[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 196 (Tuesday, October 12, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Pages 55225-55226]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-26559]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 99-044N]


National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: The National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection 
will hold a public meeting

[[Page 55226]]

on November 3-4, 1999, to review and discuss five issues: (1) Extending 
USDA's Meat and Poultry Inspection Program to Additional Species 
(Inspection Methods Standing Sub-Committee), (2) Reinforcing the Food 
Code by Adopting Key Food Safety Provisions as Federal Performance 
Standards, (3) Regulatory Reform (Inter-Governmental Roles Standing 
Sub-Committee), (4) HACCP Systems In-depth Verification Review, and (5) 
E. coli 0157 Action Plan (Resource Allocation Standing Sub-Committee). 
Three standing subcommittees of the full committee will also meet on 
November 3, 1999, to continue working on issues discussed during the 
full committee session. All interested parties are welcome to attend 
the meeting and to submit written comments and suggestions concerning 
issues the Committee will review and discuss. A schedule of when issues 
are scheduled for discussion is available on the FSIS Homepage at 
http://www.fsis.usda.gov.

DATES: The full Committee will hold a public meeting on Wednesday and 
Thursday, November 3-4, 1999, from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Subcommittees 
will hold public meetings on November 3, 1999, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 
p.m.

ADDRESSES: The full Committee meeting will take place at the United 
States Department of Agriculture, Whitten Building, 14th and 
Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, DC in the Jefferson Room. The 
subcommittees will meet in the Adams, Roosevelt, and Washington Rooms 
of the Quality Hotel & Suites, Courthouse Plaza, 1200 North Courthouse 
Road, Arlington, Virginia 22201 (703) 524-4000. Send written comments 
to the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) Docket Clerk: Docket 
99-044N, Room 102 Cotton Annex Building, 300 12th Street, SW., 
Washington, DC 20250. Comments may also be sent by facsimile (202) 205-
0381. The comments and the official transcript of the meeting, when it 
becomes available, will be kept in the Docket Clerk's office at the 
address provided above.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Michael N. Micchelli at (202) 
720-6269, FAX (202) 720-2345, or E-mail [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    On February 12, 1997, the Secretary of Agriculture renewed the 
charter for the Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection. The 
Committee provides advice and recommendations to the Secretary of 
Agriculture pertaining to Federal and State meat and poultry inspection 
programs pursuant to sections 7(c), 24, 205, 301(a)(3), and 301(c) of 
the Federal Meat Inspection Act and sections 5(a)(3), 5(c), 8(b), and 
11(e) of the Poultry Products Inspection Act. The Administrator of FSIS 
is the chairperson of the Committee. Membership of the Committee is 
drawn from representatives of consumer groups; producers, processors, 
and marketers from the meat and poultry industry; and State government 
officials. The current members of the National Advisory Committee on 
Meat and Poultry Inspection are: Terry Burkhardt, Wisconsin Bureau of 
Meat Safety and Inspection; Dr. James Denton, University of Arkansas; 
Caroline Smith-DeWaal, Center for Science in the Public Interest; Nancy 
Donley, Safe Tables Our Priority; Carol Tucker Foreman, Food Policy 
Institute, Consumer Federation of America; Dr. Cheryl Hall, Zacky 
Farms, Inc.; Kathleen Hanigan, Farmland Foods; Dr. Lee C. Jan, Texas 
Department of Health; Alice Johnson, National Turkey Federation; Dr. 
Collette Schultz Kaster, Premium Standard Farms; Dr. Daniel E. 
LaFontaine, South Carolina Meat-Poultry Inspection Department; Michael 
Mamminga, Iowa Department of Agriculture; Dr. Dale Morse, New York 
Office of Public Health; Rosemary Mucklow, National Meat Association; 
and Gary Weber, National Cattlemen's Beef Association. On September 20, 
1999, the Secretary of Agriculture appointed two new members to the 
Committee: Donna Richardson, Howard University Cancer Center and Magdi 
Abadir, Cuisine Solutions.
    The Committee has three standing subcommittees to deliberate on 
specific issues and make recommendations to the whole Committee and to 
the Secretary of Agriculture.
    Members of the public will be required to register at the meeting. 
There is no pre-registration required. The meeting agenda will be 
available on the FSIS Homepage at http://www.fsis.usda.gov. Persons 
requiring a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations 
should notify Michael N. Micchelli, by October 18, 1999.

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 disportionate 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 5, 1999.
Thomas J. Billy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 99-26559 Filed 10-8-99; 8:45 am]
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