This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

41707 

Vol. 77, No. 136 

Monday, July 16, 2012 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Agricultural Marketing Service 

7 CFR Part 51 

[Doc. Number FV–11–0046] 

United States Standards for Grades of 

Almonds in the Shell 

AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, 

USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule. 

SUMMARY: The Agricultural Marketing 

Service (AMS), of the Department of 

Agriculture (USDA), is proposing to 

revise the United States Standards for 

Grades of Almonds in the Shell. AMS 

received written requests from the 

produce industry to amend the 

standards to align inspection procedures 

for incoming inspections (based on the 

marketing order) and outgoing 

inspections (based on the grade 

standards). Therefore, AMS is proposing 

to change the determination of internal 

defects from count to weight. 

DATES: Comments must be received by 

August 15, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Interested persons are 

invited to submit written comments to 

the Standardization and Training 

Branch, Fresh Products Division, Fruit 

and Vegetable Programs, Agricultural 

Marketing Service, U.S. Department of 

Agriculture, National Training and 

Development Center, Riverside Business 

Park, 100 Riverside Parkway, Suite 101, 

Fredericksburg, VA 22406: Fax (540) 

361–1199, or on the Web at: 

www.regulation.gov. Comments should 

make reference to the dates and page 

number of this issue of the Federal 

Register and will be made available for 

public inspection in the above office 

during regular business hours. 

Comments can also be viewed on the 

www.regulations.gov Web site. The 

current United States Standards for 

Almonds in the Shell, along with the 

proposed changes, will be available 

either through the address cited above 

or by accessing the AMS, Fresh 

Products Division Web site at: http:// 

www.ams.usda.gov/freshinspection. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Carl Newell, at the above address or call 

(540) 361–1120. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Executive Order 12866 Regulatory 

Flexibility Act 

This proposed 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. 

Pursuant to the requirements set forth 

in the Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) 

(5 U.S.C. 601–612), AMS has considered 

the economic impact of the proposed 

action on small entities. The purpose of 

the RFA is to fit regulatory actions to the 

scale of businesses subject to such 

actions so that small businesses will not 

be unduly or disproportionately 

burdened. Accordingly, AMS has 

prepared this initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis. Interested parties are 

invited to submit information on the 

regulatory and informational impacts of 

these actions on small businesses. 

This rule proposes to revise the 

United States Standards for Grades of 

Almonds in the Shell (standards) that 

were issued under the Agricultural 

Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621– 

1627). Standards issued under the 1946 

Act are voluntary. 

Small agricultural service firms, 

which include handlers, have been 

defined by the Small Business 

Administration (SBA) (13 CFR 121.201) 

as those having annual receipts of less 

than $7,000,000 and small agricultural 

producers have been defined as those 

having annual receipts of less than 

$750,000. 

There are approximately 53 handlers 

of almonds that would potentially be 

affected by the changes set forth in this 

proposed rule and approximately 6,500 

producers of almonds. Information 

provided by the Almond Board of 

California (ABC) indicates that 

approximately 36 percent of the 

handlers would be considered small 

agricultural service firms. 

According to data reported by the 

National Agricultural Statistics Service 

(NASS), the two-year average crop value 

for 2008–09 and 2009–10 was $2.566 

billion. Dividing that average by 6,500 

producers yields average estimated 

producer revenues of $394,769, which 

suggests that the majority of almond 

producers would be considered small 

entities according to the SBA’s 

definition. 

The California almond bearing 

acreage increased approximately 9 

percent between 2008 and 2010, from 

680,000 to 740,000 acres. 

Approximately 1.643 billion pounds 

(shelled basis) of almonds were 

produced during the 2009–10 season. 

More than two thirds of California’s 

almond crop is exported to 

approximately 90 countries worldwide, 

and comprises nearly 80 percent of the 

world’s almond supply. 

The changes proposed herein will 

have the effect of improving grading 

methods and accuracy without adding 

any additional financial burden to 

buyers or sellers of almonds in the shell. 

This rule changes one step in a multistep grading procedure (7 CFR 51.2080) 

and changes the method of determining 

one of five tolerances used in 

determining grade (7 CFR 

51.2075(b)(5)). The outgoing inspection 

procedure will become more closely 

aligned with incoming inspection by 

shifting the basis (from count to weight) 

in the standards for determining the 

percentage of internal defects in an 

inspection sample of almonds in the 

shell. 

