[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 59 (Wednesday, March 27, 2019)]
[Notices]
[Pages 11485-11486]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-05768]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

U.S. Codex Office


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

AGENCY: U.S. Codex Office, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Codex Office is sponsoring a public meeting on April 
9, 2019. 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 45th Session of the Codex 
Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL) of the Codex Alimentarius 
Commission, in Ottawa, Canada, May 13-17, 2019. The U.S. Manager for 
Codex Alimentarius and the Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign 
Agricultural Affairs recognize the importance of providing interested 
parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 45th 
Session of the CCFL and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for April 9, 2019, from 1-5 p.m. 
EST.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will take place in Meeting Room 107A of 
the Whitten Building, 1400 Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250. 
Documents related to the 45th Session of the CCFL will be accessible 
via the internet at the following address: http://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/%E2%80%8Bmeetings-reports/%E2%80%8Ben.
    Douglas Balentine, U.S. Delegate to the 45th Session of the CCFL, 
invites U.S. interested parties to submit their comments electronically 
to the following email address: [email protected].
    Call-In-Number: If you wish to participate in the public meeting 
for the 45th Session of the CCFL by conference call, please use the 
call-in-number: 888-844-9904 and participant code 5126092.
    Registration: Attendees may register to attend the public meeting 
by emailing [email protected] by April 3, 2019. Early registration 
is encouraged because it will expedite entry into the building. The 
meeting will take place in a Federal building. Attendees should bring 
photo identification and plan for adequate time to pass through the 
security screening systems. Attendees who are not able to attend the 
meeting in person, but who wish to participate, may do so by phone, as 
discussed above.
    For Further Information about the 45th Session of the CCFL, contact 
U.S. Delegate, Douglas Balentine, Director, Office of Nutrition and 
Food Labelling, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, U.S. Food 
and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus Drive (HFS-830), College Park, MD 
20740. Telephone: (240) 402-2373, Email: [email protected].
    For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: U.S. 
Codex

[[Page 11486]]

Office, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Room 4861, South Agriculture 
Building, Washington, DC 20250. Phone 202-720-7760, 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. 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 in the food 
trade.
    The Terms of Reference of the Codex Committee on Food Labelling 
(CCFL) are:
    (a) To draft provisions on labelling applicable to all foods;
    (b) to consider, amend if necessary, and endorse draft specific 
provisions on labelling prepared by other Codex Committees drafting 
standards, codes of practice and guidelines;
    (c) to study specific labelling problems assigned to it by the 
Commission; and,
    (d) to study problems associated with the advertisement of food 
with particular reference to claims and misleading descriptions.
    The CCFL is hosted by Canada. The United States attends CCFL as a 
member country of Codex.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the Agenda for the 45th Session of the CCFL 
will be discussed during the public meeting:

 Matters referred to the Committee by the CAC and Codex 
subsidiary bodies
 Matters of interest from FAO and WHO
 Consideration of labelling provisions in draft Codex standards
 Proposed draft Guidance for the Labelling of Non-Retail 
Containers
 Proposed draft Guidelines of Front-of-Pack Nutrition Labelling
 internet sales/e-commerce
 Innovation--use of technology in food labelling
 Labelling of alcoholic beverages
 Criteria for the definition of ``high in'' nutritional 
descriptors for fats, sugars, and sodium
 Labelling of foods in joint presentation and multipack formats
 Future work and direction of CCFL
 Other Business

Public Meeting

    At the April 9, 2019, 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 Douglas Balentine, U.S. 
Delegate for the 45th Session of the CCFL (see ADDRESSES). Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 45th 
Session of the CCFL.

Additional Public Notification

    Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy 
development is important. Consequently, the U.S. Codex Office will 
announce this Federal Register publication on-line through the USDA web 
page located at: http://www.usda.gov/codex/, a link that also offers an 
email subscription service providing access to information related to 
Codex. Customers can add or delete their subscription 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 March 21, 2019.
Mary Lowe,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2019-05768 Filed 3-26-19; 8:45 am]
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