[Federal Register Volume 70, Number 49 (Tuesday, March 15, 2005)]
[Notices]
[Pages 12646-12647]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 05-4995]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. 05-002N]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: 22nd Session of the Codex 
Committee on General Principles

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting; request for Comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, United 
States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA), United States Department of Health and Human 
Services, are sponsoring a public meeting on March 29, 2005, to provide 
draft U.S. positions and receive public comments on agenda items that 
will be discussed at the 22nd Session of the Codex Committee on General 
Principles (CCGP) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex). The 
22nd Session of the CCGP will be held in Paris, France, April 11-15, 
2005. The Under Secretary of USDA and FDA recognize the importance of 
providing interested parties with the opportunity to comment on the 
agenda items that will be debated at this forthcoming session of the 
CCGP.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, March 29, 2005, 
from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the USDA South Building 
Cafeteria (rear), 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC.
    Documents related to the 22nd Session of the CCGP will be 
accessible via the World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.
    FSIS invites interested persons to submit comments on this notice. 
Comments may be submitted by any of the following methods:
     Mail, including floppy disks or CD-ROMs, and hand -or 
courier-delivered items: Send to the FSIS Docket Clerk, U.S. Department 
of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, 300 12th Street, 
SW., Room 102, Cotton Annex, Washington D.C. 20730. All Comments 
received must include the Agency name and docket number 05-002N.
    All comments submitted in response to this notice, will be 
available for public inspection in the FSIS Docket Room at the address 
listed above between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. 
The comments also will be posted on the Agency's Web site at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/2005_Notices_Index/.
    Participation by Conference Call: A call-in number has been 
arranged: 1-800-369-1941; the pass code is CODEX.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: About the 22nd Session of the CCGP: 
U.S. Delegate, F. Edward Scarbrough, Ph.D., U.S. Manager for Codex, 
FSIS, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250, 
telephone: (202) 205-7760; facsimile: (202) 720-3157. Electronic mail: 
[email protected].
    About the Public Meeting Contact: Ellen Matten, International 
Issues Analyst, U.S. Codex Office, FSIS, Room 4861, South Building, 
1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250, telephone: (202) 
205-7760; facsimile: (202) 720-3157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Codex Alimentarius (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 protecting the health and economic 
interests of consumers and encouraging fair international trade in 
food. 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. In the United States, USDA, FDA, and the 
Environmental Protection Agency manage and carry out U.S. Codex 
activities.
    The Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP) deals with rules 
and procedures referred to it by the Codex Alimentarius Commission, 
including the establishment of principles that define the purpose and 
scope of the Codex Alimentarius and the nature of Codex standards. The 
development of mechanisms to address any economic impact statements 
also is the responsibility of the CCGP. The CCGP is chaired by France.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the agenda for the 22nd Session of CCGP will 
be discussed during the public meeting:
     Matters referred by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and 
other Codex Committees.
     Proposed Draft Working Principles for Risk Analysis for 
Food Safety.
     Proposed Draft Revised Code of Ethics for International 
Trade in Foods.
     Proposed Amendments to the Procedural Manual: Acceptance 
of Codex Standards.
     Revision of the definition of the term ``food''.
     Consideration of the structure and presentation of the 
Procedural Manual.
     Clarification of the duration of the term of the Members 
of the Executive Committee.
    Each issue will be fully described in documents distributed, or to 
be distributed, by the French Secretariat to

[[Page 12647]]

the meeting. Members of the public may access or request copies of 
these documents (see ADDRESSES).

Public Meeting

    At the March 29, 2005, public meeting, draft U.S. positions on 
these agenda items will be described, discussed, and attendees will 
have the opportunity to pose questions and offer comments. Written 
comments may be offered at the meeting or sent to the delegate. Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 22nd 
Session of the CCGP.

Additional Public Notification

    Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy 
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to ensure that the 
public and, in particular, minorities, women, and persons with 
disabilities are aware of this notice, FSIS will announce it on-line 
through the FSIS Web page located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/2005_Notices_Index/.
    FSIS also will make copies of this Federal Register publication 
available through the FSIS Constituent Update, which is used to provide 
information regarding FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal 
Register notices, FSIS public meetings, recalls, and other types of 
information that could affect or would be of interest to our 
constituents and stakeholders. The update is communicated via Listserv, 
a free electronic mail subscription service for industry, trade, and 
farm groups, consumer interest groups, allied health professionals, 
scientific professionals, and other individuals who have requested to 
be included. The update is available on the FSIS Web page. Through 
Listserv and the Web page, FSIS is able to provide information to a 
much broader, more diverse audience.
    In addition, FSIS offers an electronic mail subscription service 
which provides an automatic and customized notification when popular 
pages are updated, including Federal Register publications and related 
documents. This service is available at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/news_and_events/email_subscription/ and allows FSIS customers to sign up 
for subscription options across eight categories. Options range from 
recalls to export information to regulations, directives, and notices.
    Customers can add or delete subscriptions themselves and have the 
option to protect their accounts with passwords.

    Done in Washington, DC, on March 9, 2005.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 05-4995 Filed 3-14-05; 8:45 am]
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