SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Section 203(c) of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621-1627), as amended, 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. The U.S. Standards for Grades of Fruits and Vegetables that no longer appear in the Code of Federal Regulations are maintained by USDA, AMS, Specialty Crops Program at the following website: http://www.ams.usda.gov. AMS is proposing revisions to the U.S. Standards for Grades of Nectarines using the procedures that appear in part 36 of Title 7 of the Code of Federal Regulations (7 CFR part 36).

Background

On August 29, 2025, AMS received a petition from the California Fresh Fruit Association (CFFA), a voluntary, nonprofit agricultural trade association that advocates on behalf of its members within the California fresh fruit industry. CFFA consists of more than 300 members, which include growers, shippers, and marketers of several different types of fruit. The petitioners represent over 95 percent of the producers of nectarines. AMS has worked closely with CFFA throughout the development of the proposed revisions, soliciting their comments and suggesting about the standards through discussion drafts and presentations.

AMS is proposing to revise the U.S. Standards for Grades of Nectarines by removing speckling as a type of defect affecting the quality of nectarines from sections § 51.3156 Injury (§ 51.3156(h)(2)), § 51.3157 Damage (§ 51.3157(g)(3)), and § 51.3159 Serious Damage (§ 51.3159(h)(2)). Under these sections in the current standards, any nectarines which possess speckling on more than 50 percent of the surface can be scored as a defect. Speckling is the occurrence of numerous yellow spots densely concentrated and distinctly contrasting with the surface of a dark red colored fruit. The designation of speckling as a defect under the current standards has had a negative impact on California growers due to the fruit being rejected due to speckling, despite meeting all other quality and safety standards. A letter dated July 22, 2023, to Family Tree Farms from Dr. Ioannis S. Minas, Associate Professor of Pomology at the Department of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture at Colorado State University was included with CFFA's petition. This letter describes nectarine skin speckling as a natural characteristic of nectarines in which scientific evidence shows fruit with higher sugar content (an indicator of sweetness) is correlated with higher amounts of speckling on the skin of the nectarine. This condition does not affect the internal quality, shelf life, or lead to any negative flavors of the fruit. With recent developments in breeding as a means to prioritize flavor, it would be expected that speckling would increase along with any new varieties of nectarines with higher sugar content (Brix). The proposed revisions to the grade standards to remove speckling as a defect will better reflect the current and foreseen future marketing of nectarines as consumer preferences are favoring fruit with higher sugar content.

The following reflects AMS's proposed revisions to the definition section of the U.S. Standards for Grades of Nectarines: ( printed page 24802)

A 60-day period is provided for interested persons to submit comments on the proposed revisions to the grade standards. Copies of the proposed revised standards are available on the internet at http://www.regulations.gov. After the 60-day comment period, AMS would proceed in accordance with 7 CFR 36.3(a)(1-3).

Authority:7 U.S.C. 1621-1627.

91 FR 24801