The U.S. Department of Agriculture will announce Dec. 5 that it is terminating plans for a national leafy greens marketing agreement in light of the new food-safety regulations that have been proposed by the Food & Drug Administration.

The scant, seven-page notice, which will appear in the Federal Register, ends the four-year journey for a national leafy greens handling agreement that started when Western Growers Association and other trade groups petitioned FDA on June 10, 2009, before the Food Safety Modernization Act was enacted.

In 2009, USDA held public hearings in Monterey, CA, Jacksonville, FL, Columbus, OH, Denver, Yuma, AZ, Syracuse, NY, and Charlotte, NC. USDA received 2,143 comments on the marketing agreement as it moved through the regulatory process.

It appears the process took a turn after FDA published the new proposals in January 2013 for produce safety and preventive controls for human food.

"The ongoing rulemaking may affect fundamental aspects of the proposed leafy greens vegetable marketing agreement program," USDA said. "As a result, it is appropriate to terminate the leafy greens vegetable marketing agreement rulemaking proceeding at this time."

Scrapping the agreement also clears the deck for more information sharing between the industry and regulators, USDA noted.

"Termination of this proceeding will remove ex parte communication prohibitions and allow USDA to engage fully with all interested parties to discuss and consider the evolving needs of the industry and consumers going forward," said the notice signed Nov. 26 by Agricultural Marketing Service Associate Administrator Rex Barnes.

“USDA 's decision to not pursue a national leafy greens marketing agreement is not unexpected,” said Ray Gilmer, spokesman for the United Fresh Produce Association. “The passage of FSMA and the upcoming regulations are intended to accomplish comparable goals.”

The FSMA rules and USDA's decision to abandon a national leafy greens agreement raise new issues for the California and Arizona agreements, which account for a majority of the nation's leafy green production.

The industry drafted the California agreement in response to the E. coli outbreak linked to spinach in 2006. Handlers that voluntarily agree to participate in the programs are assessed a fee that pays for USDA-certified inspectors and auditors.

“The bottom line is that this has no impact on the California or Arizona LGMAs," said Scott Horsfall, CEO of the California Leafy Greens Marketing Agreement. "Our industries are focused and committed, and we will continue to verify that our members are implementing the good agricultural practices that are required of them.”

LGMA, with the help of advocates on Capitol Hill, is asking FDA to enter into a memorandum of understanding that would allow companies participating in California and Arizona marketing agreements and undergoing third-party audits to verify they are in compliance with FSMA.

This makes sense to Jim Gorny, Produce Marketing Association’s vice president of food safety and technology, who said participating companies rely on quasi-government auditors to verify their complying with “FSMA-plus” food-safety rules.

“It’s competent and verifiable,” and it would save FDA resources in the long run if the agency recognizes LGMAs, Gorny added.