[Federal Register: August 8, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 152)]
[Notices]
[Page 44485-44486]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr08au07-32]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. 2007-0025]
Codex Alimentarius Commission: Seventh Session of the Codex ad
hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from Biotechnology
AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, Food Safety and
Inspection Service, Department of Agriculture.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting.
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SUMMARY: The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, United
States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) are sponsoring a public meeting on September 6,
2007, to discuss the agenda items coming before the Seventh Session of
the Codex ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from
Biotechnology (FBT) and to present draft U.S. positions on the agenda
items. The Seventh Session of the FBT will be held in Chiba, Japan,
September 24-28, 2007. The Under Secretary and FDA recognize the
importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to comment
on the agenda items that will be discussed at this forthcoming session
of the FBT.
DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 6, 2007,
from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The public meeting will be held in Room 0161 South
Agriculture Building (Basement), 1400 Independence Avenue, SW.,
Washington, DC (please enter at Wing One). Documents related to the
Seventh Session of the FBT will be accessible via the World Wide Web at
the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp.
For Further Information About the Seventh Session of the FBT
Contact: U.S. Delegate, Dr. Eric Flamm, Senior Advisor, Office of the
Commissioner, Food and Drug Administration (HF-23), Parklawn Building,
Rockville, MD 20857, Phone (301) 827-0591, Fax: (301) 827-4774, E-mail:
eric.flamm@fda.hhs.gov.
For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: Edith
Kennard, Staff Officer, U.S. Codex Office, Food Safety and Inspection
Service (FSIS), Room 4861, South Building, 1400 Independence Avenue,
SW., Washington, DC 20250, Phone: (202) 720-5261, Fax: (202) 720-3157,
E-mail: edith.kennard@fsis.usda.gov. A call-in number can be provided
upon request.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
The Codex Alimentarius (Codex) was established in 1963 by two
United Nations organizations, the Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO) and the World Health Organization (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
that fair practices are used in trade.
The Codex ad hoc Intergovernmental Task Force on Foods Derived from
Biotechnology was established by the 23rd Session of the Codex
Alimentarius Commission in 1999 to elaborate standards, guidelines, or
other principles related to foods derived from biotechnology. The Task
Force completed its mandates within its four-year timeframe and was
dissolved by the 26th Session of the Commission. The 27th Session re-
established the Task Force for another four-year period. The Task Force
is hosted by the government of Japan.
Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting
The following items on the agenda for the Seventh Session of the
FBT will be discussed during the public meeting:
Matters Referred to the Committee from Other Codex Bodies.
Review of the Work by International Intergovernmental
Organizations Related to Foods Derived from Biotechnology.
Summary of the Report of the FAO/WHO Expert. Consultation
on the Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Animals.
Proposed Draft Guideline for the Conduct of Food Safety
Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Animals.
Proposed Draft Annex to the Guideline for the Conduct of
Food Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants:
Food Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA plants
Modified for Nutritional or Health Benefits.
Proposed Draft Annex to the Guideline for the Conduct of
Food Safety Assessment of Foods Derived from Recombinant-DNA Plants
with Low-level Presence of Recombinant-DNA Plant Material.
Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed,
or to be distributed, by the Japanese Secretariat to the Meeting.
Members of the public may access copies of these documents at http://www.codexalimentarius.net/current.asp
.
Public Meeting
At the September 6, 2007, public meeting, draft U.S. positions on
these 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 the U.S. Delegate of
the FBT, Dr. Eric Flamm, at eric.flamm@fda.hhs.gov. Written comments
should state that they relate to activities of the Seventh Session of
the FBT.
Additional Public Notification
Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy
development is important. Consequently, in an effort to ensure 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://www.fsis.usda.gov/regulations/2007_Notices_Index/. 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 constituents
and stakeholders. The update is communicated via Listserv, a free
electronic mail subscription service for industry, trade and farm
groups, consumer interest groups, allied health professionals, and
other individuals who have asked to be included. The update is
available on the FSIS Web page. Through the Listserv and Web page, FSIS
is able to provide information to a much broader and more diverse
audience. In addition, FSIS offers an e-mail 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/news_and_events/email_subscription/.
Options range from recalls to
export information to regulations, directives and notices. Customers
can add or delete subscriptions themselves and have the
[[Page 44486]]
option to password protect their account.
Done at Washington, DC on: August 2, 2007.
F. Edward Scarbrough,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. E7-15396 Filed 8-7-07; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P