[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 194 (Thursday, October 7, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 54608-54609]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-26124]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 99-047N]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Food Hygiene

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting, request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, and the 
Food Safety and Inspection Service, United States Department of 
Agriculture; and the Food and Drug Administration, United States 
Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring two public 
meetings on October 12-13, 1999, and November 9, 1999, to provide 
information and receive public comments on issues that will be 
discussed at the Thirty-second Session of the Codex Committee on Food 
Hygiene, which will be held in Washington, DC, on November 29-December 
4, 1999.

DATES: The first public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday, 
October 12-13, 1999, from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. The second public 
meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 9, 1999, from 1 p.m. to 5 
p.m.

ADDRESSES: The first public meeting will be held in Rooms 1409 and 
1813, Federal Office Building 8, 200 C St. SW, Washington, DC, 20204. 
The second public meeting will be held in Room 1409, Federal Office 
Building 8, 200 C St. SW, Washington, DC, 20204. To receive copies of 
the documents listed in the notice contact the FSIS Docket Clerk, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Room 
102, Cotton Annex, 300 12th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20250-3700. The 
documents will also be accessible via the World Wide Web at the 
following address: http://www.fao.org/waicent/faoinfo/economic/esn/
codex/ccfh32/FH99__01e.htm. When submitting comments, send an original 
and two copies to the FSIS Docket Clerk and reference the Docket 
# 99-047N and the appropriate document number. All comments submitted 
will be available for public inspection in the Docket Clerk's Office 
between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Patrick J. Clerkin, Associate U.S. 
Manager for Codex, U.S. Codex Office, FSIS, Room 4861, South 
Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 
20250-3700, telephone (202) 690-4042; Fax: (202) 720-3157. Persons 
requiring a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations 
should notify Patrick J. Clerkin, telephone (202) 690-4042; Fax: (202) 
720-3157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Codex was established in 1962 by two United Nations organizations, 
the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health 
Organization. Codex is the major international organization for 
encouraging fair international trade in food and protecting the health 
and economic interests of consumers. Through adoption of food 
standards, codes of practice, and other guidelines developed by its 
committees, and by promoting their adoption and implementation by 
governments, Codex seeks to ensure that the world's food supply is 
sound, wholesome, free from adulteration, and correctly labeled.
    The Codex Committee on Food Hygiene Issues (CCFH) was established 
to draft basic provisions on food hygiene for all foods. The Government 
of United States of America hosts this committee and will chair the 
Thirty-second Session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene Issues.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The purpose of the first meeting (October 12-13, 1999) is to 
provide information and receive public comments on all issues coming 
before the 32nd Session of the CCFH. Specific time periods during the 
two-day period will be designated to review each issue and will be 
announced on October 12. The purpose of the second meeting is to 
present and receive comment on draft United States positions on all 
issues coming before the 32nd Session of CCFH.
    Below is a list of documents that address the issues the CCFH will 
discuss at the meetings. The issue documents marked with an asterisk 
are available in the FSIS docket Clerks

[[Page 54609]]

office (See ADDRESSES). The remaining documents will be available in 
the docket clerks office as soon as they are published.

    1. Report by the Secretariat on Matters Referred by the Codex 
Alimentarius Commission and/or Other Codex Committees to the Food 
Hygiene Committee including the Report of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert 
Consultation on Risk Assessment of Microbiological Hazards in Foods 
(CX/FH 99/2).
    2. Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for Bottled/Packed Drinking 
Waters (Other than Natural Mineral Waters), (CL 1999/9-FH). 
Government Comments--(CX/FH 99/3).
    3. *Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for the Transport of 
Foodstuffs in Bulk and Semi-Packed Foodstuffs (CX/FH 99/4). 
Government Comments--(CX/FH 99/4-Add. 1).
    4. *Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for Milk and Milk 
Products (CX/FH 99/5). Government Comments--(CX/FH 99/5-Add. 1).
    5. *Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for the Primary 
Production, Harvesting and Packaging of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables 
(CX/FH 99/6). Government Comments--(CX/FH 99/6-Add. 1).
    6. *Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for Pre-Cut Fruits 
and Vegetables at Step 4 (CX/FH 99/7). Government Comments--(CX/FH 
99/7-Add. 1).
    7. *Proposed Draft Principles and Guidelines for the Conduct of 
Microbiological Risk Management (CX/FH 99/8). Government Comments--
(CX/FH 99/8-Add. 1).
    8. Discussion Paper on HACCP in Less Developed Businesses (CX/FH 
99/9).
    9. *Discussion Paper on Proposed Draft Recommendations for the 
Control of Listeria monocytogenes in Foods in International Trade 
(CX/FH 99/10).
    10. Discussion Paper on Viruses in Foods (CX/FH 99/11).
    11. Discussion Paper on Antibiotic Resistance in Food (CX/FH 99/
12).
    12. Discussion Paper on Proposed Draft Guidelines for the 
Hygienic Reuse of Processing Water in Food Plants (CX/FH 99/13).
    13. *Priorities for the Revision of Codes of Hygienic Practice 
(CX/FH 99/14).

Additional Public Notification

    Pursuant to Department Regulation 4300-4, ``Civil Rights Impact 
Analysis,'' dated September 22, 1993, FSIS has considered the potential 
civil rights impact of this public meeting on minorities, women, and 
persons with disabilities. FSIS anticipates that this public meeting 
will not have a negative or disproportionate impact on minorities, 
women, or persons with disabilities. However, public meetings generally 
are designed to provide information and receive public comments on 
substantive issues which may lead to new or revised agency regulations 
or instructions. Public involvement in all segments of rulemaking and 
policy development are important. Consequently, in an effort to better 
ensure that minorities, women, and persons with disabilities are made 
aware of this public meeting and are informed about the mechanism for 
providing their comments, FSIS will announce it and provide copies of 
this Federal Register publication in the FSIS Constituent Update.
    FSIS provides a weekly FSIS Constituent Update, which is 
communicated via fax to over 300 organizations and individuals. In 
addition, the update is available on line through the FSIS web page 
located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov. The update is used to provide 
information regarding FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal 
Register Notices, FSIS public meetings, recalls, and any other types of 
information that could affect or would be of interest to our 
constituents/stakeholders. The constituent fax list consists of 
industry, trade, and farm groups, consumer interest groups, allied 
health professionals, scientific professionals and other individuals 
that have requested to be included. Through these various channels, 
FSIS is able to provide information with a much broader, more diverse 
audience. For more information and to be added to the constituent fax 
list, fax your request to the Office of Congressional and Public 
Affairs, at (202) 720-5704.

    Done at Washington, DC, on October 1, 1999.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 99-26124 Filed 10-6-99; 8:45 am]
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