[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 1 (Wednesday, January 2, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 83-84]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2012-31554]


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 Notices
                                                 Federal Register
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 This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains documents other than rules 
 or proposed rules that are applicable to the public. Notices of hearings 
 and investigations, committee meetings, agency decisions and rulings, 
 delegations of authority, filing of petitions and applications and agency 
 statements of organization and functions are examples of documents 
 appearing in this section.
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  Federal Register / Vol. 78, No. 1 / Wednesday, January 2, 2013 / 
Notices  

[[Page 83]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2012-0053]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS)

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), Food Safety and Inspection Service 
(FSIS), is sponsoring a public meeting on January 24, 2013. The 
objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive 
public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) 
positions that will be discussed at the 20th Session of the Codex 
Committee on Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification 
Systems (CCFICS) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which 
will be held in Chiang Mai, Thailand, February 18-22, 2013. The Under 
Secretary for Food Safety recognizes the importance of providing 
interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on 
the 20th Session of the CCFICS and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, January 24, 2013, 
from 2:00-4:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in the Jamie L. Whitten 
Building, USDA, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 107-A, Washington, 
DC 20250. Documents related to the 20th Session of the CCFICS will be 
accessible via the World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.org/meetings-reports/en.
    Mary Stanley, U.S. Delegate to the 20th Session of the CCFICS 
invites U.S. interested parties to submit their comments electronically 
to the following email address [email protected].
    Call-In Number:
    If you wish to participate in the public meeting for the 20th 
Session of the CCFICS by conference call, please use the call in number 
and participant code listed below.
    Call-in Number: 1-888-858-2144
    Participant Code: 6208658
    For Further Information About the 20th Session of the CCFICS 
Contact: Mary Stanley, Director, International Policy Division, Office 
of Policy and Program Development, FSIS, USDA, Room 2925, South 
Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 
20250, Phone: (202) 720-0287, Fax: (202) 720-4929, Email: 
[email protected].
    For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: Kenneth 
Lowery, U.S. Codex Office, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 4861, 
Washington, DC 20250, Phone: (202) 690-4042, Fax: (202) 720-3157, 
Email: [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    Codex was established in 1963 by two United Nations organizations, 
the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Health 
Organization (WHO). 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 fair practices in the 
food trade.
    The CCFICS Committee is responsible for
    (a) Developing principles and guidelines for food import and export 
inspection and certification systems with a view to harmonizing methods 
and procedures which protect the health of consumers, ensure fair 
trading practices, and facilitate international trade in foodstuffs
    (b) Developing principles and guidelines for the application of 
measures by the competent authorities of exporting and importing 
countries to provide assurance where necessary that foodstuffs comply 
with requirements, especially statutory health requirements
    (c) Developing guidelines for the utilization, as and when 
appropriate, of quality assurance systems to ensure that foodstuffs 
conform with requirements and promoting the recognition of these 
systems in facilitating trade in food products under bilateral/
multilateral arrangements by countries
    (d) Developing guidelines and criteria with respect to format, 
declarations and language of such official certificates as countries 
may require with a view towards international harmonization
    (e) Making recommendations for information exchange in relation to 
food import/export control
    (f) Consulting as necessary with other international groups working 
on matters related to food inspection and certification systems
    (g) Considering other matters assigned to it by Codex in relation 
to food inspection and certification systems
    The Committee is hosted by Australia.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the agenda for the 20th Session of the 
CCFICS will be discussed during the public meeting:
     Matters referred to the CCFICS by Codex and other Codex 
Committees and Task Forces
     Activities of the FAO and WHO relevant to the work of the 
CCFICS
     Activities of other international organizations relevant 
to the work of the CCFICS
     Draft and proposed draft principles and guidelines for 
national food control systems
     Discussion paper on burden of multiple questionnaires 
directed at exporting countries
     Discussion paper on monitoring regulatory performance of 
national food control systems
     Discussion paper on the need for further guidance on food 
safety emergencies and on the analysis of proposed change to the CCFICS 
texts on emergencies and rejections to address feed
     Other business and future work
    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 copies of these documents (see ADDRESSES).

[[Page 84]]

Public Meeting

    At the January 24, 2013, 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 Mary Stanley, U.S. 
Delegate for the 20th Session of the CCFICS (see ADDRESSES). Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 20th 
Session of the CCFICS.

Additional Public Notification

    FSIS will announce this notice 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. 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.

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, or 
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.

    Done at Washington, DC on: December 21, 2012.
MaryFrances Lowe,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2012-31554 Filed 12-31-12; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P