03-17469. Codex Alimentarius Commission: Twenty-Sixth Session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products

AGENCY:

Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Notice of public meeting and request for comments.

SUMMARY:

The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the Food and Drug Administration, of the Department of Health and Human Services, are sponsoring a public meeting on September 3, 2003, to review the agenda items and to receive comments on all issues coming before the Twenty-sixth Session of the Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products, which will be held in Alesund, Norway, October 13-17, 2003.

DATES:

The public meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 3, 2003, from 9 am. to 12 noon.

ADDRESSES:

The public meeting will be held in the Harvey Wiley Federal Building, 5100 Paint Branch Parkway, College Park, Maryland 20740. Building control will direct the participants to the meeting room.

To receive copies of the documents relevant to this notice, contact the Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) Docket Clerk, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food Safety and Inspection Service, Room 102, Cotton Annex, 300 12th Street SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700. The documents will also become accessible via the World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.net. Send comments, in triplicate, to the FSIS Docket room and reference Docket # 03-023N. All comments submitted in response to this notice will be available for public inspection in the FSIS Docket room between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Syed Amjad Ali, Senior Staff Officer, U.S. Codex Office, FSIS, Room 4861, South Agriculture Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700, telephone [phone]; Fax [phone]. Persons requiring a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations should notify Ms. Janet Walraven, at telephone [phone]; Fax; [phone].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex) was established in 1962 by two United Nations organizations, the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health Organization. Codex is the major international organization for encouraging fair international trade in food and protecting the health and economic interests of consumers. 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 ensure that the world's food supply is sound, wholesome, free from adulteration, and correctly labeled.

The Codex Committee on Fish and Fishery Products was established to elaborate codes and standards for Fish and Fishery Products. The Government of Norway hosts this committee and will chair the committee meeting.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting

The following specific issues will be discussed during the public meeting:

1. Matters referred by the Codex Alimentarius Commission and other Codex committees.

2. Proposed Draft Standard for Salted Atlantic Herring and Salted Sprats.

3. Proposed Draft Code of Practice for Fish and Fishery Products (sections 6 Aquaculture, 7 Molluscan Shellfish, 10 Processing of Quick Frozen Coated Fish Products, 11 Processing of Salted Fish, 12 Processing of Smoked Fish, 13 Processing of Lobsters and Crabs, 14 Processing of Shrimps and Prawns, 15 Processing of Cephalopods, 17 Transport, and 18 Retail).

4. Proposed Draft Standard for Live and Processed Molluscs.

5. Proposed Draft Model Certificate for Fish and Fishery Products “sanitary” certificate.

6. Proposed Draft Model Certificate for Fish and Fishery Products (other certificates).

7. Proposed Draft Standard for Smoked Fish.

8. Proposed Draft Amendment to the Standard for Quick Frozen Lobsters.

9. Proposed Draft Standard for Scallops Adductor Muscle Meat.

10. Proposed Draft Amendment to the Standard for Salted Fish and Dried Salted Fish of the Gadidae Family.

11. Proposed Draft Standard for Sturgeon Caviar.

12. Discussion paper—Inclusion of additional species and on labeling requirements related to the “name of the product” in Codex Standards (Proposed Draft Amendment to the Canned Sardines Standard).

13. Discussion paper on how to measure fish content in fish sticks.

Additional Public Notification

Public awareness of all segments of rulemaking and policy development is important. Consequently, in an effort to better ensure that minorities, women, and persons with disabilities are aware of this notice, FSIS will announce it and make copies of this Federal Register publication available through the FSIS Constituent Update. FSIS provides a weekly Constituent Update, which is communicated via Listserv, a free e-mail subscription service. In addition, the update is available on-line through the FSIS Web page located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov. The update is used to provide information regarding FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal Register notices, FSIS public meetings, recalls, and any other types of information that could affect or would be of interest to our constituents/stakeholders. The constituent Listserv consists of industry, trade, and farm groups, consumer interest groups, allied health professionals, scientific professionals, and other individuals that have requested to be included. Through the Listserv and web page, FSIS is able to provide information to a much broader, more diverse audience.

For more information contact the Congressional and Public Affairs Office, at [phone]. To be added to the free e-mail subscription service (Listserv) go to the “Constituent Update” page on the FSIS web site at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/​oa/​update/​update.htm. Click on “Subscribe to the Constituent Update Listserv” link, then fill out and submit the form.

Done at Washington, DC on: July 7, 2003.

F. Edward Scarbrough,

U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.