[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 28 (Friday, February 11, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7224-7225]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-2731]
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Notices
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
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. 70, No. 28 / Friday, February 11, 2005 /
Notices
[[Page 7224]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
[No.: TM-05-1]
Notice of Meeting of the National Organic Standards Board
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as
amended, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing a
forthcoming meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB).
DATES: The meeting dates are: Monday, February 28, 2005, 2 p.m. to 5:30
p.m., Tuesday, March 1, 2005, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., Wednesday, March 2,
2005, 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Thursday, March 3, 2005, 8 a.m. to 12:15
p.m. Requests from individuals and organizations wishing to make an
oral presentation at the meeting are due by the close of business on
February 11, 2005.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place at the Washington Terrace Hotel,
1515 Rhode Island Avenue, NW., Washington, DC. Requests for copies of
the NOSB meeting agenda, requests to make an oral presentation at the
meeting, or written comments may be sent to Ms. Francine Torres at
USDA-AMS-TMD-NOP, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Room 4008-So., Ag Stop
0268, Washington, DC 20250-0200. Requests to make an oral presentation
at the meeting may also be sent via facsimile to Ms. Francine Torres at
(202) 205'7808 or electronically to Ms. Francine Torres at
[email protected].
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Mathews, Associate Deputy
Administrator, National Organic Program, (202) 720-3252.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 2119 (7 U.S.C. 6518) of the Organic
Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA), as amended (7 U.S.C. Section 6501
et seq.) requires the establishment of the NOSB. The purpose of the
NOSB is to make recommendations about whether a substance should be
allowed or prohibited in organic production or handling, to assist in
the development of standards for substances to be used in organic
production, and to advise the Secretary on other aspects of the
implementation of the OFPA. The NOSB met for the first time in
Washington, DC, in March 1992, and currently has six committees working
on various aspects of the organic program. The committees are:
Compliance, Accreditation, and Certification; Crops; Livestock;
Materials; Handling; and Policy Development.
In August of 1994, the NOSB provided its initial recommendations
for the National Organic Program (NOP) to the Secretary of Agriculture.
Since that time, the NOSB has submitted 53 addenda to its
recommendations and reviewed more than 264 substances for inclusion on
the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances. The last
meeting of the NOSB was held on October 12-14, 2004, in Washington, DC.
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) published its final National
Organic Program regulation in the Federal Register on December 21, 2000
(65 FR 80548). The rule became effective April 21, 2001.
The principal purposes of the meeting are to provide an opportunity
for the NOSB to receive an update from the USDA/NOP and hear progress
reports from NOSB committees regarding work plan items and proposed
actions. The NOSB will receive an update from the Association of
American Plant Food Control Officials (AAPFCO) concerning its recent
labeling committee meeting and discuss actions items concerning the
formation of the NOSB Aquatic Animal Task Force and Pet Food Task
Force. The NOSB will also review materials to determine if they should
be included on the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances.
The Accreditation, Certification, and Compliance Committee will
discuss how to operationalize the peer review of NOP's accreditation
program. It will present, for NOSB consideration, its recommendation to
expand the information contained on certificates of organic operations
and provide support for the development of an NOP electronic data
management system. The Livestock Committee will discuss issues
involving the formation of an Aquatic Animal Task Force. It will
discuss priorities for sunset review of livestock substances, a rule
change for dairy replacement (based on an existing NOSB
recommendation), and a rule change for apiculture standards (based on
an existing NOSB recommendation). The committee will present a
recommendation that addresses options for adding livestock substances,
already reviewed and approved by NOSB, to the National List. It will
consider restrictions on the use of certain forms of proteinated
chelates as livestock feed supplements. The committee will also address
issues regarding a petition requesting an extension for the use of DL-
Methionine in poultry production and discuss the use and labeling of
calcium carbonate as an allowed feed supplement. The Livestock
Committee will submit a draft guidance document for NOSB consideration
on the requirements for access to pasture for ruminants.
The Policy Development Committee will discuss the duties of an
Executive Director for the NOSB and factors to be considered for
temporary research variances. The committee will present, for NOSB
consideration, its recommendation concerning the adoption of the NOP
collaboration policy document and changes to the Board Policies and
Procedures Manual. The committee will also present its recommendation
for soliciting USDA support for ensuring consistent use of the word
``organic'' on AAPFCO regulated fertilizer labels. Finally, the
committee will submit, for NOSB consideration, a guidance document
regarding the use of organic and non-organic forms of the same
ingredient in products labeled, ``made with organic ingredients''. The
Handling Committee will discuss the priorities for the sunset review of
natural substances contained on the National List. The committee will
report on its work for determining when a product is agricultural
versus nonagricultural. The Handling Committee will also present, for
NOSB consideration, its recommendation on the following draft guidance
documents: (1) The status of albumen for use in the
[[Page 7225]]
clarification process of organic wine-making; (2) the calculation of
percent organic ingredients for the manufacture of organic tea; (3) the
status of bitter orange as a natural processing aid used in or on
organic processed products; and (4) the organic certification of retail
food establishments.
The Materials Committee will discuss plans for identifying and
prioritizing substances for sunset review. The committee will present
recommended action plans for (1) establishing internal procedures for
NOSB sunset review of substances on the National List; (2) determining
synthetic vs. non-synthetic substances; and (3) determining the impact
of various extraction methods on substances reviewed by the NOSB for
placement on the National List. The committee will also recommend, for
NOSB consideration, the revised material review procedures developed by
the NOP and Materials Committee. The Crops Committee will discuss
priorities for the sunset review of substances used in organic crop
production. It will also discuss the development of draft hydroponic
production standards. The Crops Committee will submit, for NOSB
consideration, draft guidance regarding the use of compost and compost
tea and the use of waxed boxes used for organic production. The
committee will submit revisions to the ``natural resource'' sections of
the NOSB organic farm plan, to better address biodiversity and natural
resource preservation requirements. The committee will also submit
guidance on the assessment of commercial availability and equivalent
varieties of organic seeds.
Materials to be reviewed at the meeting by the NOSB are as follows:
for Crop Production: Soy Protein Isolate, Ammonium Bicarbonate, and
Ferric Phosphate.
For further information, see http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop. Copies of
the NOSB meeting agenda can be requested from Ms. Francine Torres by
telephone at (202) 720-3252; or by accessing the NOP Web site at http:/
/www.ams.usda.gov/nop.
The meeting is open to the public. The NOSB has scheduled time for
public input on Tuesday, March 1, 2005, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m.; and
Thursday, March 3, 2005, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Individuals and
organizations wishing to make an oral presentation at the meeting may
forward their request by mail, facsimile, or e-mail to Ms. Francine
Torres at addresses listed in ADDRESSES above. While persons wishing to
make a presentation may sign up at the door, advance registration will
ensure that a person has the opportunity to speak during the allotted
time period and will help the NOSB to better manage the meeting and to
accomplish its agenda. Individuals or organizations will be given
approximately 5 minutes to present their views. All persons making an
oral presentation are requested to provide their comments in writing.
Written submissions may contain information other than that presented
at the oral presentation.
Written comments may also be submitted at the meeting. Persons
submitting written comments at the meeting are asked to provide 30
copies.
Interested persons may visit the NOSB portion of the NOP Web site
http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop to view available documents prior to the
meeting. Approximately 6 weeks following the meeting interested persons
will be able to visit the NOSB portion of the NOP Web site to view
documents from the meeting.
Dated: February 8, 2005.
Kenneth C. Clayton,
Acting Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 05-2731 Filed 2-8-05; 2:41 pm]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P