[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 246 (Monday, December 23, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 78217-78218]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-32242]


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 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
 appearing in this section.
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  Federal Register / Vol. 67, No. 246 / Monday, December 23, 2002 / 
Notices  

[[Page 78217]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. 02-042N]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Thirty-fifth Session of the Codex 
Committee on Food Hygiene

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, 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), and the Food and Drug Administration 
(FDA), of the Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring a 
public meeting on January 8, 2003, to present and receive comment on 
draft United States positions on all issues coming before the Thirty-
fifth Session of the Codex Committee on Food Hygiene (CCFH), which will 
be held in Orlando, Florida, January 27-February 1, 2003.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, January 8, 2003, 
from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Harvey Wiley Federal 
Building, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, College Park, MD, 20740, in 
Conference Room 1A003. To receive copies of the documents relevant to 
this notice, contact the Food Safety and Inspection Service (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/codexalimentarius.net. Send comments, (an original and two copies) to 
the FSIS Docket Clerk and reference Docket 02-042N. 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.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Syed A. Ali, International Issues 
Analyst, U.S. Codex Office, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Room 
4861, South Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 
20250-3700, Telephone (202) 205-7760, Fax (202) 720-3157. Persons 
requiring a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations 
should notify Mr. Ali at the above numbers.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Codex Alimentarius Commission (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 was established 
to draft basic provisions on food hygiene for all foods. The Government 
of the United States hosts this Committee and will chair the Committee 
meeting.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following specific issues will be discussed during the public 
meeting:
    1. Matters Referred by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and/or 
Other Codex Committees to the Food Hygiene Committee.
    2. Endorsement of Hygiene Provisions in the Codex Standards and 
Codes of Practice:
    [sbull] Code of Practice for Fish and Fish Products at Step 8.
    [sbull] Section on Processing of Frozen Surimi at Step 5/8.
    3. Draft Revised Guidelines for the Application of HACCP Systems at 
Step 7.
    4. Consideration of the Obstacles to the Application of HACCP, 
Particularly in Small and Less Developed Businesses and Approaches to 
Overcome Them.
    5. Reports of the ad hoc Expert Consultations on Risk Assessment of 
Microbiological Hazards in Food and Related Matters.
    6. Discussion Paper on Risk Management Strategies for Salmonella 
spp. In Poultry.
    7. Discussion Paper on Risk Management Strategies for Vibrio spp.
    8. Risk Profile for Enterohemorragic E. coli Including the 
Identification of the Commodities of Concern, Including Sprouts, Ground 
Beef and Pork.
    9. Proposed Draft Process by which the Committee on Food Hygiene 
Could Undertake its Work in Microbiological Risk Assessment/Risk 
Management.
    10. Proposed Draft Principles and Guidelines for the Conduct of 
Microbiological Risk Management at Step 4.
    11. Proposed Draft Guidelines for the Control of Listeria 
monocytogenes in Foods at Step 4.
    12. Proposed Draft Code of Hygienic Practice for Milk and Milk 
Products at Step 4.
    13. Proposed Draft Revision of the Code of Hygienic Practice for 
Egg Products (CAC/RCP 30-1983) at Step 4.
    14. Proposed Draft Guidelines for the Validation of Food Hygiene 
Control Measures at Step 4.
    15. Risk analysis in the Elaboration of Codex Standards and Codes.

Additional Public Notification

    Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy 
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to 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 FSIS Constituent Update. FSIS provides a 
weekly FSIS 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

[[Page 78218]]

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.


F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 02-32242 Filed 12-20-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P