Notice2023-23636
National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods: Public Meeting
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
October 26, 2023
Issuing agencies
Agriculture DepartmentFood Safety and Inspection Service
Abstract
This notice is announcing that the National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods (NACMCF) will hold a virtual public meeting from November 14, 2023, through November 16, 2023. The NACMCF Secretariat will introduce newly appointed members for the 2023- 2025 Committee term and introduce a new charge from FSIS on genomic characterization of pathogens. Also, the Committee will continue working on the response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula charge.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 88 Issue 206 (Thursday, October 26, 2023)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 206 (Thursday, October 26, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 73583-73585]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2023-23636]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[FSIS-2023-0024]
National Advisory Committee on Microbiological Criteria for
Foods: Public Meeting
AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS), Department of
Agriculture (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 virtual
public meeting from November 14, 2023, through November 16, 2023. The
NACMCF Secretariat will introduce newly appointed members for the 2023-
2025 Committee term and introduce a new charge from FSIS on genomic
characterization of pathogens. Also, the Committee will continue
working on the response to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's
(FDA) Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula charge.
DATES: The full Committee will hold a virtual public plenary meeting on
Tuesday, November 14, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Concurrent
virtual public subcommittee meetings will be held on Tuesday, November
14, 2023, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. As well as on Wednesday, November
15, 2023, from 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Thursday, November 16, 2023,
from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., respectively. Attendance is free but
pre-registration by Wednesday, November 8, 2023, is requested.
The deadline to submit written comments is Wednesday, November 8,
2023.
ADDRESSES: The plenary and subcommittee meetings will be held virtually
using Webex. Attendees must pre-register at <a href="https://ems8.intellor.com/?do=register&t=1&p=849304">https://ems8.intellor.com/?do=register&t=1&p=849304</a> to receive a join link, dial-in number,
access code, and unique Attendee ID for the plenary and subcommittee
meetings. Persons interested in providing comments at the Tuesday,
November 14, 2023, plenary meeting should indicate so when registering.
Comments will be limited to three minutes per speaker.
An American Sign Language interpreter will be present during the
meeting and attendees will also have the option to turn on closed
captions.
Written 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 the web page or
attach a file for lengthier comments. Go to <a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>. 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
[[Page 73584]]
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-2023-0024. Comments made
in response to the docket will be made available for public inspection
and posted without change, including any personal information, to
<a href="https://www.regulations.gov">https://www.regulations.gov</a>.
Docket: For access to background documents or comments received,
call (202) 937-4272 to schedule a time to visit the FSIS Docket Room at
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250.
Agenda: FSIS will finalize an agenda on or before the meeting date
and post it on the FSIS web page at <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings">https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/newsroom/meetings</a>. Please note that the meeting agenda is
subject to change; 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.
The official transcript of the November 14, 2023 plenary meeting,
when it becomes available, will be posted on FSIS' website at <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collectionand-reports/nacmcf/meetings/nacmcfmeetings">https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/data-collectionand-reports/nacmcf/meetings/nacmcfmeetings</a>.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Kristal Southern, USDA, FSIS, Office
of Public Health Science, 1400 Independence Avenue SW, Room 1128,
Washington, DC 20250; Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#2a646b6967696c6a5f594e4b044d455c"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="8cc2cdcfc1cfcaccf9ffe8eda2ebe3fa">[email protected]</span></a>.
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, Agriculture, and Related Agencies
Appropriation Bill for fiscal year 1988. The charter for the NACMCF is
available for viewing at <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/advisory-committees/national-advisory-committee-microbiological-criteria-foods-nacmcf">https://www.fsis.usda.gov/policy/advisory-committees/national-advisory-committee-microbiological-criteria-foods-nacmcf</a>. The NACMCF provides impartial 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 Departments of Commerce
and Defense. The Committee reports to the Secretary of Agriculture
through the Under Secretary for Food Safety, the Committee's Chair, and
to the Secretary of Health and Human Services through the Assistant
Secretary for Health, the Committee's Vice-Chair. Currently, Dr. Emilio
Esteban, Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA, is the Committee Chair;
Dr. Donald Prater, Acting Director of the Food and Drug
Administration's Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN),
is the Vice-Chair; and Dr. Kristal Southern, USDA FSIS, is the Director
of the NACMCF Secretariat and Designated Federal Officer.
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. 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 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 online through the FSIS web page located at:
<a href="http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register">http://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register</a>. 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
can 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: <a href="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/subscribe">https://www.fsis.usda.gov/subscribe</a>. 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 Non-Discrimination Statement
In accordance with Federal civil rights law and USDA civil rights
regulations and policies, USDA, its Mission Areas, agencies, staff
offices, 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.
Program information may be made available in languages other than
English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of
communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large
print, audiotape, American Sign Language) should contact the
responsible Mission Area, agency, or staff office; the USDA TARGET
Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY); or the Federal Relay Service
at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a complainant should
complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form,
which can be obtained online at <a href="https://www.usda.gov/forms/electronic-forms">https://www.usda.gov/forms/electronic-forms</a>, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a
letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant's
name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the
alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the
Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date
of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or
letter must be submitted 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: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
(3) Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#8cfcfee3ebfeede1a2e5e2f8ede7e9ccf9ffe8eda2ebe3fa"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="067674696174676b286f6872676d63467375626728616970">[email protected]</span></a>.
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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
Dated: October 19, 2023.
Cikena Reid,
Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2023-23636 Filed 10-25-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P
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This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.