[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 104 (Thursday, May 30, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 37772-37773]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-13526]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. 02-022N]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, of the U.S. 
Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Food and Drug Administration 
(FDA), and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) are 
sponsoring a public meeting on July 30, 2002. The objective of the 
public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on 
agenda items and draft United States' positions that will be discussed 
at the 24th Session of the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for 
Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) to be held in Berlin, Germany, November 
4-8, 2002. The Under Secretary for Food Safety and FDA recognize the 
importance of providing interested parties the

[[Page 37773]]

opportunity to obtain background information on the 24th Session of 
CCNFSDU and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, July 30, 2002 from 
1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Auditorium (1A003), 
Food and Drug Administration, Harvey Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint 
Branch Parkway, College Park, MD. To receive copies of the Codex 
documents pertaining to the agenda items for the 24th CCNFSDU session, 
contact the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) Docket Room, 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 become accessible via the World Wide Web at the 
following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net. If you would like 
to submit comments on one or more agenda items, please send them, in 
triplicate, to the FSIS Docket Room and reference Docket 02-
022N. The U.S. Delegate to the CCNFSDU, Dr. Elizabeth Yetley of the 
Food and Drug Administration, also invites U.S. interested parties to 
submit their comments electronically to the following e-mail address 
([email protected]). All comments submitted in response to this 
notice will be available for public inspection in the FSIS Docket Room 
between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.
    To gain admittance to this meeting, individuals must present a 
photo ID for identification and are required to pre-register. In 
addition, no cameras or videotaping equipment will be permitted in the 
meeting room. To pre-register, please send the following information to 
this e-mail address ([email protected]) by July 15, 2002:

--Your Name
--Organization
--Mailing Address
--Phone number
--E-mail address

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ellen Matten, Staff Officer, U.S. 
Codex Office, FSIS, Room 4861, South Agriculture Building, 1400 
Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250, Telephone (202) 205-
7760; Fax: (202) 720-3157. Persons requiring a sign language 
interpreter or other special accommodations should notify Ms. Matten at 
the above number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Codex was established in 1962 by two United Nations' organizations, 
the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health 
Organization (WHO). 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 Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses 
was established to study specific nutritional problems assigned to it 
by the Commission and advise the Commission on general nutritional 
issues; to draft general provisions, as appropriate, concerning the 
nutritional aspects of all foods; to develop standards, guidelines, or 
related texts for foods for special dietary uses, in cooperation with 
other committees when necessary; and to consider, amend if necessary, 
and endorse provisions on nutritional aspects proposed for inclusion in 
Codex standards, guidelines and related texts. The committee is hosted 
by the Federal Republic of Germany.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items will be on the Agenda for the 24th Session of 
the Committee:

[sbull] Proposed Draft Revised Standard for Processed Cereal-Based 
Foods for Infants and Young Children
[sbull] Proposed Draft Revised Standard for Infant Formula
[sbull] Proposed Draft Guidelines for Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
[sbull] Proposed Draft Revision of the Advisory List(s) of Mineral 
Salts and Vitamin Compounds for the Use in Foods for Infants and Young 
Children (CAC/GL 10-1979)

    In addition, one or more of the following items may be on the 
Agenda, depending on whether the Committee has received additional 
scientific information:

[sbull] Guidelines for Use of Nutrition Claims: Draft Table of 
Conditions for Nutrient Contents (Part B, containing provisions on 
Dietary Fibre)
[sbull] Discussion Paper on Energy Conversion Factors
[sbull] Draft Revised Standard for Gluten-Free Foods

    Note: The provisional agenda for the 24th CCNFSDU session will 
be posted on the World Wide Web in advance of the meeting at the 
following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net.

Public Meeting

    At the July 30th public meeting, the issues and draft United States 
positions on the issues will be described and discussed, and attendees 
will have the opportunity to pose questions and offer comments. 
Comments may be sent to the FSIS Docket Room (see ADDRESSES). In 
addition, they may be sent electronically to the U.S. Delegate (see 
ADDRESSES). Please state that your comments relate to CCNFSDU 
activities and specify which issues your comments address.

Additional Public Notification

    Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy 
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to better ensure 
that minorities, women, and persons with disabilities are aware of this 
notice, FSIS will announce it and make copies of this Federal Register 
publication available through the FSIS Constituent Update. FSIS 
provides a weekly Constituent Update, which is communicated via 
Listserv, a free e-mail subscription service. 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 Listserv 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 the Listserv and web page, FSIS is able to provide 
information to a much broader, more diverse audience.
    For more information contact the Congressional and Public Affairs 
Office, at (202) 720-9113. To be added to the free e-mail subscription 
service (Listserv) go to the ``Constituent Update'' page on the FSIS 
Web site at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/oa/update/update.htm. Click on the 
``Subscribe to the Constituent Update Listserv'' link, then fill out 
and submit the form.

    Done at Washington, DC on: May 24, 2002.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 02-13526 Filed 5-29-02; 8:45 am]
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