In addition to simplifying the grading 

process, the weight basis would yield a 

more accurate percentage of internal 

defects. With a count method, a defect 

such as shriveling would result in a 

particular kernel being counted as one 

of the 300 kernels in the sample with 

internal defects, even if the defect left 

only a small portion of the original 

kernel in the sample. Due to its lower 

weight relative to a fully formed kernel, 

a shriveled kernel has a smaller impact 

on the percentage of internal defects 

when the sample is weighed rather than 

counted. 

The lower average percentage of 

internal defects using the weight 

method was confirmed by a review of 

shipping point inspection records, with 

14 examples in which both the count 

and weight method were used on the 

same sample of inshell almonds. The 

average serious damage percentages of 

the count method and the weight 

method were 1.5 percent and 0.8 

percent, respectively. Smaller 

percentages of defects in sampled lots 

using the weight method will mean 


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41708 Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules 

larger quantities of almonds meet a 

particular grade, which would 

positively affect the quality of the 

almonds, as it would yield more 

accurate percentages of defects, 

resulting in higher payments to growers. 

Shifting the determination of internal 

(kernel) defects from a count basis to a 

weight basis in the standards is 

expected to contribute to efficiencies in 

the grading process. It would make the 

internal defects aspect of the outgoing 

inspection process consistent with that 

of the incoming inspection. Weighing 

rather than counting the kernels may 

result in slightly more time in the 

inspection process, but any potential 

effect on the cost of inspections is 

expected to be minor or nonexistent, 

and would be offset by the benefits. 

There is no disproportionate impact 

on smaller entities; entities of all sizes 

will benefit. 

This rule would not impose any 

additional reporting or recordkeeping 

requirements on either small or large 

almond producers, handlers or 

exporters and will be done at no cost to 

the industry. 

The use of grading services and 

grading standards is voluntary unless 

required by a specific Act, Federal 

Marketing Order or Agreement, or other 

regulations governing domestic, import 

or export shipments. 

USDA has not identified any Federal 

rules that duplicate, overlap, or conflict 

with this rule. However, there is a 

marketing program which regulates the 

handling of almonds under 7 CFR part 

981. The revision being proposed in this 

action only affects the inspection 

procedures for internal defects in the 

standards. As such, the proposed action 

would not affect almonds in the shell 

under the marketing order. 

Alternatives were considered for this 

action. One alternative would be to not 

issue a proposed rule. However, the 

need for revisions remains due to 

differing procedures for incoming and 

outgoing almond inspections, and the 

proposal is the result of a request by 

industry. Further, the purpose of these 

standards is to facilitate the marketing 

of agricultural commodities. 

Executive Order 12988 

The rule has been reviewed under 

Executive Order 12988, Civil Justice 

Reform. This action is not intended to 

have retroactive effect. There are no 

administrative procedures which must 

be exhausted prior to any judicial 

challenge to the provisions of the rule. 

Section 203(c) of the Act 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. 

Background 

On March 11, 2011, AMS received a 

letter from the Almond Board of 

California (Board) requesting that the 

procedure for measuring internal 

(kernel) defects in the United States 

Standards for Grades of Almonds in the 

Shell be changed from a count basis to 

a weight basis. The purpose of this 

change is to align incoming and 

outgoing inspection procedures. 

Currently, almonds must undergo 

incoming inspections and may undergo 

outgoing inspections. The almond 

marketing order (part 981—Almonds 

Grown in California) mandates that the 

percentage of inedible kernels is 

determined during an incoming 

inspection. As required in the marketing 

order (7 CFR 981.42 and 981.442 

(Quality Control)), Federally licensed 

state inspectors perform these 

inspections on 100% of the product 

moving from growers to handlers 

(packers). Inedible kernel is defined in 

section 981.8 and 981.408 of the 

marketing order and is based on internal 

(kernel) defects as defined in the 

standards, in sections 51.2087 (Decay), 

51.2088 (Rancidity), 51.2089 (Damage) 

and 51.2090 (Serious Damage). 

Federally licensed state inspectors 

also perform outgoing inspections, 

which are voluntary, on approximately 

75% of all of the almonds going from 

the handlers to domestic and 

international markets, according to 

shipping point records maintained by 

Federal State Inspection. 

The current procedures for 

determining the percentage of defective 

kernels in the two different inspections 

are not the same. For incoming 

inspections, the percentage of inedible 

kernels is determined on a weight basis. 

