The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued a final notice revising seven U.S. grade standards for canned tomato products. The revisions were published in the Federal Register on May 13, 2026, and will become effective on June 12, 2026.
The updated standards apply to:
tomato ketchup,
tomato sauce,
tomato juice,
canned tomato paste,
canned tomato puree,
canned tomatoes, and
concentrated tomato juice.
The revisions aim to modernize terminology, improve consistency across grading standards, and align grading practices with current industry and regulatory approaches.
Key amendments include:
replacement of outdated references to Munsell color discs with USDA Tomato Product Color Standards;
removal of dual nomenclature grading terms such as “U.S. Fancy” and “U.S. Extra Standard,” retaining only single-grade terminology including “U.S. Grade A,” “U.S. Grade B,” and “U.S. Grade C”;
replacement of the term “catsup” with the more commonly used term “ketchup” throughout the standards;
addition of new drained weight reference tables for canned tomatoes and stewed tomatoes;
editorial corrections, restructuring, and insertion of section headings for clarity; and
technical revisions to certain product descriptions and grading criteria.
According to AMS, the changes are intended to better reflect modern commercial practices and improve uniformity in the marketing of processed tomato products.
The agency also clarified that the revisions are not expected to significantly impact implementation costs for small and mid-sized producers, as most updates remove outdated provisions or reorganize existing requirements. The revised standards were issued under the authority of the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946.