Notice2024-19372
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
August 28, 2024
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 public meeting of the full Committee and Subcommittees from September 24, 2024, to September 26, 2024. The Committee will provide updates on FSIS' Genomics charge and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula charge.
Full Text
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<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 167 (Wednesday, August 28, 2024)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 167 (Wednesday, August 28, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 68851-68853]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-19372]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[FSIS-2024-0020]
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 public
meeting of the full Committee and Subcommittees from September 24,
2024, to September 26, 2024. The Committee will provide updates on
FSIS' Genomics charge and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's
(FDA's) Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula charge.
DATES: The full Committee will hold an in-person and virtual public
meeting on Tuesday, September 24, 2024, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
and on Thursday, September 26, 2024, from 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. The
Subcommittees on Genomics and on Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant
Formula will hold concurrent Subcommittee meetings on Wednesday,
September 25, 2024, from 1:00 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Subcommittee meetings
are open to members of the public by virtual attendance only.
Attendance to all meetings is free but pre-registration by Wednesday,
September 18, 2024, is requested.
Persons interested in providing oral comments at the Tuesday,
September 24, 2024, public meeting of the full Committee should
indicate so when registering. Oral comments will be limited to three
minutes per speaker. FSIS will do its best to accommodate all
registered persons who request to provide oral comments at the public
meeting.
[[Page 68852]]
The deadline to submit written comments is Wednesday, September 18,
2024.
ADDRESSES: The meetings will be held in the USDA Whitten Building, 1400
Independence Ave. SW, Washington, DC 20250. In-person attendees will be
escorted to the meeting room upon arrival. Virtual attendees will be
provided details on how to access the full Committee and Subcommittee
meetings upon registration.
In-person attendees must show valid photo identification and will
be required to pass through the security screening systems and escorted
to the respective conference rooms. Please allow adequate time for this
process.
Attendees must pre-register at <a href="https://events.intellor.com/?do=register&t=7&p=509550">https://events.intellor.com/?do=register&t=7&p=509550</a> to receive a join link, dial-in number,
access code, and unique Attendee ID for the public meeting.
An American Sign Language interpreter will be present online during
the public meeting and attendees will also have the option to turn on
closed captions.
For more information on the NACMCF charges, visit: <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>.
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 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-2024-0020. 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 202-720-5046 to schedule a time to visit the FSIS Docket Room at
1400 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC 20250.
Agenda: The Committee meeting will discuss updates on FSIS'
Genomics charge and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's)
Cronobacter spp. in Powdered Infant Formula charge. 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 oral public comment period.
The official transcripts of the September 24-26, 2024, public
meetings, when they become 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; Phone: 202-937-4162; Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#7b353a3836383d3b0e081f1a551c140d"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e2aca3a1afa1a4a297918683cc858d94">[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 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 the 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 Executive
Secretariat and Designated Federal Officer.
The NACMCF charter 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>.
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="https://www.fsis.usda.gov/federal-register">https://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
[[Page 68853]]
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#49393b262e3b28246720273d28222c093c3a2d28672e263f"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="f585879a92879498db9c9b81949e90b580869194db929a83">[email protected]</span></a>.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. Equal
opportunity practices in accordance with USDA's policies will be
followed in all member appointments to the committee. To ensure that
the recommendations of the committee consider the needs of the diverse
groups served by USDA, membership shall include, to the extent
practicable, individuals with demonstrated ability to represent the
many communities, identities, races, ethnicities, backgrounds,
abilities, cultures, and beliefs of the American people, including
underserved communities.
Cikena Reid,
Committee Management Officer.
[FR Doc. 2024-19372 Filed 8-27-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P
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