[Federal Register Volume 72, Number 29 (Tuesday, February 13, 2007)]
[Notices]
[Pages 6710-6712]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E7-2438]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2007-0002]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Contaminants in Foods

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), and the Food and Drug Administration 
(FDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring a 
public meeting on March 8, 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 First 
Session of the Codex Committee on Contaminants in Foods (CCCF) of the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Beijing, 
China, on April 16-20, 2007. The Under Secretary for Food Safety and 
FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the 
opportunity to obtain background information on the 1st Session of CCCF 
and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 8, 2007 from 
1 p.m. to 3 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the auditorium (Room 
1A003), Harvey W. Wiley Federal Building, FDA, Center for Food Safety 
and Applied Nutrition, 5100 Paint Branch Highway, College Park MD 
20740. Documents related to the 1st Session of CCCF will be accessible 
via the World Wide Web at the following address:

[[Page 6711]]

http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.
    The U.S. Delegate to the CCCF, Dr. Nega Beru, invites U.S. 
interested parties to submit their comments electronically to the 
following e-mail address: [email protected].
    Registration: You may also register electronically to the same e-
mail address above. Early registration is encouraged because it will 
expedite entry into the building and its parking area. If you require 
parking, please include the vehicle make and tag number, if known, when 
you register. Because the meeting will be held in a Federal building, 
you should also bring a photo identification (ID) and plan for adequate 
time to pass through security screening systems.

For Further Information About The 1st Session Of The CCCF Contact: Nega 
Beru, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, FDA, 5100 Paint 
Branch Pkwy., College Park, MD 20740, 301-436-1731, e-mail: 
[email protected].

For Further Information About The Public Meeting Contact: Ellen Matten, 
International Issues Analyst, U.S. Codex Office, Food Safety and 
Inspection Service , Room 4861, South building, 1400 Independence Ave 
SW., Washington, DC 20250. Phone (202) 205-7760, Fax: (202) 720-3157.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The Codex Alimentarius (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 Contaminants in Foods was established by the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission in 2006 when the Codex Committee on Food 
Additives and Contaminants was split. It was established to set or 
endorse permitted maximum levels or guideline levels for contaminants 
and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed; to prepare priority 
lists of contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants for risk 
assessment by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives; to 
consider methods of analysis and sampling for the determination of 
contaminants and naturally occurring toxicants in food and feed; to 
consider and elaborate standards or codes of practice for related 
subjects; and to consider other matters assigned to it by the 
Commission in relation to contaminants and naturally occurring 
toxicants in food and feed. The Committee is hosted by the Netherlands.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the Agenda for the 1st Session of the CCCF 
will be discussed during the public meeting:
     Matters Referred to the Committee from other Codex bodies.
     Matters of Interest arising from FAO/WHO.
     Endorsement/Revision of Maximum Levels for Contaminants in 
Codex Standards.
     Consideration of the Codex General Standard for 
Contaminants and Toxins in Foods.
     Proposed Draft Levels for Total Aflatoxins in Almonds, 
Hazelnuts and Pistachios ``for further processing'' and ``ready-to-
eat''.
     Proposed draft Sampling Plan for Aflatoxin contamination 
in Almonds, Brazil nuts, Hazelnuts and Pistachios.
     Discussion paper on Maximum Levels in ``ready-to-eat'' 
almonds, hazelnuts and pistachios.
     Discussion paper on Aflatoxin contamination in Brazil 
nuts.
     Discussion paper on Deoxynivalenol (DON).
     Proposed Draft Code of Practice for the Prevention and 
Control of Ochratoxin A Contamination in Wine.
     Discussion paper on Ochratoxin A in Coffee.
     Discussion paper on Ochratoxin A in Cocoa.
     Discussion paper on Aflatoxins in dried figs.
     Proposed draft Maximum Levels for Tin in Canned Foods 
(other than beverages) and in Canned Beverages.
     Proposed draft Maximum Level for 3-MCPD in Liquid 
Condiments containing acid-HVP (excluding naturally fermented soya 
sauce).
     Proposed draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of 
Chloropropanols during the Production of acid-Hydrolysed Vegetable 
Proteins (HVPs) and Products that contain acid-HVPs.
     Proposed Draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of 
Acrylamide in Food.
     Proposed Draft Code of Practice for the Reduction of 
Contamination of foods with PAH from Smoking and Direct Drying.
     Priority List of Contaminants and Naturally Occurring 
Toxicants Proposed for Evaluation by JECFA.
    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 1st Session Of The Cccf Contact).

Public Meeting

    At the March 8, 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 CCCF, 
Dr. Nega Beru (see ADDRESSES). Written comments should state that they 
relate to activities of the 1st Session of CCCF.

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.


[[Page 6712]]


    Done at Washington, DC, on February 8, 2007.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. E7-2438 Filed 2-12-07; 8:45 am]
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