Processed Raspberry Promotion, Research, and Information Order

This rule establishes the Processed Raspberry Promotion, Research, and Information Order (Order). The program will be implemented under the Commodity Promotion, Research, and Information Act of 1996 (1996 Act). Under the Order, producers of raspberries for processing and importers of processed raspberries will pay an assessment of up to one cent per pound, with the initial assessment rate being one cent per pound, which shall be paid to the National Processed Raspberry Council (Council). Producers and importers of less than 20,000 pounds annually of raspberries for processing and processed raspberries, respectively, will be exempt from the assessment. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (Department) conducted a referendum between June 8 and June 24, 2011 to ascertain whether the persons to be covered by and assessed under the Order favored the implementation of the program. In the referendum, 88 percent of those who voted favored implementation of the Order. Producers and importers of 20,000 or more pounds of raspberries for processing or processed raspberries respectively, during the calendar year January 1 through December 31, 2010, were eligible to vote in the referendum. The program was proposed by the Washington Red Raspberry Commission (WRRC).