements. The interim final 

rule became effective on October 6, 

2009. 

Section 10402 of the 2008 Farm Bill 

(Pub. L. 110–246) amended section 

1622(h) of the Agricultural Marketing 

Act of 1946, (7 U.S.C. 1621–1627, 1635– 

1638), to require that all packed honey 

bearing any official USDA mark or 

statement also bear ‘‘legibly and 

permanently in close proximity (such as 

on the same side(s) or surface(s)) to the 

certificate, mark, or statement, and in at 

least a comparable size, the [country or] 

countries of origin of the lot or container 

of honey, preceded by the words 

‘Product of’ or other words of similar 

meaning.’’ Section 10402 also 

establishes that a violation of the 

labeling requirements may be deemed 

by the Secretary of Agriculture to be 

sufficient cause for debarment from the 

benefits of the Act, only with respect to 

honey, and that the honey amendments 

shall take effect one year after the date 

of enactment of the 2008 Farm Bill, 

which is June 18, 2009. 

The Act authorizes official inspection, 

grading, and certification for processed 

fruits, vegetables, and processed 

products made from them. This 

amendment to the Act required the 

amendment of the regulations in 7 CFR 

part 52, which provide for official 

inspection and certification services 

with respect to processed fruit, 

vegetables, and miscellaneous products 

and the fees charged for such services. 

Section 52.53 describes and illustrates 

the use of approved certification marks. 

Section 52.54 lists the acts or practices 

that may cause debarment by the 

Administrator of any person from any 

benefits of the Act for a specified period 

of time. These include: (1) Fraud or 

misrepresentation in filing an 

application; submission of samples; use 

of an inspection report or certificate; use 

of the words ‘‘Packed under continuous 

inspection of the U.S. Department of 

Agriculture,’’ any legend signifying that 

the product has been officially 

inspected, any statement of grade or 

similar words; use of a facsimile form; 

(2) willful violations of the regulations; 

or (3) interfering with an inspector, 

inspector’s aid, or licensed sampler. 

Pursuant to the amendment of the Act 

by the 2008 Farm Bill, section 52.54 was 

amended to add a new paragraph 

providing for debarment of services if 

the country of origin labeling 

requirements are not met for honey. 

Executive Order 12988 

This final rule has been reviewed 

under Executive Order 12988, Civil 

Justice Reform. This rule is not intended 

to have a retroactive effect. There are no 

administrative procedures which must 

be exhausted prior to any judicial 

challenge to the provisions of this rule. 

Executive Order 12866 

This rule has been determined to be 

not significant for purposes of Executive 

Order 12866 and, therefore, has not 

been reviewed by the Office of 

Management and Budget (OMB). 

Regulatory Flexibility Act and 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

As required by the Regulatory 

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601–612) the 

Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) 

has prepared a regulatory flexibility 

analysis. 

AMS estimates that there are between 

139,600 and 212,000 beekeepers in the 

United States. The vast majority of 

beekeepers (95 percent) are hobbyists 

with fewer than 25 hives, or bee 

colonies, and about 4 percent are parttime beekeepers who keep from 25 to 

299 hives. Together, hobbyists and parttime beekeepers account for about 50 

percent of bee colonies and about 40 

percent of honey produced. Commercial 

beekeepers are those with 300 or more 

bee colonies. There are approximately 

1,600 commercial beekeeping 

operations in the United States, which 

produce about 60 percent of the nation’s 

honey. 

AMS believes that there are 

approximately 2,700 producers of 

honey, 41 handlers/packers, and 614 

importers of honey and honey products. 

The Small Business Administration [13 

CFR 121.201] defines small agricultural 

producers as those having annual 

receipts of $750,000 or less annually 

and small agricultural service firms as 

those having annual receipts of $7 

million or less. Using these criteria, 

most producers and handlers/packers 

would be considered small businesses, 

while most importers would not. 

National Agricultural Statistics 

Service (NASS) data report that U.S. 

production of honey, from producers 

with five or more colonies, totaled 144 

million pounds in 2009, representing a 

decrease of 14 percent from 2004. The 


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252 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 2 / Tuesday, January 4, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 

number of U.S. bee colonies producing 

honey in 2009 was 2.4 million (based on 

beekeepers who manage five or more 

colonies). 

