[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 35 (Wednesday, February 21, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 7450-7451]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-03465]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2018-0002]


Codex Alimentarius Commission: Codex Committee on Pesticide 
Residues (CCPR)

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

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of the Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. 
Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food Safety and Inspection Service 
(FSIS), and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) are 
sponsoring a public meeting on March 15, 2018. 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 50th Session of the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues (CCPR) 
of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), taking place in Haikou, 
China between April 9 and 14, 2018. The Acting Deputy Under Secretary 
for Food Safety and the EPA recognize the importance of providing 
interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on 
the 50th Session of the CCPR and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, March 15, 2018, 
1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will take place at the EPA, Room PYS-
4350, One Potomac Yard South, 2777 South Crystal Drive, Arlington, VA 
22202.
    Documents related to the 50th Session of the CCPR are accessible 
via the internet at the following address: http://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/meetings/en/.
    Captain David Miller, U.S. Delegate to the 50th Session of the 
CCPR, and the USDA invite interested U.S. parties to submit their 
comments electronically to

[[Page 7451]]

the following email address: [email protected].

Call-In-Number

    If you wish to participate in the public meeting for the 50th 
Session of the CCPR by conference call, please use the call-in-number 
and participant code listed below:

Call-in-Number: 1-888-844-9904
Participant Code: 5126092

    For Further Information About the 50th Session of the CCPR Contact: 
Captain David Miller, Chief, Chemistry & Exposure Branch and Acting 
Chief, Toxicology & Epidemiology Branch, Health Effects Division, Ariel 
Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20460. 
Telephone: (703) 305-5352, Fax: (703) 305-5147, Email: 
[email protected].
    For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: Marie 
Maratos, U.S. Codex Office, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, South 
Agriculture Building, Room 4861, Washington, DC 20250. Telephone: (202) 
205-7760, 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 and the World Health Organization 
(FAO/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 are used in trade.
    The CCPR is responsible for establishing maximum limits for 
pesticide residues in specific food items or in groups of food; 
establishing maximum limits for pesticide residues in certain animal 
feeding stuffs moving in international trade where this is justified 
for reasons of protection of human health; preparing priority lists of 
pesticides for evaluation by the Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticide 
Residues (JMPR); considering methods of sampling and analysis for the 
determination of pesticide residues in food and feed; considering other 
matters in relation to the safety of food and feed containing pesticide 
residues; and establishing maximum limits for environmental and 
industrial contaminants showing chemical or other similarity to 
pesticides, in specific food items or groups of food.
    The CCPR is hosted by China. The U.S. attends this committee as a 
member country of the Codex Alimentarius.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the Agenda for the 50th Session of the CCPR 
will be discussed during the public meeting:
     Proposed draft and draft revision of the Classification of 
Food and Feed for selected commodity groups (including seeds for 
beverages and sweets);
     Proposed draft tables on examples of representative 
commodities (including seeds for beverages and sweets);
     Electronic Working Group Outcomes on the Proposed New Work 
on the Possible Revision of the International Estimated Short-Term 
Intake (IESTI) equations;
     Establishment of Codex Schedules and Priority Lists of 
Pesticides for evaluation by JMPR;
     Electronic Working Group Outcomes on the possible 
establishment of a Codex database of national registration of 
pesticides; and
     Other Business and Future Work.
    Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed, 
or to be distributed, by the Secretariat before to the Meeting. Members 
of the public may access or request copies of these documents (see 
ADDRESSES).

Public Meeting

    At the March 15, 2018, 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 Captain David Miller, U.S. 
Delegate for the 50th Session of the CCPR (see ADDRESSES). Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 50th 
Session of the CCPR.

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 February 14, 2018.
Marie Maratos,
Acting U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2018-03465 Filed 2-20-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P