Food Safety and Inspection Service – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Office of the Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Veterinary Medicine, are sponsoring a public meeting on August 16, 2010. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 19th Session of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods (CCRVDF), which will be held in Burlington, Vermont, from August 30-September 3, 2010. The Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety and the FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, this notice announces the Food Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS) intention to request a revision of a currently approved information collection regarding Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) for ready-to-eat (RTE) meat and poultry products because the OMB approval will expire on November 30, 2010, and to reflect its most recent plant data, which supports an estimate of fewer total burden hours.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, this notice announces that the Secretary of Agriculture signed the charter of the National Advisory Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection (NACMPI) on June 19, 2010. The charter for the NACMPI is available for viewing on the NACMPI home page at https://www.fsis.usda.gov/About_ FSIS/NACMPI/index.asp.

This notice is announcing that the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), are jointly hosting two public meetings to obtain stakeholder input. The first is on July 21, 2010, in Chicago, IL. The second will be held on October 20, 2010, in Portland, OR. The Agencies are requesting information from all stakeholders, including the regulated food industry, State regulators, and consumer groups, on appropriate metrics to be used to assess performance in food safety. The Agencies are also interested in input on stakeholders' understanding and perceptions of metrics currently being used by the Federal Agencies. Although the Agencies are primarily interested in obtaining stakeholder input, the Agencies will present a limited amount of background on the Food Safety Working Group's charge to create meaningful metrics to measure the effectiveness of the Nation's food safety system and the Agency's current thinking on these issues.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, this notice announces the Food Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS) intention to request a revision of an approved information collection regarding pathogen reduction and Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) Systems requirements because OMB approval will expire on December 31, 2010, and to include information on the use of video recordkeeping.

This notice informs the public of the sanitary and phytosanitary standard-setting activities of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), in accordance with section 491 of the Trade Agreements Act of 1979, as amended, and the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, Public Law 103-465, 108 Stat. 4809. This notice also provides a list of other standard-setting activities of Codex, including commodity standards, guidelines, codes of practice, and revised texts. This notice, which covers the time periods from June 1, 2009, to May 31, 2010, and June 1, 2010, to May 31, 2011, seeks comments on standards under consideration and recommendations for new standards.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to revise the Federal meat inspection regulations to permit establishments that slaughter livestock or prepare livestock carcasses and parts to inflate carcasses and parts with air if they develop, implement, and maintain written controls to ensure that the procedure does not cause insanitary conditions or adulterate product. FSIS is proposing to require that establishments incorporate these controls into their Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) plans or Sanitation standard operating procedures (Sanitation SOPs) or other prerequisite programs.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is amending the Federal poultry products inspection regulations to correct an inadvertent error in the required shackle width for Bar-type cut turkey operations that use J-type cut maximum line speeds.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing to implement provisions of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 by adopting regulations that require official establishments to promptly notify the appropriate District Office that an adulterated or misbranded meat or poultry product has entered commerce; require official establishments to prepare and maintain current procedures for the recall of meat and poultry products produced and shipped by the establishment; and require official establishments to document each reassessment of the establishment's process control plans, that is, its Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point plans.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing that it will hold a public meeting on March 10, 2010 to discuss Agency procedures for identifying suppliers of source material used to produce raw beef product that FSIS has found positive for Escherichia coli (E. coli) O157:H7. FSIS will also discuss additional verification activities the Agency will conduct at suppliers in response to positive E. coli O157:H7 results. In addition, FSIS will seek input from meeting participants on ways to improve Agency procedures for identifying product that may be positive for E. coli O157:H7.

The Office for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), is sponsoring a public meeting on March 23, 2010. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States positions that will be discussed at the 26th session of the Codex Committee on General Principles (CCGP) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Paris, France, April 12-16, 2010. The Office for Food Safety recognizes the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 26th Session of the

The Office of the Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring a public meeting on February 8, 2010. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.) positions that will be discussed at the 42nd Session of the Codex Committee on Food Additives (CCFA) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Beijing, China March 15-19, 2010. The Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety and FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 42nd Session of the

The Office for Food Safety, and the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), are sponsoring a public meeting on January 13, 2010. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States positions that will be discussed at the 9th Session of the Codex Committee on Milk and Milk Products (CCMMP) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Auckland, New Zealand, February 1-5, 2010. The Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety and the AMS recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 9th Session of

