[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6708-6709]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2436]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2007-0004]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
General Principles

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, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture (USDA), is sponsoring a public meeting on 
March 7, 2007. 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-fourth 
Session of the Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP) of the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Paris, 
France, April 2-6, 2007. The Under Secretary for Food Safety recognizes 
the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to 
obtain background information on the 24th Session of CCGP and to 
address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, March 7, 2007, 1-
4 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in Room 107-A, Jamie L. 
Whitten Building, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 
20250. Documents related to the 24th Session of CCGP will be accessible 
via the World Wide Web at the following address: http://

[[Page 6709]]

www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.
    The U.S. Delegate to the 24th Session of CCGP, F. Edward 
Scarbrough, Ph.D., U.S. Codex Office, Food Safety and Inspection 
Service, USDA, invites U.S. interested parties to submit their comments 
electronically to the following e-mail address [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE 24TH SESSION OF THE CCGP CONTACT:  F. 
Edward Scarbrough, Ph.D., U.S. Manager for Codex, Tel: (202) 720-2057, 
Fax: (202) 720-3157; E-mail: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION ABOUT THE PUBLIC MEETING CONTACT:  Jasmine 
Matthews, Program Analyst, U.S. Codex Office, Tel: (202) 205-7760, Fax: 
(202) 720-3157, E-mail: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) was established in 1963 
by two United Nations organizations, the Food and Agriculture 
Organization and the World Health Organization. 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 protect the health of consumers and ensure 
that fair practices are used in trade.
    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 which 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 is 
also the responsibility of the CCGP. The Committee is hosted by the 
Government of France.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the Agenda for the 24th Session of the CCGP 
will be discussed during the public meeting:
     Proposed Draft Working Principles for Risk Analysis for 
Food Safety.
     Proposed Draft Revised Code of Ethics for International 
Trade in Foods.
     Respective roles of the Regional Coordinators and the 
Members of the Executive Committee elected on a geographic basis.
    [cir] Designation of the Chairperson of the Coordinating Committee 
by the Regional Coordinator.
    [cir] Respective roles of the Coordinator and the Member elected on 
a geographical basis in the Executive Committee.
     Review of the Procedures for the Elaboration of Codex 
Standards and Related Texts.
    [cir] Proposed amendments to the Procedures.
    [cir] Guide to the Procedure for the Revision and Amendment of 
Codex Standards; and Arrangements for the Amendment of Codex Standards 
Elaborated by Codex Committees which have adjourned sine die.
     Review of the General Principles of the Codex 
Alimentarius.
     Proposed new definitions of risk analysis terms related to 
food safety.
     Consideration of the Structure and Presentation of the 
Procedural Manual.
    Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed, 
or to be distributed, by the Secretariat prior to the Meeting. Members 
of the public may access or request copies of these documents (see For 
Further Information About the 24th Session of the CCGP Contact).

Public Meeting

    At the March 7, 2007 public meeting, draft U.S. positions on the 
agenda items will be described and 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 24th 
Session of the CCGP, F. Edward Scarbrough (see ADDRESSES). Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 24th 
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 
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/2007_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 e-mail subscription service which 
provides automatic and customized access to selected food safety news 
and information. This service is available at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/news_and_events/email_subscription/. Options range from recalls to 
export information to regulations, directives and notices. Customers 
can add or delete subscriptions themselves and have the option to 
password protect their account.

    Done at Washington, DC, on February 8, 2007.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
 [FR Doc. E7-2436 Filed 2-12-07; 8:45 am]
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