The Food and Drug Administration has announced that it has selected (i) tomatoes; (ii) frozen kung-pao style dishes; and (iii) jarred peanut butter & dry packaged peanut / spice as the types of foods that it will be following as part of its pilot projects on the tracking and tracing of food, as required by the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA).
Brian Feito
Brian Feito is Managing Editor of International Trade Today, Export Compliance Daily and Trade Law Daily. A licensed customs broker who spent time at the Department of Commerce calculating antidumping and countervailing duties, Brian covers a wide range of subjects including customs and trade-facing product regulation, the courts, antidumping and countervailing duties and Mexico and the European Union. Brian is a graduate of the University of Florida and George Mason University. He joined the staff of Warren Communications News in 2012.
The Court of International Trade announced that, effective May 1, 2012, it has approved certain increases in fees for services provided by the CIT. Specifically, CIT increased fees for, among other things, original admission of an attorney to practice (now $76), records retrieval (now $53), filing/indexing in cases where a case filing fee has not been paid (now $46), etc. CIT said the changes flow from an increase in the district court miscellaneous fee schedule promulgated under Title 28 U.S.C. § 1914.
The Foreign Agriculture Service released the following Production, Markets and Trade Reports on April 10, 2012:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service issued emails April 11, 2012, announcing changes to some Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) electronic manuals. While some changes are minor, other changes may affect the admissibility of the plant products, including fruits, vegetables, and flowers.
From March 26 to March 28, 2012, the Foreign Agriculture Service issued the following GAIN reports:
The Grain Inspection, Packers, and Stockyards Administration (GIPSA) is requesting comments by June 11, 2012, on its proposed rule that would revise the U.S. Standards for Wheat under the U.S. Grain Standards Act (USGSA) to (i) change the definition of Contrasting classes (CCL) in Hard White wheat and (ii) change the grade limits for shrunken and broken kernels (SHBN).
The Bureau of Industry and Security posted an online tool to help users of License Exception Strategic Trade Authorization (STA) determine if they're eligible to use and will be in compliance with License Exception STA. The tool is purely voluntary and serves as a checklist to identify and verify the key eligibility and compliance requirements of License Exception STA. Using the tool does not guarantee eligibility. It's important for all exporters to review the requirements of the EAR, specifically section 740.20.
The International Trade Administration is publishing notices in the April 11, 2012, Federal Register on the following AD/CV proceedings (any notices that announce changes to AD/CV duty rates, the scope, affected firms, or effective dates will be detailed in another ITT article):
On April 10, 2012, the Food and Drug Administration posted new and revised versions of the following Import Alerts on the detention without physical examination of:
The International Trade Administration announced an executive-led Oil and Gas Trade Mission to Israel on October 27-31. According to the ITA, The purpose of the mission, organized by the U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service, is to introduce U.S. firms to Israel’s rapidly expanding oil and gas market and to assist U.S. companies pursuing export opportunities in this sector. The mission to Israel is intended to include representatives from leading U.S. companies that provide services to oil and gas facilities, from design and construction through to project implementation, maintenance of facilities, and environmental protection.