Five amendments have been proposed to the marketing order which regulates the handling of raisins produced from California-grown grapes.

The amendments will be subject to a referendum conducted from Dec. 4 to Dec. 15. The amendments would:

  • Authorize production research;
  • Establish new nomination procedures for independent producer member and alternate member seats;
  • Add authority to regulate quality;
  • Add authority to establish different regulations for different markets;
  • And add a continuance referenda requirement.

The amendments were proposed by the Raisin Administrative Committee, which is responsible for local administration of the order. The Agricultural Marketing Service has also proposed to remove order language pertaining to volume regulation and reserve pool authority and establish term limits for committee members.