The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing designation awards of Amarillo Grain Exchange, Inc. (Amarillo); J.W. Barton Grain Inspection Service, Inc. (Barton); Cairo Grain Inspection Agency, Inc. (Cairo); Champaign-Danville Grain Inspection Departments, Inc. (Champaign); Detroit Grain Inspection Service, Inc. (Detroit); Eastern Iowa Grain Inspection and Weighing Service, Inc. (Eastern Iowa); Enid Grain Inspection Company, Inc. (Enid); Farwell Commodity and Grain Services, Inc. (Farwell Southwest); Fremont Grain Inspection Department, Inc.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is authorizing agricultural commodity warehouses licensed under the United States Warehouse Act (USWA) (7 U.S.C. 241 et seq.) to store grain under emergency and temporary storage options.

Warehouse operators can submit requests with justifications for authorization of emergency and for temporary storage at warehousing@usda.gov.

With funding from the Local Food Purchase Cooperative Agreement Program, The Tunica Biloxi Tribe of Louisiana will establish a program to empower our tribal community to determine how local food can be procured and distributed to underserved tribal citizens. The tribe will issue request for proposal from local farmers to begin purchasing food for tribal families in need. The Tribal Council will work with the tribe’s procurement office to expedite contracts with local suppliers.

Docket Number: AMS-FGIS-22-0020
Effective Date:  November 10, 2022

Summary

The Federal Seed Act (FSA) regulates the interstate shipment of agricultural and vegetable seeds. The FSA requires that seed shipped in interstate commerce be labeled with certain information necessary for the seed buyer to make an informed choice. The labeling information and any advertisements pertaining to the seed must be truthful. The FSA helps promote uniformity among the state seed laws and fair competition within the seed trade.

Docket Number: AMS-FGIS-20-0061
Effective Date: November 10, 2022

Summary

The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing its decisions regarding proposed changes to its mycotoxin test kit performance criteria after evaluating public comments received during prior publications in the Federal Register (85 FR 82427 and 86 FR 10531).

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Overview

The USDA Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) Program offers a unique way for producers to access markets and verify their use of sound agricultural and food safety practices.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) published a notice in the Federal Register on Nov. 10, 2022, responding to comments on proposed changes to mycotoxin test kit performance criteria. The notice summarizes proposed changes, public comments and AMS decisions.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced plans to purchase Fresh Apples, Pears, Potatoes, and Mixed Fresh Produce Boxes for distribution to various food nutrition assistance programs. Purchases will be made under the authority of Section 5 of the Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Charter Act.

Native Americans face some of the highest rates of food insecurity, and the pandemic has worsened this disparity. Many people in Indian Country reside in food deserts—areas with few grocery stores or access to fresh produce and healthy foods. The Cowlitz Indian Tribe has begun a collaborative pilot program to solve hunger in our local Native American communities. The Tribe and local food agencies are working together on a two-year project to improve nutrition security and increase food sovereignty for Tribal members.