[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 176 (Monday, September 12, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 56143-56144]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-23173]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2011-0016]


National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: This notice is announcing that the National Advisory Committee 
on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) will hold public 
meetings of the full Committee and subcommittees on September 27-30, 
2011. The Committee will discuss: (1) Control strategies for reducing 
foodborne Norovirus infections, and (2) Study of microbiological 
criteria as indicators of process control or insanitary conditions.

DATES: The full Committee will hold an open meeting on Friday, 
September 30, 2011, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The Subcommittee on control 
strategies for reducing foodborne Norovirus infections and the 
Subcommittee on study of microbiological criteria as indicators of 
process control or insanitary conditions will hold concurrent open 
meetings on Tuesday, September 27, Wednesday, September 28, and 
Thursday, September 29, 2011, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The September 27-29, 2011, subcommittee meetings will be 
held at the Patriot's Plaza 3, 9th Floor OPHS Conference Rooms, 355 E 
Street, SW., Washington, DC 20024. The September 30, 2011, full 
Committee meeting will be held in the conference room at the south end 
of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) cafeteria located in the 
South Building, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250. 
All documents related to the full Committee meeting will be available 
for public inspection in the FSIS Docket Room, USDA, 1400 Independence 
Avenue, SW., Patriots Plaza 3, Mailstop 3782, Room 163A, Washington, DC 
20250-3700, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, as 
soon as they become available. The NACMCF documents will also be 
available on the Internet at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Regulations_&_Policies/Federal_Register_Notices/index.asp.
    FSIS will finalize an agenda on or before the meeting dates and 
post it on the FSIS Web page at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/News/Meetings_&_Events/. Please note that the meeting agenda is subject to 
change due to the time required for Committee discussions; thus, 
sessions could start or end earlier

[[Page 56144]]

or later than anticipated. Please plan accordingly if you would like to 
attend a particular session or participate in a public comment period.
    Also, the official transcript of the September 30, 2011, full 
Committee meeting, when it becomes available, will be kept in the FSIS 
Docket Room at the above address and will also be posted on http://www.fsis.usda.gov/About/NACMCF_Meetings/.
    The mailing address for the contact person is: Karen Thomas-Sharp, 
USDA, FSIS, Office of Public Health Science, Stop 3777, PP 3, 
47, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20250.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Persons interested in making a 
presentation, submitting technical papers, or providing comments at the 
September 30, plenary session should contact Karen Thomas-Sharp, phone 
(202) 690-6620, fax (202) 690-6334, e-mail: [email protected] or at the mailing address above. Persons requiring 
a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations should 
notify Mrs. Thomas-Sharp by September 15, 2011.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The NACMCF was established in 1988, in response to a recommendation 
of the National Academy of Sciences for an interagency approach to 
microbiological criteria for foods, and in response to a recommendation 
of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, as 
expressed in the Rural Development, Agriculture, and Related Agencies 
Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 1988. The charter for the NACMCF is 
available for viewing on the FSIS Internet Web page at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/About/NACMCF_Charter/.
    The NACMCF provides scientific advice and recommendations to the 
Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
on public health issues relative to the safety and wholesomeness of the 
U.S. food supply, including development of microbiological criteria and 
review and evaluation of epidemiological and risk assessment data and 
methodologies for assessing microbiological hazards in foods. The 
Committee also provides scientific advice and recommendations to the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Departments of 
Commerce and Defense.
    Dr. Elisabeth A. Hagen, Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA, is 
the Committee Chair; Mr. Michael Landa, Acting Director of the Food and 
Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition 
(CFSAN), is the Vice-Chair; and Ms. Gerri Ransom, FSIS, is the 
Executive Secretary.
    At the subcommittee meetings the week of September 27-29, 2011, the 
groups will discuss:
     Control strategies for reducing foodborne Norovirus 
infections, and
     Study of microbiological criteria as indicators of process 
control or insanitary conditions.

Documents Reviewed by NACMCF

    FSIS intends to make available to the public all materials that are 
reviewed and considered by NACMCF regarding its deliberations. 
Generally, these materials will be made available as soon as possible 
after the full Committee meeting. Further, FSIS intends to make these 
materials available in electronic format on the FSIS Web page (http://www.fsis.usda.gov), as well as in hard copy format in the FSIS Docket 
Room. Often, an attempt is made to make the materials available at the 
start of the full Committee meeting when sufficient time is allowed in 
advance to do so.
    Disclaimer: NACMCF documents and comments posted on the FSIS Web 
site are electronic conversions from a variety of source formats. In 
some cases, document conversion may result in character translation or 
formatting errors. The original document is the official, legal copy.
    In order to meet the electronic and information technology 
accessibility standards in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, 
NACMCF may add alternate text descriptors for non-text elements 
(graphs, charts, tables, multimedia, etc.). These modifications only 
affect the online copies of the documents.
    Copyrighted documents will not be posted on the FSIS Web site, but 
will be available for inspection in the FSIS Docket Room.

USDA Nondiscrimination Statement

    USDA prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on 
the basis of race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, 
disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or 
family status (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs).
    Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for 
communication of program information (Braille, large print, and 
audiotape) should contact USDA's Target Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice 
and TTY).
    To file a written complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Office 
of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, 
SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TTY). 
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

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 online through the FSIS Web page located 
at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations_&_policies/Federal_
Register_Notices/index.asp.
    FSIS will also 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, 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 groups, 
consumer interest groups, health professionals, and other individuals 
who have asked to be included. The Update is also 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 which provides 
automatic and customized access to selected food safety news and 
information. This service is available at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/News_&_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 accounts.

    Done at Washington, DC on September 2, 2011.
Alfred V. Almanza,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2011-23173 Filed 9-9-11; 8:45 am]
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