[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 75 (Wednesday, April 19, 2006)]
[Notices]
[Pages 20069-20070]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-5861]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2006-0010]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Methods of Analysis and Sampling

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, United 
States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services 
(HHS), are sponsoring a public meeting on May 9, 2006. 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 Twenty-seventh Session of the Codex Committee on 
Methods of Analysis and Sampling (CCMAS) of the Codex Alimentarius 
Commission (Codex), which will be held in Budapest, Hungary, May 15-19, 
2006. The Under Secretary and FDA recognize the importance of providing 
interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on 
the 27th Session of CCMAS and to address issues on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 9, 2006 from 
10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Conference Room 1A 
002, Harvey W. Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, 
College Park, MD. Documents related to the 27th Session of CCMAS will 
be accessible via the World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.
    The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) invites interested 
persons to submit comments on this notice. Comments may be submitted by 
any of the following methods:
    Federal eRulemaking Portal: This Web site provides the ability to 
type short comments directly into the comment field on this Web page or 
attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to http://www.regulations.gov 
and, in the ``Search for Open Regulations'' box, select ``Food Safety 
and Inspection Service'' from the agency drop-down menu, then click on 
``Submit.'' In the Docket ID column, select the FDMS Docket Number 
FSIS-2006-0010 to submit or view public comments and to view supporting 
and related materials available electronically.
    Mail, including floppy disks or CD-ROM's, and hand-or courier-
delivered items: Send to FSIS Docket Room, Docket Clerk, USDA, Food 
Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), 300 12th Street, SW., Room 102, 
Cotton Annex Building, Washington, DC 20250.
    Electronic mail: [email protected].
    All submissions received must include the Agency name and docket 
number FSIS-2006-0010.
    All comments submitted in response to this notice, as well as 
research and background information used by FSIS in developing this 
document, will be posted to the regulations.gov Web site. The 
background information and comments also 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.
    In addition to submitting comments by mail to the above address, 
the U.S. Delegate to the CCMAS, Dr. Gregory Diachenko of the Food and 
Drug Administration, invites U.S. interested parties to submit their 
comments electronically to the following e-mail address 
([email protected]).
    Pre-Registration: To gain admittance to this meeting, individuals 
must present a photo ID for identification and also are required to 
pre-register. In addition, no cameras or videotaping equipment will be 
permitted in the meeting room. To pre-register, please

[[Page 20070]]

send the following information to this e-mail address 
([email protected]) by May 4, 2006:

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

     For Further Information About the 27th Session of the CCMAS 
Contact: U.S. Delegate, Dr. Gregory Diachenko, Director, Division of 
Chemistry Research and Environmental Review, Center for Food Safety and 
Applied Nutrition, FDA, Harvey Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint 
Branch Parkway, College Park, Maryland 20740. Phone (301) 436-1898; Fax 
(301) 436-2634, E-mail: [email protected].
    For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: Syed 
Amjad Ali, International Issues Analyst, U.S. Codex Office, FSIS, Room 
4861, South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., 
Washington, DC 20250-3700. Phone (202) 205-7760; Fax (202) 720-3157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) was established in 1963 
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 Methods of Analysis and Sampling was 
established to perform multiple functions; defines criteria appropriate 
for Codex Methods of Analysis and Sampling; specifies reference methods 
of analysis and sampling; endorses methods of analysis and sampling 
proposed by Codex Committees; elaborates sampling plans; and considers 
specific sampling and analysis problems. The Committee is chaired by 
Hungary.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the agenda for the 27th Session of CCMAS 
will be discussed during the public meeting:
     Matters referred by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and 
other Codex Committees
     Proposed Draft Guidelines for Evaluating Acceptable 
Methods of Analysis
     Proposed Draft Guidelines for Settling Disputes on 
Analytical (Test) Results
     Recommendation for a Checklist of Information
     Further Review of Analytical Terminology for Codex Use 
(For inclusion in the Procedural Manual)
     Criteria for Methods of Detection and Identification of 
Foods Derived from Biotechnology
     Conversion of the Methods for Trace Elements into Criteria
     Methods of analysis for dioxins and PCBs
    Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed, 
or to be distributed, by the Hungarian Secretariat prior to the 
meeting. Members of the public may access copies of these documents via 
the World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.

Public Meeting

    At the May 9, 2006 public meeting, 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 U.S. Delegate for the 27th Session of the CCMAS, 
Dr. Gregory Diachenko (See For Further Information About the 27TH 
Session of the CCMAS Contact). Written comments should state that they 
relate to activities of the 27th Session of the CCMAS.

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 on-line through the FSIS Web Page located 
at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/2006_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 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 and other 
individuals who have asked to be included. The update is available on 
the FSIS Web page. Through the Listserv and web page, FSIS is able to 
provide information to a much broader and more diverse audience. In 
addition, FSIS offers an electronic mail subscription service that 
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-FAIM customers to sign 
up for subscription options in 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 at Washington, DC on: April 14, 2006.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. E6-5861 Filed 4-18-06; 8:45 am]
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