Global Trade Alert

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is instituting Federal procurement preferences for products that substitute sufficient domestic biobased content for imported petroleum inputs. In the final rule, published in the Federal Register on April 4, 2012 (Vol.77 No.65), the department is designating thirteen product categories for the preferred procurement program. They range from air fresheners and deodorizers to wood and concrete stains. To qualify for preferred procurement a product must be within a designated product category and must contain at least the minimum biobased content established for the designated item. USDA invites the manufacturers and vendors of qualifying products to provide information on the product, contacts, and performance testing for posting on its BioPreferred Web site, http://www.biopreferred.gov.