[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 135 (Thursday, July 14, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 45507-45509]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-16684]


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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

[Docket No. FDA-2016-N-1678]


The Food and Drug Administration Foods and Veterinary Medicine 
Program's Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2016-2025

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, HHS.

ACTION: Notice and request for comments.

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[[Page 45508]]

SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA or we) is announcing the 
availability of the ``Foods and Veterinary Medicine (FVM) Program's 
Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2016-2025'' that covers activities of 
the Office of Foods and Veterinary Medicine, the Center for Food Safety 
and Applied Nutrition, and the Center for Veterinary Medicine, as well 
as related efforts by the Office of Global Regulatory Operations and 
Policy and the Office of Regulatory Affairs. Our strategic plan 
includes goals and objectives for the next 10 years including our 
mission to implement the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) 
enacted in 2011, as well as details on our goals of protecting and 
enhancing the health of both people and animals. We invite public 
comment on the plan.

DATES: Submit either electronic or written comments on the strategic 
plan at any time.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments as follows:

Electronic Submissions

    Submit electronic comments in the following way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted 
electronically, including attachments, to http://www.regulations.gov 
will be posted to the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be 
made public, you are solely responsible for ensuring that your comment 
does not include any confidential information that you or a third party 
may not wish to be posted, such as medical information, your or anyone 
else's Social Security number, or confidential business information, 
such as a manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your 
name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in 
the body of your comments, that information will be posted on http://www.regulations.gov.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner 
detailed (see ``Written/Paper Submissions'' and ``Instructions'').

Written/Paper Submissions

    Submit written/paper submissions as follows:
     Mail/Hand delivery/Courier (for written/paper 
submissions): Division of Dockets Management (HFA-305), Food and Drug 
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
     For written/paper comments submitted to the Division of 
Dockets Management, FDA will post your comment, as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, 
as confidential, if submitted as detailed in ``Instructions.''
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. 
FDA-2016-N-1678 for ``FDA Foods and Veterinary Medicine (FVM) Program's 
Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years 2016-2025.'' Received comments will be 
placed in the docket and, except for those submitted as ``Confidential 
Submissions,'' publicly viewable at http://www.regulations.gov or at 
the Division of Dockets Management between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday 
through Friday.
     Confidential Submissions--To submit a comment with 
confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly 
available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You 
should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information 
you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states 
``THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.'' The Agency will 
review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in 
its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the 
claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be 
available for public viewing and posted on http://www.regulations.gov. 
Submit both copies to the Division of Dockets Management. If you do not 
wish your name and contact information to be made publicly available, 
you can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body 
of your comments and you must identify this information as 
``confidential.'' Any information marked as ``confidential'' will not 
be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other 
applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of 
comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or 
access the information at: http://www.fda.gov/regulatoryinformation/dockets/default.htm.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to http://www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in 
the heading of this document, into the ``Search'' box and follow the 
prompts and/or go to the Division of Dockets Management, 5630 Fishers 
Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mia Mercer, Office of Foods and 
Veterinary Medicine, 10903 New Hampshire Ave., Silver Spring, MD 20993, 
301-796-8794.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    We are announcing the availability of the FVM Program's Strategic 
Plan for Fiscal Years 2016-2025 in order to inform the public of our 
goals for the next 10 years. We are implementing the modernization of 
FDA's regulatory framework for the FVM Program. We are focused on 
continuing to drive toward a more proactive, preventive, risk-informed 
approach to food and feed safety, nutrition, and animal health.
    The FVM Program works to ensure the American public has food that 
is safe and nutritious and that animal drug products are safe and 
effective. Our priority is to obtain high rates of compliance with 
standards necessary to protect public health and meet consumer and 
other stakeholder expectations. Recognizing the unique challenges we 
face in the area of food safety in the 21st century, Congress enacted 
FSMA which requires (among other things):
     Comprehensive prevention-oriented food safety standards 
across the food system;
     mandated domestic inspection frequency, based on risk, to 
ensure high rates of compliance;
     a national integrated food safety system based on full 
partnership with States; and
     a new import safety system based on food safety 
accountability for importers, increased foreign presence, and increased 
collaboration with foreign governments.
    Our FVM Program Strategic Plan takes this statutory framework into 
account, places high priority on the implementation of FSMA, and 
focuses on how we plan to modernize our food safety work including:
     An increased focus on obtaining compliance with preventive 
control standards rather than finding and responding to legal 
violations after an illness or outbreak has occurred;
     strengthening our technical expertise and capacity to 
support FDA, industry, and other stakeholders in implementing the new 
prevention standards;
     furthering federal, State, local, and territorial 
partnerships, and investing in training and capacity to ensure 
efficient, high quality, and consistent oversight nationwide; and
     broadening interaction with foreign partners and 
increasing oversight of

[[Page 45509]]

importers, who will have more responsibility for the safety of imported 
foods.

Beyond FSMA's implementation, the FVM Program Strategic Plan provides 
details on our goals of protecting and enhancing the health of people 
and animals. The active engagement of all stakeholders and partners, 
both internal and external, is critical to the successful 
implementation of this plan.

II. Electronic Access

    Persons with access to the Internet may obtain the FVM Program 
Strategic Plan at http://www.regulations.gov.

III. References

    The following references have been placed on display in the 
Division of Dockets Management (see ADDRESSES) and may be seen by 
interested persons between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 
and are available electronically at http://www.regulations.gov. (FDA 
has verified the Web site addresses in this reference section, but we 
are not responsible for any subsequent changes to the Web sites after 
this document publishes in the Federal Register.)

1. FDA Foods and Veterinary Medicine Program Strategic Plan, FY 
2016-2025, available at http://www.fda.gov/aboutfda/centersoffices/officeoffoods/ucm273269.htm.
2. Partnership for Food Protection (PFP) Strategic Plan FY 2015 
through 2020, available at http://www.fda.gov/downloads/ForFederalStateandLocalOfficials/FoodSafetySystem/PartnershipforFoodProtectionPFP/UCM423834.pdf.

    Dated: July 11, 2016.
Leslie Kux,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2016-16684 Filed 7-13-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 4164-01-P