[Federal Register Volume 65, Number 89 (Monday, May 8, 2000)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26563-26565]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 00-11419]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. 00-016N]


Notice of Public Meeting: Revised Action Plan for the Control of 
Listeria monocytogenes for the Prevention of the Foodborne Illness 
Listeriosis

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meeting; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will hold a 
public meeting to discuss and receive public comment regarding Listeria 
monocytogenes (Lm). The purpose of the meeting is to discuss the 
initiatives the Agency took after its February 1999

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public meeting on Lm and the Agency's future plans to further protect 
the public from foodborne illnesses associated with Lm. The Agency also 
invites data and public comment on Lm.

DATE: The meeting will be held May 15, 2000, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 
Written comments must be received by June 7, 2000.

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at the Holiday Inn--Washington, DC 
on the Hill, 415 New Jersey Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20001, 
telephone number is 202-638-1616.
    To register for the meeting and to schedule a presentation, contact 
Mary Harris, FSIS, by telephone (202) 501-7136 or FAX (202) 501-7642. 
If a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation is 
necessary, contact Ms. Harris at the above number.
    Submit one original and two copies of written comments to: FSIS 
Docket Clerk, Docket #00-016N, Room 102 Cotton Annex, 300 12th Street, 
SW., Washington, DC 20250-3700. All comments received in response to 
this notice will be considered part of the public record and will be 
available for viewing in the FSIS Docket Room between 8:30 a.m. and 
4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Judith Riggins, Associate Deputy 
Administrator, Office of Policy, Program Development and Evaluation, by 
telephone (202) 720-2709 or Fax (202) 720-2025.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) is found in soil 
and water and can contaminate a variety of raw foods, such as uncooked 
meats and vegetables, as well as foods that become contaminated after 
processing, such as soft cheeses, and cold cuts. Consumption of food 
contaminated with Lm can cause listeriosis, an uncommon but potentially 
fatal disease, that can lead to serious and sometimes fatal infections 
in pregnant women, newborns, the elderly, and persons with weakened 
immune systems, such as those with a chronic disease, an HIV infection, 
or who are undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
    FSIS considers Lm to be an adulterant in ready-to-eat (RTE) meat 
and poultry products. FSIS has established and enforces a zero 
tolerance (no detectable level permitted) for this pathogen in RTE 
products. Since 1989, FSIS has conducted a monitoring program within 
plants to test for Lm in certain ready-to-eat (RTE) products such as 
hot dogs and luncheon meats. FSIS analyzes approximately 3,500 samples 
for Lm each year. The following product categories are included in the 
monitoring program: (1) Beef jerkey, (2) roast beef, cooked beef, and 
cooked corned beef, (3) sliced ham and luncheon meat, (4) small-
diameter sausage, (5) large-diameter sausage, (6) cooked, uncured 
poultry, (7) salads and spreads, and (8) dry and semi-dry fermented 
sausage.
    Out of 3,547 samples of RTE meat and poultry products analyzed in 
calendar year 1998 through the monitoring program, 90 samples, or 
approximately 2.5 percent, tested positive for Lm. FSIS sampling of 
just hot dogs from 1993 to 1996 showed that approximately 4.4 percent 
of the samples were positive for Lm. FSIS' monitoring program, 
implemented before pathogen reduction and HACCP implementation, was 
intended to encourage industry process control and validation. However, 
this program was not statistically designed and thus information 
obtained from it cannot be used to make determinations about Listeria 
contamination on a nationwide basis.
    To gather information on Lm and listeriosis associated with RTE 
meat and poultry products, FSIS held a public meeting on February 10, 
1999 (64 FR 5629). The Agency held this meeting in response to a large 
outbreak of listeriosis that occurred in late 1998/early 1999 that was 
attributed to bacteria in a RTE meat or poultry product and several 
recalls of Lm adulterated meat and poultry products. At this meeting, 
experts from FSIS, Centers for Disease Control (CDC), and the Food and 
Drug Administration (FDA), as well as industry groups and consumer 
groups shared foodborne illness and product contamination statistics on 
Lm, as well as information about on-going research projects and future 
research needs for Lm, testing programs for Lm, and educational efforts 
about Lm. At the meeting, FSIS also discussed its zero tolerance policy 
regarding Lm in RTE meat and poultry products.
    In May of 1999, FSIS Administrator Tom Billy announced an action 
plan comprised of a number of initiatives that FSIS was undertaking to 
reduce the risk of foodborne illness attributed to Lm. The action plan 
for the control of Lm was based on the information obtained at the 
February 1999 public meeting as well as other information obtained by 
FSIS. The initiatives set forth in the action plan included near-term 
and long-term activities that involved all programs of the Agency, as 
well as interagency activities. Some of these activities included 
issuing a Federal Register notice (64 FR 28351) advising manufacturers 
of RTE meat and poultry products of the need to reassess their HACCP 
plans to ensure that the plans were adequately addressing Lm, 
developing consumer education material targeted to reach individuals at 
an increased risk for developing listeriosis, developing guidance 
material for the regulated industry on practices that have been used 
successfully by meat and poultry establishments to prevent the 
occurrence of Lm in RTE products, conducting a study on the post 
production growth of Lm, and working with FDA to conduct a risk 
assessment for Lm.
    FSIS has now revised its action plan for the control of Lm based on 
its analysis of the comments and data received in response to the 
February 1999 public meeting, recommendations of the National Advisory 
Committee on Meat and Poultry Inspection and the National Advisory 
Committee on Microbiological Criteria for Foods, a petition received in 
January 2000 from the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), 
and the work of an interdisciplinary Agency working group.
    To update the public on the initiatives undertaken and to provide 
the public with FSIS' revised action plan for the control of Lm, FSIS 
will hold a public meeting on May 15, 2000. FSIS requests additional 
data on Lm and public comment on the revised action plan. Some of the 
topics to be discussed at the May 15 meeting are:
    <bullet> The public health impact of foodborne Lm contamination;
    <bullet> The results of FSIS's review of what establishments did in 
response to its May 1999 Federal Register notice on reassessment of 
HACCP plans to ensure that they adequately address Lm;
    <bullet> The revised instructions to be issued to field employees 
regarding the testing and sampling of RTE products;
    <bullet> The petition received by FSIS from CSPI, (copies are 
available in the FSIS Docket Clerk's office, See ADDRESSES);
    <bullet> Consumer education about Lm; and
    <bullet> Research on Lm.
    The agenda for the public meeting will be available on the FSIS 
homepage, www.usda.fsis.gov and at the meeting.
    Representatives from government, industry groups, consumer groups, 
and academia will lead the discussions. There will be time at the end 
of the meeting for general public comment. However, attendees must 
sign-up in advance to speak during the public comment session. The 
sign-up sheet will be at the meeting. Time allotted for comment will be 
approximately 5 minutes for each participant, but will depend on the 
number of people participating.

[[Page 26565]]

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 provide copies of this Federal 
Register publication in the FSIS Constituent Update. FSIS provides a 
weekly FSIS Constituent Update, which is communicated via fax to over 
300 organizations and individuals. 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 fax list 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 these various channels, FSIS is able to provide 
information to a much broader, more diverse audience. For more 
information and to be added to the constituent fax list, fax your 
request to the Congressional and Public Affairs Office, at (202) 720-
5704.

    Done at Washington, DC, on: May 3, 2000.
Thomas J. Billy,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 00-11419 Filed 5-5-00; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-DM-P