With outgoing inspections, however, 

determining the percentage of internal 

(kernel) defects, which is one step in a 

multi-step procedure specified in the 

standards for determining U.S. grade, is 

done through a combination of count 

and weight of the nuts in the sample. 

This proposed change would more 

closely align the procedures of the 

incoming and outgoing inspections. 

A key reason for making this change 

is the increasing magnitude of exports of 

almonds in the shell. Between the 

2006/07 and 2009/10 seasons, export 

shipments of almonds in the shell 

doubled, rising from 148 to 297 million 

pounds (inshell basis), according to 

trade data from the Foreign Agricultural 

Service of USDA. During this same time 

period, the number of handlers 

exporting almonds in the shell 

increased by 42%. Due to the 

substantial increase in the number of 

handlers and volume of shipments, the 

Board received numerous inquiries 

regarding the reasons for the different 

procedures for determining internal 

defects on incoming and outgoing 

inspections. 

A number of handlers asked the 

Board’s Food Quality and Safety 

Committee (committee) to look into how 

to change the standards to make 

outgoing inspections more consistent 

with the incoming inspection method. 

Determining the percentage of nuts with 

internal defects is the third of three 

required steps in section 51.2080 

Determination of Grade. In addition, a 

10 percent tolerance for internal (kernel) 

defects is one of five tolerances that are 

specified in section 51.2075(b)(5) for 

determining whether a lot of inshell 

almonds is graded as U.S. No. 1. 

Committee staff queried handlers that 

ship almonds in the shell about 

changing the determination of internal 

defects from a count basis to a weight 

basis, which would apply to both of 

these sections. 

AMS is proposing to amend section 

51.2075(b)(5) by changing the word 

‘‘count’’ in the first line to ‘‘weight.’’ 

The other four tolerances specified in 

section 51.2075(b) remain unchanged. 

AMS is also proposing to amend section 

51.2080 by changing the word ‘‘count’’ 

in the last line to ‘‘weight.’’ This would 

make the internal defects aspect of the 

outgoing inspection process consistent 

with that of the incoming inspection 

mandated by the marketing order. 

The proposed rule provides for a 30- 

day comment period for interested 

parties to comment on the revisions to 

the standard. 

List of Subjects in 7 CFR Part 51 

Agricultural commodities, Food 

grades and standards, Fruits, Nuts, 

Reporting and recordkeeping 

requirements, Trees, Vegetables. 

For reasons set forth in the preamble, 

7 CFR part 51 is proposed to be 

amended as follows: 

PART 51—[AMENDED] 

1. The authority citation for part 51 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1621–1627. 

2. In § 51.2075, paragraph (b)(5) is 

revised to read as follows: 


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Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 136 / Monday, July 16, 2012 / Proposed Rules 41709 

§ 51.2075 U.S. No. 1. 

* * * * * 

(b) * * * 

(5) For internal (kernel) defects. 10 

percent, by weight, for almonds with 

kernels failing to meet the requirements 

of this grade: Provided, that not more 

than one-half of this tolerance or 5 

percent shall be allowed for kernels 

affected by decay or rancidity, damaged 

by insects or mold or seriously damaged 

by shriveling: And provided further, 

that no part of this tolerance shall be 

allowed for live insects inside the shell. 

* * * * * 

3. § 51.2080 is revised to read as 

follows: 

Determination of Grade 

§ 51.2080 Determination of Grade. 

In grading the inspection sample, the 

percentage of loose hulls, pieces of 

shell, chaff and foreign material is 

determined on the basis of weight. Next, 

the percentages of nuts which are of 

dissimilar varieties, undersize or have 

adhering hulls or defective shells are 

determined by count, using an adequate 

portion of the total sample. Finally, the 

nuts in that portion of the sample are 

cracked and the percentage having 

internal defects is determined on the 

basis of weight. 

Dated: July 11, 2012. 

David R. Shipman, 

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing 

Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–17229 Filed 7–13–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Federal Crop Insurance Corporation 

7 CFR Part 457 

[Docket No. FCIC–12–0006] 

RIN 0563–AC39 

Common Crop Insurance Regulations; 

Florida Citrus Fruit Crop Insurance 

Provisions 

AGENCY: Federal Crop Insurance 

Corporation, USDA. 

ACTION: Proposed rule; request for 

comments. 

