Legal Status
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Agricultural Marketing Service
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) was established by the Secretary of Agriculture on April 2, 1972, under the authority of Reorganization Plan No. 2 of 1953 (5 U.S.C. app.) and other authorities. The Service administers standardization, grading, certification, market news, marketing orders, research and promotion, and regulatory programs.
The Agricultural Marketing Service includes five commodity programs--Dairy, Fruit and Vegetable, Livestock and Seed, Poultry, and Cotton and Tobacco. The programs provide standardization, grading and market news services for those commodities. They enforce such Federal Laws as the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act and the Federal Seed Act. AMS commodity programs also oversee marketing agreements and orders, administer research and promotion programs, and purchase commodities for Federal food programs.
The AMS National Organic Program (NOP) develops, implements, and administers national production, handling, and labeling standards for organic agricultural products. The NOP also accredits the certifying agents (foreign and domestic) who inspect organic production and handling operations to certify that they meet USDA standards.
The AMS Science and Technology Program lends centralized scientific support to AMS programs, including laboratory analyses, laboratory quality assurance, coordination of scientific research conducted by other agencies for AMS, and statistical and mathematical consulting services.
The AMS Transportation and Marketing Program brings together a unique combination of traffic managers, engineers, rural policy analysts, international trade specialists, and agricultural marketing specialists to help solve problems of U.S. and world agricultural transportation., provides better quality products to the consumer at reasonable cost, improves market access for growers with small-to medium sized farms, and promotes regional economic development.
AMS is part of the Marketing and Regulatory Programs (MRP) mission area. MRP agencies facilitate the domestic and international marketing of U.S. agricultural products and ensure the health and care of animals and plants. MRP agencies are active participants in setting national and international standards.
- Agency URL:
- http://www.ams.usda.gov
- Parent Agency
- Agriculture Department
- Sub-agency:
- Grain Inspection, Packers and Stockyards Administration
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Lamb Promotion, Research, and Information Order; Correction
This document corrects the Supplementary Information to a proposed rule published in the Federal Register on October 5, 2020, regarding amendments to the Lamb Promotion, Research, and Information Order. This correction clarifies the assessment remittance process described in Examples 1 and 2 and removes the first paragraph in Example 5.
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Lamb Promotion, Research, and Information Order; Activity Changes
AMS solicits comments on proposed amendments to the Lamb Promotion, Research, and Information Order (Order). These amendments would require market agencies (e.g. commission merchant, auction market, livestock market) in the business of receiving lambs to collect and remit on behalf of the producer, feeder, or seedstock producer, the...
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National Organic Program; Strengthening Organic Enforcement
The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) proposes amending the USDA organic regulations to strengthen oversight and enforcement of the production, handling, and sale of organic agricultural products. The proposed amendments are intended to protect integrity in the organic supply chain and build...
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National Organic Program; Origin of Livestock
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is reopening the comment period on our April 28, 2015, proposed rule to amend the origin of livestock requirements for dairy animals under the USDA organic regulations. We are reopening the proposed rule's comment period for 60 days to give all interested parties an...
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National Bioengineered Food Disclosure Standard
This rule establishes the new national mandatory bioengineered (BE) food disclosure standard (NBFDS or Standard). The new Standard requires food manufacturers, importers, and other entities that label foods for retail sale to disclose information about BE food and BE food ingredients. This rule is intended to provide a mandatory uniform national...
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Tart Cherries Grown in the States of Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin; Modification of Assessment Rate
This proposed rule would implement a recommendation from the Cherry Industry Administrative Board (Board) to decrease the portion of assessments allocated to research and promotion activities and increase the portion allocated to administrative expenses. The overall assessment rate would remain unchanged. The proposed assessment rate would...
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Undue and Unreasonable Preferences and Advantages Under the Packers and Stockyards Act
This final rule establishes a new regulation containing criteria the Secretary of Agriculture will consider when determining whether an undue or unreasonable preference or advantage has occurred in violation of the Packers and Stockyards Act, 1921 (Act). A provision of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (2008 Farm Bill) requires the...
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Walnuts Grown in California; Changes to Reporting Requirements
This rule revises the reporting requirements prescribed under the Federal marketing order regulating the handling of walnuts grown in California. This action requires California walnut handlers to report purchase commitments (walnuts sold but not yet shipped) with domestic and foreign buyers, monthly. This change provides more accurate...
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Designation of Amarillo Grain Exchange, Inc. To provide Class X or Class Y Weighing Services
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing the designation of Amarillo Grain Exchange, Inc. (Amarillo) to provide Class X or Class Y weighing services under the United States Grain Standards Act (USGSA), as amended.
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Request for Extension and Revision of a Currently Approved Information Collection
This notice announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approve a 3-year extension of a currently approved information collection for the ``Reporting and Recordkeeping Requirements under the United States Grain Standards Act (USGSA) and under the Agricultural Marketing...
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United States Standards for Beans
Notice is hereby given that the comment period for a notice for comment published in the Federal Register on September 29, 2020 is reopened. The publication invited comments on the revision to the method of interpretation for determining ``sample grade criteria,'' as it pertains to the class ``Blackeye beans,'' in the U.S. Standards for Beans...
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United States Standards for Split Peas
Notice is hereby given that the comment period for a notice for comment published in the Federal Register on September 29, 2020 is reopened. The publication invited comments on the revision to the method of interpretation for determining ``whole peas'' under the authority of the Agricultural Marketing Act (AMA).
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Notice of Request for a New Collection To Populate an Agritourism Directory
In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, this notice announces the Agricultural Marketing Service's (AMS) intention to request approval of a new collection, entitled: Agritourism Directory, from the Office of Management and Budget. Upon approval, we request that this collection be merged into OMB 0581-0169, Local Food Directories...
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United States Standards for Lentils
Notice is hereby given that the comment period for a notice for comment published in the Federal Register on September 29, 2020 is reopened. The publication invited comments on the revision to the method of interpretation for determining the special grade ``Green,'' as it pertains to the class ``Lentils,'' under the authority of the AMA.
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Tart Cherries Grown in the States of Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin; Changes to Subcommittee Size and Addition of Term Limits
This rule implements a recommendation from the Cherry Industry Administrative Board (Board) to change subcommittee size and add term limits under the marketing order for tart cherries grown in the States of Michigan, New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.