Sweet Onions Grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast Oregon; Order Regulating Handling

This final rule establishes a Federal marketing agreement and order which regulates the handling of Walla Walla Sweet Onions grown in the Walla Walla Valley of Southeast Washington and Northeast Oregon. The order was favored by the required two-thirds majority of producers voting in a referendum and the marketing agreement was executed by the required number of handlers, that is, handlers who collectively handled more than 50 percent of all onions handled during the representative period. The marketing agreement and order authorize production and marketing research and marketing development and promotion projects, including paid advertising, and authorize container markings. The objective of the order is to improve producer returns by strengthening consumer demand through various promotional activities and by reducing production and marketing costs through production and marketing research. Agreement and order activities will be financed by assessments levied on Walla Walla Sweet Onion handlers. The order was considered at a public hearing in November 1993. The referendum was conducted by the Department of Agriculture by mail ballot April 7-14, 1995.