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, this notice is announcing the Food Safety and Inspection Service's (FSIS's) intention to request an extension of an information collection regarding data on meat, poultry, exotic animal, and rabbit slaughter for the Agency's electronic Animal Disease Reporting System (eADRS) since the OMB approval for this information collection is scheduled to expire in February 2010, and because the Agency now has more accurate data regarding eADRS, which has led to an increase in the estimate of burden hours.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing its intention to request a revision of an information collection concerning the exportation, transportation, and importation of meat and poultry products since the OMB approval for this information collection is scheduled to expire in January 2010, and because the Agency now has more accurate data regarding the forms used to export and import product.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing that it will hold two public meetings on proposed regulations that it recently published to implement a new voluntary cooperative program under which State-inspected establishments with 25 or fewer employees will be eligible to ship meat and poultry products in interstate commerce (74 FR 47648, September 16, 2009). To provide stakeholders with ready access to the public meetings, FSIS will conduct these meetings by teleconference. This notice provides information on the public meetings.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is proposing regulations to implement a new voluntary cooperative program under which State-inspected establishments with 25 or fewer employees will be eligible to ship meat and poultry products in interstate commerce. In participating States, State-inspected establishments selected to take part in this program will be required to comply with all Federal standards under the Federal Meat Inspection Act (FMIA) and the Poultry Products Inspection Act (PPIA), as well as with all State standards. These establishments will receive inspection services from State inspection personnel that have been trained in the enforcement of the FMIA and PPIA. Meat and poultry products produced under the program that have been inspected and passed by designated State personnel will bear an official Federal mark of inspection and will be permitted to be distributed in interstate commerce. FSIS will provide oversight and enforcement of the program.

The Office of the Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), are sponsoring a public meeting on October 8, 2009. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States positions that will be discussed at the 31st Session of the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in D[uuml]sseldorf, Germany on November 2- November 6, 2009. In addition, a working group will meet on October 31st on the Development of Nutrient Reference Values for Nutrients Associated with Increased or Decreased Risk of Non-communicable Diseases. The Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety and FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 31st Session of the CCNFSDU and to

The Office of the Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring a public meeting on September 2, 2009. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft United States positions that will be discussed at the 30th Session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products (CCFFP) of the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), which will be held in Agadir, Morocco from September 28 to October 2, 2009. The Acting Under Secretary for Food Safety and the FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is amending the Federal meat inspection regulations to correct an inadvertent error in the recordkeeping provisions.

In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regulations, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is announcing its intention to request an extension of an information collection concerning the application for return of exported product.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Food and Drug Administration/Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (FDA/ CFSAN) are holding a public meeting to present the background, approach, scope, and data needs for a recently initiated interagency risk assessment of the public health impact of foodborne Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) in some ready-to-eat foods that are sliced, prepared, or packaged in retail facilities. The purpose of this ``Interagency Retail L. monocytogenes Risk Assessment'' is to ascertain the effect on the public health of current practices and potential interventions that reduce or prevent L. monocytogenes contamination in ready-to-eat foods. FSIS and FDA invite interested individuals, organizations, and other stakeholders to participate in the meeting and comment on this topic.

The Office of the Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Veterinary Medicine, are sponsoring a public meeting on April 29, 2009. The objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive public comments on agenda items and draft U.S. positions that will be discussed at the 18th Session of the Codex Committee on Residues of Veterinary Drugs in Foods (CCRVDF) which will be held in Natal, Brazil from May 11-15, 2009. The Acting Deputy Under Secretary for Food Safety and the FDA recognize the importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain background information on the 18th CCRVDF session

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is requesting public comment on a draft quantitative food safety risk assessment for Listeria monocytogenes (L. monocytogenes) that compares the risk of listeriosis from consumption of prepackaged ready-to-eat (RTE) deli meat versus RTE deli meat that is sliced and packaged at retail. The risk assessment analyzes the comparative risk of listeriosis from prepackaged RTE deli meat versus RTE deli meat that is sliced and packaged at retail using data from a study by the National Alliance for Food Safety and Security (NAFSS) and new consumer survey data from Research Triangle Institute (RTI) International, Tennessee State University, and Kansas State University.

The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is affirming, without change, its interim final rule requiring a country of origin statement on the label of any meat or poultry product that is a covered commodity, as defined by the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), and that is to be sold by a retailer, also as defined by AMS, in accordance with the regulations set out in AMS' final rule, ``Mandatory Country of Origin Labeling of Beef, Pork, Lamb, Chicken, Goat Meat, Perishable Agricultural Commodities, Peanuts, Pecans, Ginseng, and Macadamia Nuts.'' FSIS is also affirming, without change, the provisions of the interim final rule that amended its regulations to provide that it will consider the addition of compliant country of origin statements to the labels of covered meat or poultry products to be generically approved. FSIS is thus conforming its regulations to the AMS final rule. FSIS is not amending its regulations or labeling policies for meat or poultry products that are non-covered commodities.