On March 7, 2023, the Agricultural Marketing Services (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture issued Announcement No. 2022-04741, which proposed revisions to the raisin standards. The main purpose of this document is to provide quality standards for raisins and seedless raisins. These standards specify that the amount of stems (i.e. the remaining twigs at the top of the raisin) in each pound of product should not exceed 10 for A-grade products, 15 for B-grade products, and 20 for C-grade products. This announcement will be officially published in the Federal Register on March 8, 2022, and will have a feedback period of 60 days.

For further information, please refer to:

  https://public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2023-04741.pdf