[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 8 (Wednesday, January 13, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1598-1599]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-00482]


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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. 81, No. 8 / Wednesday, January 13, 2016 / 
Notices  

[[Page 1598]]



DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2015-0044]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on 
Food Additives

AGENCY: Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Office of the Deputy 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 February 16, 2016. The objective of the public 
meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda 
items and draft United States (U.S.) positions to be discussed at the 
48th Session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA) of the 
Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), taking place in Xi'an, China 
March 14-18, 2016. The Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety and the 
FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the 
opportunity to obtain background information on the 48th Session of the 
CCFA and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, February 16, 2016, 
from 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will take place at the Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA), Harvey Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint Branch 
Parkway, Rooms 1A-001 and 1A-002, College Park, MD 20740.
    Documents related to the 48th Session of the CCFA will be 
accessible via the Internet at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.org/meetings-reports/en/.
    Susan Carberry, Ph.D., U.S. Delegate to the 48th Session of the 
CCFA and the FDA invite interested U.S. parties to submit their 
comments electronically to the following email address: 
[email protected].
    Registration: Attendees may register to attend the public meeting 
by emailing [email protected] by February 12, 2016. Early registration 
is encouraged because it will expedite entry into the building and 
parking area. If you require parking, please include your vehicle make 
and tag number when you register. The meeting will take place in a 
Federal building. Attendees should bring photo identification and plan 
for adequate time to pass through security screening systems. Attendees 
who are not able to attend the meeting in person, but wish to 
participate, may do so by phone. Those wishing to participate by phone 
should request the call-in-number and the conference code when they 
register for the meeting.
    For Further Information About The 48th Session of the CCFA Contact: 
Susan Carberry, Ph.D., Supervisory Chemist, Division of Petition 
Review, Office of Food Additive Safety, Center for Food Safety and 
Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), Food and Drug Administration, Harvey W. 
Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, HFS-205, College 
Park, MD 20740, Telephone: (240) 402-1269, Fax: (301) 436-2972, Email: 
[email protected].
    For Further Information About The Public Meeting Contact: Daniel E. 
Folmer, Ph.D., Review Chemist, Division of Petition Review, Office of 
Food Additive Safety, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition 
(CFSAN), Food and Drug Administration, Harvey W. Wiley Federal 
Building, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, HFS-265, College Park, MD 20740, 
Telephone: (240) 402-1269, Fax: (301) 436-2972, Email: 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

    The 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 that fair 
practices are used in trade.
    The CCFA establishes or endorses permitted maximum levels for 
individual food additives; prepares priority lists of food additives 
for risk assessment by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food 
Additives (JECFA); assigns functional classes and International 
Numbering System (INS) numbers to individual food additives; recommends 
specifications of identity and purity for food additives for adoption 
by Codex; considers methods of analysis for the determination of 
additives in food; and considers and elaborates standards or codes for 
related subjects, such as labeling of food additives when sold as such. 
The CCFA is hosted by China.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the agenda for the 48th Session of the CCFA 
will be discussed during the public meeting:

 Matters referred by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and 
other subsidiary bodies
 Matters of Interest arising from FAO/WHO and from the 80th 
Meeting of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
 Proposed draft Specifications for Identity and Purity of Food 
Additives arising from the 80th JECFA Meeting
 Endorsement or Revision of Maximum Levels for Food Additives 
and Processing Aids and Codex Standards
 Alignment of the food-additive provisions of commodity 
standards and relevant provisions of the General Standard for Food 
Additives
 Food additive provisions in Table 1 and 2 in food categories 
01.2 through 08.4, with the exclusion of food categories 04.1.2.4, 
04.2.2.4, 04.2.2.5, 04.2.2.6, 05.1.1, 05.1.3, and 05.1.4 (outstanding 
from CCFA47)
 Use of nisin (INS 234) in food category 08.3.2 in general, and 
specifically in products conforming to the corresponding commodity 
standards
 Proposed draft provision for quillaia extracts (INS 999 (i), 
(ii)) in food category 14.1.4
 Uses and use levels of paprika extract (INS 160c(ii)) (replies 
to CL 2015/9-FA Part C, point 8)

[[Page 1599]]

 Proposals for new and/or revision of food additive provisions 
(replies to CL 2015/12-FA)
 Proposed draft revision of food category 01.1 ``Milk and 
dairy-based drinks'' and its sub-categories
 Discussion paper on the use of specific food additives in the 
production of wine
 Proposed draft revision to the International Numbering System 
(INS) for Food Additives (CAC/GL 36-1989)
 Proposals for additions and changes to the Priority List of 
Substances proposed for evaluation by JECFA (replies to CL 2015/11-FA)
 Information on commercial use of: Potassium hydrogen sulfate 
(INS 515(ii)), sodium sorbates (INS 201) and calcium hydrogen sulfite 
(INS 227) (replies to CL 2015/9-FA Part C, point 9)
 Discussion paper on secondary additives
 Proposed draft revision of Section 4.1c and 5.1c of the 
General Standard for the Labelling of Food Additives When Sold As Such 
(CODEX STAN 107-1981)
 Other Business and Future Work

    Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed, 
or to be distributed, by the Codex Secretariat prior to the meeting. 
Members of the public may access these documents at http://www.codexalimentarius.org/meetings-reports/detail/en/?meeting=CCFA&session=48.

Public Meeting

    At the February 16, 2016, 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 48th Session of the CCFA, Dr. Susan Carberry at the following 
address: [email protected]. Written comments should state they relate to 
activities of the 48th Session of the CCFA.

Additional Public Notification

    Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy 
development is important. Consequently, FSIS will announce this Federal 
Register publication on-line through the FSIS Web page located at: 
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register .
    FSIS also will make copies of this 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 our constituents and 
stakeholders. The Update is available on the FSIS Web page. Through the 
Web page, FSIS is able to provide information to a much broader, more 
diverse audience. In addition, FSIS offers an email 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/subscribe. Options range from recalls to export 
information, regulations, directives, and notices. Customers can add or 
delete subscriptions themselves, and have the option to password 
protect their accounts.

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).

Mary Frances Lowe,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2016-00482 Filed 1-12-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P