USDA Designation Process USDA BioPreferred® Program USDA Designation Process for Intermediates Marie Wheat Industry Economist USDA BioPreferred Program Biobased Stakeholder’s Dialogue July 7, 2016

The USDA BioPreferred® Program Designating Categories of Intermediates for Mandatory Federal Purchasing What are biobased intermediates? Why is USDA designating intermediates? How is USDA designating intermediates? The rulemaking process Understanding the difference between designated and certified intermediates BioPreferred product catalog and examples of certified intermediates The value of participating in the USDA BioPreferred program

So exactly what are biobased intermediates? A material or compound made in whole or in significant part from biological products, including renewable agricultural materials or forestry materials… that have undergone value added processing (including thermal, chemical, biological, or a significant amount of mechanical processing), offered for sale by a manufacturer or vendor… and that is subsequently used to make a more complex compound or product.

Designating Intermediate Categories for Mandatory Federal Purchasing: WHY? Required by statute. Intermediates are a major part of progress in bioeconomy. In 2013, U.S. biobased products industry added $369 billion in value to the U.S. economy and over 4 million American jobs. Will provide a pathway for approximately 50 new product categories representing possibly thousands of individual products.

Mandatory Federal Purchasing Federal agencies and federal contractors required to buy biobased products in categories designated by USDA Currently 97 diverse categories For each category, minimum biobased content is established Currently about 15,000 products in BioPreferred catalog that qualify for mandatory federal purchasing

Two “rounds” for rule-making process Designating Intermediate Categories for Mandatory Federal Purchasing: HOW? Two “rounds” for rule-making process Round 11 - designating approximately 10 categories of intermediates for mandatory federal purchasing Round 13 - designating final products composed of biobased intermediate ingredients. This proposed rule will designate, under the Mandatory Federal Purchasing program, approximately 50 finished product categories that cover a wide range of consumer use products. Many of these products are already included in the BioPreferred Program under the voluntary certification initiative.

Intermediates/Feedstocks In designating intermediate ingredient or feedstock categories, USDA will designate categories composed of generic groupings of intermediate ingredients or feedstocks, and will identify the minimum biobased content for each listed intermediate/feedstock category. As categories are designated they will be added to the USDA Designated Category List for mandatory federal purchasing.

The Rule Making Process Draft Preamble --explains the “why” Draft Rule -- explains the “how” Publish Proposed Rule in the Federal Register Public comments accepted Draft Final Rule Publish Final Rule in the Federal Register www.federalregister.gov

Qualified as part of mandatory federal purchasing vs. Qualified as part of mandatory federal purchasing Certified through voluntary labeling Product fits within one or more of the categories identified for federal purchasing Product fits within one or more of the categories identified for federal purchasing Yes Yes No Product meets program criteria and minimum biobased content for category Product meets program criteria and minimum biobased content for category Product does not fall within one of the categories but meets program criteria and is at least 25% biobased Yes Yes Product may be both qualified and certified Yes Product may be certified but is not qualified for mandatory federal purchase Exceptions may be granted for both minimum biobased content and product being qualified.

USDA Certified Intermediates

Thank you! Marie Wheat USDA BioPreferred® Program Office: 202-239-4502 marie.wheat@dm.usda.gov www.biopreferred.gov