[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 114 (Thursday, June 15, 2017)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 27403-27404]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-12441]
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Rules and Regulations
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains regulatory documents
having general applicability and legal effect, most of which are keyed
to and codified in the Code of Federal Regulations, which is published
under 50 titles pursuant to 44 U.S.C. 1510.
The Code of Federal Regulations is sold by the Superintendent of Documents.
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Federal Register / Vol. 82, No. 114 / Thursday, June 15, 2017 / Rules
and Regulations
[[Page 27403]]
DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
9 CFR Parts 530, 531, 532, 533, 534, 537, 539, 540, 541, 544, 548,
550, 552, 555, 557, 559, 560, and 561
[Docket No. FSIS-2017-0023]
Educational Meetings on the Mandatory Inspection of Fish of the
Order Siluriformes and Products Derived From Such Fish Final Rule
Implementation
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notification of educational meetings.
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SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing
two educational meetings to discuss the enforcement and implementation
of the Final Rule, ``Mandatory Inspection of Fish of the Order
Siluriformes and Products Derived from Such Fish.'' Fish of the order
Siluriformes include fish of several families, including catfish (fish
of the family Ictaluridae), basa, tra, and swai (fish of the family
Pangasiidae), and clarias (fish of the Clariidae family). FSIS will
present information on the upcoming full implementation of the
regulatory requirements at official domestic establishments that
process Siluriformes fish and fish products, as well as information on
entry procedures and reinspection at official import inspection
establishments. FSIS is particularly interested in soliciting
participation from representatives from domestic wild-caught operations
that process Siluriformes fish and fish products.
The primary objectives of the meetings are to provide updated
information to stakeholders and to encourage dialogue between FSIS and
the Siluriformes fish industry. Affected industry and interested
individuals, organizations, and other stakeholders are invited to
participate in the meetings.
DATES: The meetings are scheduled as follows:
The first meeting will be held in Richmond, VA, on
Tuesday, June 27, 2017; 9 a.m.-3 p.m. ET, at the Hilton Richmond
Downtown, 501 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23129. For directions and
parking instructions, please visit: www.richmonddowntown.hilton.com.
The second meeting will be held in Baltimore, MD, on
Thursday, July 20, 2017; 9 a.m.-3 p.m. ET, at the Sheraton Baltimore
Washington International Hotel, 1100 Old Elkridge Landing Road,
Linthicum Heights, MD 21090. For directions and parking instructions,
please visit: www.sheratonbwiairport.com.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Evelyn Arce, Outreach and Partnership
Division, Office of Outreach, Employee Education and Training, FSIS,
1400 Independence Ave. SW., Mail Stop 3778, Washington, DC 20250;
Telephone: (202) 418-8903; Fax: (202) 690-6519; Email:
[email protected], regarding additional information about this
meeting or to arrange for special accommodations.
Questions regarding the mandatory inspection of fish of the order
Siluriformes and products derived from such fish may be directed to
[email protected].
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Further information on these meetings will
be posted on FSIS Web site at: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings and through the FSIS Constituent Update.
The final rule may be accessed from the FSIS Web site at: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulations/federal-register/interim-and-final-rules.
Registration: To pre-register for the either of meetings, please go
to http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings.
The cutoff dates for pre-registration are as follows:
Richmond, VA: Friday, June 23, 2017
Baltimore, MD: Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Background
On December 2, 2015, FSIS published the final rule to establish a
mandatory inspection program for fish of the order Siluriformes and
products derived from these fish (80 FR 75590). The final rule and
other resources and information on Siluriformes fish can be found on
the FSIS ``Inspection Program For Siluriformes Fish, Including
Catfish'' Web page: https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/inspection/siluriformes.
The final rule was effective March 1, 2016; however, the Agency
provided an 18-month transitional period until September 1, 2017, to
give domestic establishments time to prepare and comply with the final
regulations. The transitional period also provided foreign countries
with time to submit the documentation necessary to continue exporting
Siluriformes fish and fish products to the United States and to show
that they have equivalent inspection systems.
FSIS began inspecting domestic establishments on March 1, 2016, and
began selecting imported Siluriformes fish shipments for reinspection
on April 15, 2016. During the transitional period, FSIS inspection
personnel have exercised broad discretion in enforcing the regulatory
requirements, focusing primarily on preventing adulterated or
misbranded Siluriformes fish and fish products from entering commerce.
FSIS held a series of domestic and import educational meetings when
the final rule initially published in December 2015. FSIS has gained
significant insight into the domestic and importing Siluriformes fish
industries during the transitional period, and is announcing these
educational meetings to provide updates regarding full implementation
of the regulatory requirements.
In addition, the Agency is interested in exchanging information
with operations that process wild-caught Siluriformes fish and fish
products, and encourages representatives and parties involved in this
industry to attend the educational meetings. The Agency is particularly
interested in gaining insight into how the wild-caught Siluriformes
fish arrive at processing facilities, from where the wild-caught
Siluriformes fish are sourced, daily production volume information for
these facilities, and where the final Siluriformes fish and fish
products are being sold or distributed after processing. FSIS will post
a list of questions that FSIS intends to use to gather information
concerning
[[Page 27404]]
these issues at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/meetings.
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).
Done at Washington, DC, on: June 12, 2017.
Alfred V. Almanza,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2017-12441 Filed 6-14-17; 8:45 am]
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