[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 64 (Tuesday, April 6, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17770-17771]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-06993]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. FSIS-2021-0010]


National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting.

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SUMMARY: This notice is announcing that the National Advisory Committee 
on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) will hold a public 
meeting of the full Committee on April 22, 2021. The Committee will 
discuss and vote on adopting the following two reports: Microbiological 
testing by industry of ready-to-eat foods under FDA's jurisdiction for 
pathogens (or appropriate indicator organisms): Verification of 
prevention controls and The Use of Water in Animal Production, 
Slaughter and Processing.

DATES: The full Committee will hold an open meeting on Thursday, April 
22, 2021, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Submit comments on or before 
June 7, 2021.

ADDRESSES: The Committee meeting will be held virtually. Attendees must 
pre-register at https://ems8.intellor.com?do=register&t=1&p=838073 to 
receive a join link, dial-in number, access code, and unique Attendee 
ID for the event.
    The NACMCF documents for adoption will be available at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulations/federal-register/federal-register-notices. FSIS invites interested persons to submit 
comments on the meeting documents. Comments may be submitted by one of 
the following methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: This website provides the 
ability to type short comments directly into the comment field on this 
web page or attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to https://www.regulations.gov. Follow the on-line instructions at that site for 
submitting comments.
     Mail: Send to Docket Clerk, U.S. Department of 
Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, 1400 Independence 
Avenue SW, Mailstop 3758, Washington, DC 20250-3700.
     Hand- or courier-delivered submittals: Deliver to 1400 
Independence Avenue SW, Jamie L. Whitten Building, Room 350-E, 
Washington, DC 20250-3700. Instructions: All items submitted by mail or 
electronic mail must include the Agency name and docket number FSIS-
2021-0010. Comments received in response to this docket will be made 
available for public inspection and posted without change, including 
any personal information, to https://www.regulations.gov.
    Docket: For access to background documents or comments received, 
call (202) 720-5627 to schedule a time to visit the FSIS Docket Room at 
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250-3700.
    Agenda: FSIS will finalize an agenda on or before the meeting date 
and post it on the FSIS web page at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings
     Please note that the meeting agenda is subject to change 
due to the time required for reviewing and adopting the reports; thus, 
sessions could end earlier or later than anticipated. Please plan 
accordingly if you would like to attend this meeting or participate in 
the public comment period.
    Also, the official transcript of the April 22, 2021 Committee 
meeting, when it becomes available, will be kept in the FSIS Docket 
Room and will also be posted on https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collection-and-reports/nacmcf/meetings/nacmcf-meetings.
    The mailing and Email address for the contact person is: Laarina 
Mullings, USDA, FSIS, Office of Public Health Science, 1400 
Independence Avenue SW, Whitten Building Room 341E, Washington, DC 
20250; Email: [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Persons interested in providing 
comments at the April 22 plenary session should contact Laarina 
Mullings: Phone: (202) 720-2644; Email: [email protected].
    Sign Language Interpretation: Persons requiring a sign language 
interpreter or other special accommodations should notify Ms. Mullings 
by April 14, 2021.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The NACMCF was established in 1988, in response to a recommendation 
of the National Academy of Sciences for an interagency approach to 
microbiological criteria for foods, and in response to a recommendation 
of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Appropriations, as 
expressed in the Rural Development,

[[Page 17771]]

Agriculture, and Related Agencies Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 
1988. The charter for the NACMCF is available for viewing on the FSIS 
internet web page at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collection-and-reports/nacmcf/committee-charter.
    The NACMCF provides scientific advice and recommendations to the 
Secretary of Agriculture and the Secretary of Health and Human Services 
on public health issues relative to the safety and wholesomeness of the 
U.S. food supply, including development of microbiological criteria and 
review and evaluation of epidemiological and risk assessment data and 
methodologies for assessing microbiological hazards in foods. The 
Committee also provides scientific advice and recommendations to the 
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Departments of 
Commerce and Defense.
    Mrs. Sandra Eskin, Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA, is 
the Acting Committee Chair; Dr. Susan T. Mayne, Director of the Food 
and Drug Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition 
(CFSAN), is the Vice-Chair; and Mr. John J. Jarosh, FSIS, is the 
Director of the NACMCF Secretariat and Designated Federal Officer.

Documents Reviewed by NACMCF

    FSIS will make the draft reports considered by NACMCF regarding its 
deliberations available to the public prior to the Plenary Session on 
the FSIS web page.
    Disclaimer: NACMCF documents and comments posted on the FSIS 
website are electronic conversions from a variety of source formats. In 
some cases, document conversion may result in character translation or 
formatting errors. The original document is the official, legal copy.
    In order to meet the electronic and information technology 
accessibility standards in Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, 
NACMCF may add alternate text descriptors for non-text elements 
(graphs, charts, tables, multimedia, etc.). These modifications only 
affect the internet copies of the documents.
    Copyrighted documents will not be posted on the FSIS website, but 
will be available for inspection in the FSIS Docket Room.

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: 
https://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 Constituent 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: https://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 Nondiscrimination Statement

    In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of 
Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its 
Agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or 
administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on 
race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including 
gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital 
status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance 
program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil 
rights activity, in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA 
(not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing 
deadlines vary by program or incident.
    Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of 
communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, 
audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible 
Agency or USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or 
contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. 
Additionally, program information may be made available in languages 
other than English.
    To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA 
Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD-3027, found online at How to 
File a Program Discrimination Complaint and at any USDA office or write 
a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the 
information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint 
form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA 
by: (1) Mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant 
Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 
20250-9410; (2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or (3) email: 
[email protected].
    USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.

    Done at Washington, DC, on March 31, 2021.
Cikena Reid,
USDA Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-06993 Filed 4-5-21; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P