The average annual yield per colony 

was 58.5 pounds of honey. The average 

producer price per pound was $1.44. 

The 2009 honey crop was valued at 

more than $208.2 million. 

The top six honey producing States in 

2009 were North Dakota, South Dakota, 

California, Florida, Minnesota, and 

Montana. NASS reported the value of 

honey sold from these six States in 2009 

was $144,843 and the volume produced 

was 101,697,000 pounds. 

Based on data from Department of 

Commerce, U.S. Census Bureau, Foreign 

Trade Statistics, seventeen countries 

produced more than 98 percent of the 

honey imported into the U.S. In 2009, 

six of these countries produced over 80 

percent of the total honey imported into 

the United States. These countries and 

their share of the imports are Brazil (19 

percent), Vietnam (18 percent), India (14 

percent), Argentina (11 percent), 

Malaysia (9 percent), and Canada (9 

percent). Imports accounted for 62 

percent of U.S. consumption in 2006, an 

increase of 18 percent, up from 51 

percent since 2002. The United States is 

one of the world’s largest markets for 

industrial honey. This sector accounts 

for approximately 45 percent of total 

domestic consumption. The primary 

users of industrial honey are bakery, 

health food, and cereal manufacturers. 

Other users such as the food service 

industry account for another 10 percent 

of domestic consumption. Individual 

consumers who purchase small amounts 

of honey for personal use also 

significantly contribute to overall 

consumption in the United States. 

USDA grades for honey are not 

mandatory, but beekeepers, handlers/ 

packers labeling honey as a particular 

grade are responsible for the accuracy of 

the label. The U.S. Standards for Grades 

of Honey are located on the AMS Web 

site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/ 

processedinspection. 

The Act authorizes the inspection, 

certification, and identification of class, 

quality, quantity, and condition of 

agricultural commodities, under the 

Act, no person is required to use the 

services. 

The 2008 Farm Bill amended the Act 

to require that packaged honey bearing 

a grade mark or statement, continuous 

inspection mark or statement, sampling 

mark or statement, or any combination 

of marks or statements of the 

Department of Agriculture, must also 

bear the one or more names of the 

countries of origin of the lot or container 

of honey legibly and permanently in 

close proximity to and at least in 

comparable size to the mark or 

statement. 

Under the existing regulations 

governing the inspection and grading of 

processed fruits, vegetables, and 

miscellaneous products, section 52.53 

provides for the use of approved 

identification marks and paragraph (h) 

describes or lists prohibited uses of 

approved identification. Section 

52.53(h) provides that, except for 

officially inspected or otherwise 

approved products, no label or 

advertising material used upon, or in 

conjunction with, a processed product 

shall bear a brand name, trademark, 

product name, company name, or any 

other descriptive material as it relates or 

alludes to any official U.S. Department 

of Agriculture certificate of quality or 

loading, grade mark, grade statement 

(except honey and maple syrup which 

may bear such grade mark or statement), 

continuous inspection mark, continuous 

inspection statement, sampling mark or 

sampling statement or combinations of 

one or more of the above. Therefore, 

honey and maple syrup may bear 

official USDA grade marks without 

official inspection. 

This rule applies to domestic as well 

as foreign sources of honey. Under this 

rule, any honey that has an official U.S. 

grade mark must include in its label the 

country of origin in letters at least the 

same size and in close proximity to the 

grade mark. For example, if foreign or 

domestic honey were labeled U.S. Grade 

A, then it would have to identify its 

country or countries of origin. 

Conversely, if the honey is not officially 

grade labeled, the country of origin 

labeling is not necessary whether the 

honey is domestic or foreign. This 

discussion has been clarified from that 

which appeared in the interim rule. 

AMS believes that under current 

industry labeling practices, packages of 

honey that include the official U.S. 

grade marks, in most cases, also include 

country of origin labeling. However, 

country of origin information usually is 

located on the back of the package. The 

Act requires that all honey bearing any 

official USDA mark or statement also 

bear legibly and permanently in close 

proximity (such as on the same side(s) 

or surface(s)) to the certificate, mark, or 

statement, and in at least a comparable 

size, the country or countries of origin 

of the lot or container of honey, 

preceded by the words ‘‘Product of’’ or 

other words of similar meaning. 

