[Federal Register: May 20, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 98)]
[Notices]
[Page 29124-29125]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr20my04-35]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 04-007N]
National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: The National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection
(NACMPI) will hold a public meeting on June 2-3, 2004, to review and
discuss the following issues: (1) The appropriateness of the Food
Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS) plans for assessing the effects
of the interim final rule on the control of Listeria monocytogenes (Lm)
in ready-to-eat meat and poultry products; (2) the advisability of
requiring establishments to develop food security plans; and (3) the
appropriateness of FSIS establishing test and hold procedures for meat
and poultry products that are tested for the presence of an adulterant
by FSIS. Three subcommittees will also meet on June 2, 2004, to work on
the issues discussed during the full committee session.
DATES: The full Committee will hold a public meeting on Wednesday, June
2, from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and on Thursday, June 3, 2004, from 8:30
a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Subcommittees will hold open meetings on Wednesday,
June 2, 2004, from 2:45 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Note: FSIS was not able to publish notification of this public
meeting in the Federal Register at least 15 days prior to the
meeting, as required by Departmental Regulation 1041-001, due to
late changes to the agenda.
ADDRESSES: All Committee meetings will take place at the Hilton
Alexandria Old Town, 1767 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314.
A meeting agenda is available on the Internet at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/about/nacmpi/index.asp
, which is a sub-web page of
the FSIS home page, at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/index.asp. FSIS invites
interested persons to submit comments on the topics to be discussed at
the public meeting. Comments may be submitted by any of the following
methods:
Mail, including floppy disks or CD-ROM's, and hand-or
courier-delivered items: Send to Docket Clerk, U.S. Department of
Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, 300 12th Street, SW.,
Room 102 Cotton Annex, Washington, DC 20250.
Federal eRulemaking Portal: Go to http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the online instructions at that site for
submitting comments.
All submissions received must include the Agency name and docket
number 04-007N.
All comments submitted on the topics to be discussed at the public
meeting will be available for public inspection in the FSIS Docket Room
at the address listed above between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday
through Friday. The comments also will be posted on the Agency's Web
site at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/2004_notices_index/index.asp
.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Robert Tynan for technical
information at (202) 720-2982 or e-mail robert.tynan@fsis.usda.gov and
Ms. Sonya L. West for meeting information at (202) 690-1079, FAX (202)
690-6519, or e-mail sonya.west@fsis.usda.gov. Members of the public
will be required to register before entering the meeting. Persons
requiring a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations
should notify Ms. West no later than May 28, 2004, at the above numbers
or by e-mail. Information is also available on the Internet at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.fsis.usda.gov/about/nacmpi/index.asp
.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On April 15, 2003, the Secretary of Agriculture renewed the charter
for the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection
(NACMPI). The Committee provides advice and recommendations to the
Secretary of Agriculture pertaining to the Federal and State meat and
poultry inspection
[[Page 29125]]
programs, pursuant to sections 7(c), 24, 205, 301(a)(3), 301(a)(4), and
301(c) of the Federal Meat Inspection Act (21 U.S.C. 607(c), 624, 645,
661(a)(3), 661(a)(4), and 661(c)) and sections 5(a)(3), 5(a)(4), 5(c),
8(b), and 11(e) of the Poultry Products Inspection Act (21 U.S.C.
454(a)(3), 454(a)(4), 454(c), 457(b), and 460(e)).
The Administrator of the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS)
is the chairperson of the Committee. Membership of the Committee is
drawn from representatives of consumer groups; producers, processors
and marketers from the meat and poultry industry; state government
officials; and academia. The current members of the NACMPI are: Ms.
Deanna Baldwin, Maryland Department of Agriculture; Dr. Gladys Bayse,
Spelman College; Dr. David Carpenter, Southern Illinois University; Dr.
James Denton, University of Arkansas; Mr. Kevin Elfering, Minnesota
Department of Agriculture; Ms. Sandra Eskin, American Association of
Retired Persons; Mr. Michael Govro, Oregon Department of Agriculture;
Dr. Joseph Harris, Southwest Meat Association; Dr. Jill Hollingsworth,
Food Marketing Institute; Dr. Alice Johnson, National Turkey
Federation; Mr. Michael Kowalcyk, Safe Tables Our Priority; Dr. Irene
Leech, Virginia Citizens Consumer Council; Mr. Charles Link, Cargill
Meat Solutions; Dr. Catherine Logue, North Dakota State University; and
Mr. Mark Schad, Schad Meats. The Committee has three subcommittees to
deliberate on specific issues and make recommendations to the
Committee.
One of the issues to be discussed at the meeting will be FSIS's
interim final rule on the control of Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) in
ready-to-eat meat and poultry products (68 FR 34207, June 6, 2003).
FSIS is interested in learning the Committee's opinion of the Agency's
efforts to assess the effectiveness of the interim final rule. The
Committee will also examine whether the Agency should require that
establishments develop food security plans. Finally, the Committee will
consider whether FSIS should require test and hold procedures for meat
and poultry products that are subjected to verification testing for the
presence of an adulterant by the Agency.
All interested parties are welcome to attend the meetings and to
submit written comments and suggestions concerning issues the Committee
will review and discuss. The comments and the official transcript of
the meeting, when they become available, will be kept in the FSIS
Docket Room at the address provided above. All comments received in
response to this notice will be considered part of the public record
and will be available for viewing in the FSIS Docket Room between 8:30
a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, except for Federal holidays.
Additional Public Notification
Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to better ensure
that the public and in particular that minorities, women, and persons
with disabilities are aware of this notice, FSIS will announce it on-
line through the FSIS Web page located at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.fsis.usda.gov and
through the Regulations.gov Web site. The Regulations.gov Web site is
the central online rulemaking portal of the United States government.
It is being offered as a public service to increase participation in
the Federal government's regulatory activities. FSIS participates in
Regulations.gov and will accept comments on documents published on the
site. The site allows visitors to search by keyword or Department or
Agency for rulemakings that allow for public comment. Each entry
provides a quick link to a comment form so that visitors can type in
their comments and submit them to FSIS. The Web site is located at
http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.regulations.gov.
FSIS also will make copies of this Federal Register publication
available through the FSIS Constituent Update, which is used to provide
information regarding FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal
Register notices, FSIS public meetings, recalls, and other types of
information that could affect or would be of interest to our
constituents and stakeholders. The update is communicated via Listserv,
a free e-mail subscription service consisting of industry, trade, and
farm groups, consumer interest groups, allied health professionals,
scientific professionals, and other individuals who have requested to
be included. The update also is available on the FSIS Web page. Through
Listserv and the Web page, FSIS is able to provide information to a
much broader, more diverse audience.
Barbara J. Masters,
Acting Administrator.
[FR Doc. 04-11567 Filed 5-18-04; 2:07 pm]