[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 6 (Thursday, January 9, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1137-1138]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-00162]


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

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

U.S. Codex Office


Codex Committee Meeting of the Codex Committee on Food Additives

AGENCY: U.S. Codex Office, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

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

SUMMARY: The U.S Codex Office is sponsoring a public meeting on January 
21, 2020. 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 52nd Session of the Codex 
Committee on Food Additives (CCFA) of the Codex Alimentarius 
Commission, in Lanzhou, China, March 2-6, 2020. 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 52nd 
Session of the CCFA and to address items on the agenda.

DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for January 21, 2020, from 9:00-
12:00 EST.

ADDRESSES: The public meeting will take place in Meeting Room 1A-001 
and 1A-002 of the Wiley Auditorium of the U.S. Food and Drug 
Administration (FDA) Harvey H. Wiley Building, 5001 Campus Drive, 
College Park, MD 20740. Documents related to the 52nd Session of the 
CCFA will be accessible via the internet at the following address: 
http://www.fao.org/fao-who-codexalimentarius/meetings/en/.
    Dr. Paul Honigfort, U.S. Delegate to the 52nd Session of the CCFA, 
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 52nd Session of the CCFA by conference

[[Page 1138]]

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 January 17, 2020. 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 52nd Session of the CCFA, contact 
U.S. Delegate, Dr. Paul Honigfort, Consumer Safety Officer, Division of 
Food Contact Notifications, Office of Food Additive Safety, U.S. Food 
and Drug Administration, 5001 Campus Drive, College Park, MD 20740, 
phone: +1 (204) 402-1206; email: [email protected].
    For Further Information about the public meeting Contact: U.S. 
Codex 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 Additives 
(CCFA) are:
    (a) To establish or endorse permitted maximum levels for individual 
food additives;
    (b) To prepare priority lists of food additives for risk assessment 
by the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives;
    (c) To assign functional classes to individual food additives;
    (d) To recommend specifications of identity and purity for food 
additives for adoption by the Codex Alimentarius Commission;
    (e) To consider methods of analysis for the determination of 
additives in food; and
    (f) To consider and elaborate standards or codes for related 
subjects such as the labelling of food additives when sold as such.
    The CCFA is hosted by China. The United States attends the CCFA as 
a member country of Codex.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

    The following items on the Agenda for the 52nd 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 87th 
Meeting of the Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives (JECFA)
 Proposed draft specifications for identify and purity of food 
additives arising from the 87th JECFA meeting
 Endorsement and/or revision of maximum levels for food 
additives and processing aids in Codex standards
 Alignment of the food additive provisions of commodity 
standards: Report of the Electronic Working Group (EWG) on Alignment
 General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA): Report of the EWG 
on the GSFA
 General Standard for Food Additives (GSFA): Proposals for new 
and/or revision of food additive provisions
 Continuation of the discussion on the relevant provisions for 
sweeteners associated with Note 161
 General information on the availability of data related to 
nitrates and nitrites
 Proposed draft revision to the International Numbering System 
(INS) for Food Additives
 Proposals for additions and changes to the Priority List of 
Substances proposed by evaluation by JECFA
 Other business and future work

Public Meeting

    At the January 21, 2020 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 Dr. Paul Honigfort, U.S. 
Delegate for the 52nd Session of the CCFA (see ADDRESSES). Written 
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 52nd 
Session of the CCFA.

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: https://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 https://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 December 19, 2019.
Mary Lowe,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2020-00162 Filed 1-8-20; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE; P