SUMMARY: The Federal Crop Insurance 

Corporation (FCIC) proposes to amend 

the Common Crop Insurance 

Regulations, Florida Citrus Fruit Crop 

Insurance Provisions. The intended 

effect of this action is to provide policy 

changes, to clarify existing policy 

provisions to better meet the needs of 

policyholders, and to reduce 

vulnerability to program fraud, waste, 

and abuse. The proposed changes will 

be effective for the 2014 and succeeding 

crop years. 

DATES: Written comments and opinions 

on this proposed rule will be accepted 

until close of business August 15, 2012 

and will be considered when the rule is 

to be made final. 

ADDRESSES: FCIC prefers that comments 

be submitted electronically through the 

Federal eRulemaking Portal. You may 

submit comments, identified by Docket 

ID No. FCIC–12–0006, by any of the 

following methods: 

• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http:// 

www.regulations.gov. Follow the 

instructions for submitting comments. 

• Mail: Director, Product 

Administration and Standards Division, 

Risk Management Agency, United States 

Department of Agriculture, P.O. Box 

419205, Kansas City, MO 64133–6205. 

All comments received, including 

those received by mail, will be posted 

without change to http://www.

regulations.gov, including any personal 

information provided, and can be 

accessed by the public. All comments 

must include the agency name and 

docket number or Regulatory 

Information Number (RIN) for this rule. 

For detailed instructions on submitting 

comments and additional information, 

see http://www.regulations.gov. If you 

are submitting comments electronically 

through the Federal eRulemaking Portal 

and want to attach a document, we ask 

that it be in a text-based format. If you 

want to attach a document that is a 

scanned Adobe PDF file, it must be 

scanned as text and not as an image, 

thus allowing FCIC to search and copy 

certain portions of your submissions. 

For questions regarding attaching a 

document that is a scanned Adobe PDF 

file, please contact the RMA Web 

Content Team at (816) 823–4694 or by 

email at rmaweb.content@rma.usda.gov. 

Privacy Act: Anyone is able to search 

the electronic form of all comments 

received for any dockets by the name of 

the person submitting the comment (or 

signing the comment, if submitted on 

behalf of an association, business, labor 

union, etc.). You may review the 

complete User Notice and Privacy 

Notice for Regulations.gov at http://

www.regulations.gov/#!privacyNotice. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tim 

Hoffmann, Director, Product 

Administration and Standards Division, 

Risk Management Agency, United States 

Department of Agriculture, Beacon 

Facility, Stop 0812, Room 421, P.O. Box 

419205, Kansas City, MO 64141–6205, 

telephone (816) 926–7730. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Executive Order 12866 

This rule has been determined to be 

non-significant for the purposes of 

Executive Order 12866 and, therefore, it 

has not been reviewed by the OMB. 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 

Pursuant to the provisions of the 

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 

U.S.C. chapter 35), the collections of 

information in this rule have been 

approved by OMB under control 

number 0563–0053. 

E-Government Act Compliance 

FCIC is committed to complying with 

the E-Government Act of 2002, to 

promote the use of the Internet and 

other information technologies to 

provide increased opportunities for 

citizen access to Government 

information and services, and for other 

purposes. 

Unfunded Mandates Reform Act of 

1995 

Title II of the Unfunded Mandates 

Reform Act of 1995 (UMRA), establishes 

requirements for Federal agencies to 

assess the effects of their regulatory 

actions on State, local, and tribal 

governments and the private sector. 

This rule contains no Federal mandates 

(under the regulatory provisions of title 

II of the UMRA) for State, local, and 

tribal governments or the private sector. 

Therefore, this rule is not subject to the 

requirements of sections 202 and 205 of 

UMRA. 

Executive Order 13132 

It has been determined under section 

1(a) of Executive Order 13132, 

Federalism, that this rule does not have 

sufficient implications to warrant 

consultation with the States. The 

provisions contained in this rule will 

not have a substantial direct effect on 

States, or on the relationship between 

the national government and the States, 

or on the distribution of power and 

responsibilities among the various 

levels of government. 

Executive Order 13175 

This rule has been reviewed in 

accordance with the requirements of 

Executive Order 13175, Consultation 

and Coordination with Indian Tribal 

Governments. The review reveals that 

this regulation will not have substantial 

and direct effects on Tribal governments 

and will not have significant Tribal 

implications. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

FCIC certifies that this regulation will 

not have a significant economic impact 

on a substantial number of small 


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