Because honey does not require 

official inspection in order to carry 

official USDA grade marks and since 

there are no existing programs that 

require the official inspection and 

certification of honey, AMS believes 

that there will be little, if any, impact on 

the honey industry or small producers, 

except if a handler or importer is 

carrying official marks on their labels 

beyond the date that this rule is 

effective and has not reconfigured their 

labels. AMS believes that product 

labeling changes normally involve 

reconfiguring labeling without 

substantial costs and without having to 

purchase new equipment. 

With regard to alternatives to this 

rule, section 10402 of the 2008 Farm 

Bill amends the Act, which requires 

AMS to amend its regulations. 

Enforcement will be handled by AMS 

if it receives complaints. All complaints 

will be turned over to our Compliance 

and Analysis Program (Compliance) 

who will investigate the alleged 

violation. Compliance would then 

determine the validity of the complaint, 

and appropriate action would be taken. 

The Agency has identified some 

Federal rules that may conceivably be 

viewed to duplicate or overlap with this 

rule. Under pre-existing Federal laws 

and regulations, country of origin 

labeling is required by the Tariff Act of 

1930, 19 U.S.C. 1304(a) and CBP 

Regulations, 19 CFR part 134. 

Such requirements are enforced by 

the U.S. Customs and Border protection 

(CPB) as authorized by the Tariff Act of 

1930 and CBP regulations (19 U.S.C. 

1304(a) and 19 CFR part 134. This law 

requires that every imported item must 

be conspicuously and indelibly marked 

in English to indicate to the ultimate 

purchaser its country of origin. 

Summary of Comments 

AMS received six comments; four 

commenters were in favor and two 

opposed the rule. 

Three commenters requested that a 

requirement for country of origin and 

country of process be placed on all 

containers of honey. The statute 

provides only for identification of 

country of origin as previously 

discussed, when packages of honey bear 

official USDA marks or statements. 

Accordingly, these comments were not 

adopted. 

One commenter stated that COOL 

should be required for all other bee 

products intended to be ingested 

(including bee pollen, royal jelly, etc.), 

that are offered for sale in the U.S. 

including any containers that have been 

repackaged from bulk containers 

shipped to or processed in the U.S. 

However, the country of origin 

amendment to the 1946 Act is only 

applicable to packaged honey. 

Nonetheless, country of origin labeling 

is required for imported products under 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with RULES_PART 1
Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 2 / Tuesday, January 4, 2011 / Rules and Regulations 253 

the Tariff Act of 1930 and CBP 

regulations. Accordingly, these 

comments were not adopted. 

One commenter requested that added 

ingredients be included on the labels. 

The labeling of added ingredients was 

not included in the 2008 Farm Bill 

amendment. The U.S. Food and Drug 

Administration regulates the labeling of 

food products. (See 21 CFR 101.4.) 

Accordingly this comment was not 

adopted. 

One commenter requested that 

additional time be granted to allow 

domestic packers to exhaust current 

inventories of labels. The commenter 

stated that packers order labels in large 

quantities to effect cost savings and 

estimated that many domestic packers 

will need at least one year to use up 

current supplies and that an additional 

six months would be required for this 

stock to be sold from retailers’ shelves. 

The new rule also affects packers of 

domestic honey, who are now required 

to include country of origin on their 

labels; formerly, only imported product 

required a COOL declaration. 

As stated in the interim rule, the 

Department provided a 90-day period 

for packers to exhaust current 

inventories of labels. The Department 

believes this is a reasonable amount of 

time to allow packaged honey bearing 

any USDA mark or statement already in 

the chain of commerce to clear the 

system and allow the honey industry 

time to reconfigure labels as 

appropriate. Enforcement will be 

handled by AMS if it receives 

complaints. All complaints will be 

turned over to the AMS Compliance and 

Analysis Program (Compliance) who 

will investigate the alleged violation. 

Compliance will then determine the 

validity of the complaint and 

appropriate action to be taken. 

One commenter asked if the country 

of origin can be abbreviated on the label. 

AMS considers generic abbreviations as 

appropriate if they comply with CBP 

requirements. 

AMS has reviewed this rule pursuant 

to the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 

U.S.C. 3501–3520), and has determined 

that there are no additional information 

collection requirements imposed by this 

rule. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 52 

Food grades and standards, Food 

labeling, Honey, Miscellaneous 

products, Debarment of services, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Approved identification, 

Country of origin labeling, and 

Prohibited uses of approved 

identification. 

