[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 216 (Friday, November 7, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 66351-66353]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2014-26517]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2014-0037]


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 a meeting of 
the

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full Committee by an audio conference call that is open to the public 
on November 17, 2014. The Committee will continue its discussions on 
(1) microbiological criteria as indicators of poor process control or 
insanitary conditions, and (2) control strategies for reducing 
foodborne transmission of Norovirus infections. After further 
discussion the committee plans to adopt its final recommendations.

DATES: The full Committee will hold a meeting by telephone conference 
on Monday, November 17, 2014, from 2:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. EST.

ADDRESSES: The November 17, 2014, meeting will be held by telephone. 
Please contact Karen Thomas-Sharp at the address below to register for 
the meeting: USDA, FSIS, Office of Public Health Science, Stop 3777, 
Patriots Plaza 3, Floor 9-47, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, 
DC 20250, or by phone (202) 690-6620, fax (202) 690-6334, or email: 
[email protected].
    All documents related to the full Committee meeting will be 
available for public inspection in the FSIS Docket Room, USDA, at 
Patriots Plaza 3, 355 E. Street SW., Room 8-164, Washington, DC 20250 
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/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulations/federal-register/federal-register-notices.
    FSIS will finalize the agenda on or before the meeting and post it 
on the FSIS Web page at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings. Please note that the meeting agenda is subject to 
change due to the time required for Committee discussions; thus, 
sessions could end earlier or later than anticipated. Please plan 
accordingly if you would like to attend or participate in a public 
comment period.
    The official meeting minutes of the November 17, 2014 full 
Committee meeting, when they become available, will be kept in the FSIS 
Docket Room at the above address and will also be posted on http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collection-and-reports/nacmcf/meetings/nacmcf-meetings.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Persons interested in registering to 
attend the meeting, making a presentation, submitting technical papers, 
or providing comments at the November 17, 2014 plenary session should 
contact Karen Thomas-Sharp, phone (202) 690-6620, fax (202) 690-6334, 
email: [email protected] or at the mailing address 
above. Persons requiring special accommodations for this phone 
conference (voice and TTY) should notify Ms. Thomas-Sharp by November 
10, 2014.

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 on the FSIS Web page at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collection-and-reports/nacmcf/committee-charter/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, as 
well as the 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 Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for 
Disease Control and Prevention, and the Departments of Commerce and 
Defense.
    Mr. Brian Ronholm, Deputy 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 Dr. James Rogers, FSIS, is the 
Executive Secretary.

Meeting Agenda

    At its November 17, 2014, meeting, the full Committee will continue 
discussions on:
    Microbiological criteria as indicators of poor process control or 
insanitary conditions, and
    Control strategies for reducing foodborne transmission of Norovirus 
infections.
    The Committee took up the first topic in response to a Department 
of Defense (DoD) request for guidance on refined microbiological and 
other possible criteria for better evaluating process control and 
insanitary conditions at food production facilities.
    The second topic responds to a request for guidance on a unified 
approach to reducing illness from human noroviruses (HuNoVs). FSIS, the 
Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and 
Prevention, and the DoD Veterinary Services Activity (DoDVSA) all 
sought this guidance.

Documents Reviewed by NACMCF

    FSIS intends to make available to the public all materials reviewed 
and considered by the full Committee of 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 (www.fsis.usda.gov), as well as in hard copy format in 
the FSIS Docket Room. FSIS will make the materials available at the 
start of the full Committee meeting if there is sufficient time 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 Internet 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.

Additional Public Notification

    FSIS will announce this notice online through the FSIS Web page 
located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulations/federal-register/federal-register-notices.
    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

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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/wps/portal/fsis/programs-and-services/email-subscription-service. 
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 Non-Discrimination Statement

    No agency, officer, or employee of the USDA shall, on the grounds 
of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual 
orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, 
income derived from a public assistance program, or political beliefs, 
exclude from participation in, deny the benefits of, or subject to 
discrimination any person in the United States under any program or 
activity conducted by the USDA.

How To File a Complaint of Discrimination

    To file a complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program 
Discrimination Complaint Form, which may be accessed online at http://www.ocio.usda.gov/sites/default/files/docs/2012/Complain_combined_6_8_12.pdf, or write a letter signed by you or your 
authorized representative.
    Send your completed complaint form or letter to USDA by mail, fax, 
or email:
    Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of 
Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410.
    Fax: (202) 690-7442.
    Email: [email protected].
    Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for 
communication (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.), should contact 
USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD).

    Done at Washington, DC, on November 4, 2014
Alfred V. Almanza,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2014-26517 Filed 11-6-14; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P