■ For the reasons set forth in the 

preamble, 7 CFR part 52 is amended as 

follows: 

PART 52—PROCESSED FRUITS AND 

VEGETABLES, PROCESSED 

PRODUCTS THEREOF, AND CERTAIN 

OTHER PROCESSED FOOD 

PRODUCTS 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 52 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1621–1627. 

■ 2. Section 52.54 is revised to read as 

follows: 

§ 52.54 Debarment of services. 

(a) The following acts or practices, or 

the causing thereof, may be deemed 

sufficient cause for the debarment, by 

the Administrator, of any person, 

including any agents, officers, 

subsidiaries, or affiliates of such person, 

from any or all benefits of the Act for 

a specified period. The Rules of Practice 

Governing Formal Adjudicatory 

Proceedings Instituted by the Secretary 

Under Various Statutes set forth in 

§§ 1.130 through 1.151 of this title and 

the Supplemental Rules of Practice in 

part 50 of this chapter shall be 

applicable to such debarment action. 

(1) Fraud or misrepresentation. Any 

misrepresentation or deceptive or 

fraudulent practice or act found to be 

made or committed in connection with: 

(i) The making or filing of an 

application for any inspection service; 

(ii) The submission of samples for 

inspection; 

(iii) The use of any inspection report 

or any inspection certificate, or appeal 

inspection certificate issued under the 

regulations in this part; 

(iv) The use of the words ‘‘Packed 

under continuous inspection of the U.S. 

Department of Agriculture,’’ any legend 

signifying that the product has been 

officially inspected, any statement of 

grade or words of similar import in the 

labeling or advertising of any processed 

product; 

(v) The use of a facsimile form which 

simulates in whole or in part any 

official U.S. certificate for the purpose 

of purporting to evidence the U.S. grade 

of any processed product. 

(2) Willful violation of the regulations 

in this subpart. Willful violation of the 

provisions of this part of the Act. 

(i) Country of origin labeling for 

packed honey. The use of a label or 

advertising material on, or in 

conjunction with, packaged honey that 

bears any official certificate of quality, 

grade mark or statement, continuous 

inspection mark or statement, sampling 

mark or statement, or any combination 

of the certificates, marks, or statements 

of the Department of Agriculture is 

hereby prohibited unless there appears 

legibly and permanently in close 

proximity (such as on the same side(s) 

or surface(s)) to the certificate, mark, or 

statement, and in at least a comparable 

size, the one or more names of the one 

or more countries of origin of the lot or 

container of honey, preceded by the 

words ‘Product of’ or other words of 

similar meaning. 

(A) A violation of the requirements of 

this section may be deemed by the 

Secretary to be sufficient cause for 

debarment from the benefits of the 

regulations governing inspection and 

certification only with respect to honey. 

(3) Interfering with an inspector, 

inspector’s aid, or licensed sampler. 

Any interference with, obstruction of, or 

attempted interference with, or 

attempted obstruction of any inspector, 

inspector’s aide, or licensed sampler in 

the performance of his duties by 

intimidation, threat, assault, bribery, or 

any other means—real or imagined. 

Dated: December 22, 2010. 

Rayne Pegg, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2010–33137 Filed 1–3–11; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

14 CFR Part 39 

[Docket No. FAA–2010–1286; Directorate 

Identifier 2010–CE–064–AD; Amendment 

39–16563; AD 86–25–07 R1] 

RIN 2120–AA64 

Airworthiness Directives; ROLLADENSCHNEIDER Flugzeugbau GmbH 

Model LS6 Gliders 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Final rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: We are rescinding an existing 

airworthiness directive (AD) for the 

products listed above. The existing AD 

resulted from mandatory continuing 

airworthiness information (MCAI) 

issued by an aviation authority of 

another country to identify and correct 

an unsafe condition on an aviation 

product. The MCAI describes the unsafe 

condition as: 

During flights at speeds between 250 to 270 

km/h (135 to 145 kts) aileron flutter occurred 

resulting in damage of control stick 

attachment. 


wwoods2 on DSK1DXX6B1PROD with RULES_PART 1