Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 11 / Thursday, January 18, 2007 / Notices 2257 

DC 20250–0522; Telephone (202) 690–

4018; Electronic mail: 

cathyquayle@wdc.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Title: Operating Loans; Policies, 

Procedures, Authorizations and 

Closings. 

OMB Control Number: 0560–0162. 

Expiration Date of Approval: July 31, 

2007. 

Type of Request: Extension of a 

Currently Approved Information 

Collection. 

Abstract: The information collected 

under OMB Control Number is 0560–

0162 is necessary to effectively 

administer the operating loan program 

in accordance with the requirements in 

7 CFR part 1941 as authorized by the 

Consolidated Farm and Rural 

Development Act. Specifically, the 

Agency uses the information to evaluate 

loan making or loan servicing proposals, 

and to process loan closings. The 

information is needed to evaluate an 

applicant’s eligibility, and to determine 

if the operation is economically feasible 

and if the security offered in support of 

the loan is adequate. 

Estimate of Annual Respondent 

Burden: Public reporting burden for this 

collection of information is estimated to 

average .12 hours per response. 

Respondents: Individuals or 

households, businesses or other for 

profit and farms. 

Estimated Number of Respondents: 

51,466. 

Estimated Number of Responses per 

Respondent: 1. 

Estimated Total Annual Burden on 

Respondents: 6,176. 

Comments are invited on the 

following: (a) Whether the collection of 

information is necessary for the proper 

performance of the functions of the 

agency, including whether the 

information will have practical utility; 

(b) the accuracy of the agency’s estimate 

of burden, including the validity of the 

methodology and assumptions used; (c) 

ways to enhance the quality, utility and 

clarity of the information to be 

collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 

burden of the collection of information 

on those who are to respond, including 

through the use of appropriate 

automated, electronic, mechanical, or 

other technological collection 

techniques or other forms of information 

technology. These comments should be 

sent to the Desk Officer for Agriculture, 

Office of Information and Regulatory 

Affairs, Office of Management and 

Budget, Washington, DC 20503 and to 

Cathy Quayle, Senior Loan Officer, 

USDA, Farm Service Agency, Loan 

Making Division, 1400 Independence 

Avenue, SW., STOP 0522, Washington, 

DC 20250–0522. 

Comments will be summarized and 

included in the request for Office of 

Management and Budget approval of the 

information collection. All comments 

will also become a matter of public 

record. 

Signed in Washington, DC on January 10, 

2007. 

Thomas B. Hofeller, 

Acting Administrator, Farm Service Agency. 

[FR Doc. E7–599 Filed 1–17–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–05–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Food Safety and Inspection Service 

[Docket No. FSIS–2006–0040E] 

Product Labeling: Definition of the 

Term ‘‘Natural’’

AGENCY: Food Safety and Inspection 

Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of petition and public 

meeting; extension of comment period. 

SUMMARY: The Food Safety and 

Inspection Service (FSIS) is re-opening 

and extending the comment period on a 

petition submitted by Hormel Foods on 

the voluntary labeling claim ‘‘natural’’

and on the broader question of how to 

define this claim. The original comment 

period closed on January 11, 2007. The 

Agency is taking this action in response 

to requests that were made at and after 

a public meeting that the Agency held 

on December 12, 2006, to discuss both 

the Hormel petition and issues 

associated with the claim ‘‘natural’’ in 

general. 

DATES: Comments are due by March 5, 

2007. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted by any of the following 

methods: 

Federal eRulemaking Portal: This 

Web site provides the ability to type 

short comments directly into the 

comment field on this Web page or 

attach a file for lengthier comments. Go 

to http://www.regulations.gov and, in 

the ‘‘Search for Open Regu1ations’’ box, 

select ‘‘Food Safety and Inspection 

Service’’ from the agency drop-down 

menu, and then click on ‘‘Submit.’’ In 

the Docket ID column, select FDMS 

Docket Number FSIS–2005–0040 to 

submit or view public comments and to 

view supporting and related material 

available electronically. This docket can 

be viewed using the ‘‘Advanced Search’’

function in Regulations.gov. 

Mail, including floppy disks or CD– 

ROM’s, and hand or courier-delivered 

items: Send to Docket Clerk, U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Food Safety 

and Inspection Service, 300 12th Street, 

SW., Room 102 Cotton Annex, 

Washington, DC 20250. 

Electronic mail: FSIS.regulations

comments@fsis.usda.gov. 

All submissions received by mail and 

electronic mail must include the Agency 

name and docket number FSIS–2006–

0040. All comments submitted in 

response to this notice will be available 

for public inspection in the FSIS Docket 

Room at the address listed above 

between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., 

Monday through Friday. The comments 

also will be posted to the 

regulations.gov Web site and on the 

Agency’s Web site at http://www.fsis.

usda.gov/regulations_&_policies/2006_

Proposed_Rules_Index/index.asp. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Robert C. Post, Director, Labeling and 

Consumer Protection Staff, Office of 

Policy, Program, and Employee 

Development, USDA, FSIS, 1400 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC 20250, (202) 205–3625, 

e-mail: Robert.Post@fsis.usda.gov. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On 

December 5, 2006, FSIS published a 

notice in the Federal Register that 

announced the receipt of a petition 

submitted by Hormel Foods requesting 

that the Agency amend the meat 

inspection and poultry products 

inspection regulations to establish a 

definition for the voluntary claim 

‘‘natural’’ and to delineate the 

conditions under which the claim can 

be used on the labels of meat and 

poultry products (71 FR 70503). In the 

notice, FSIS gave the public until 

January 11, 2007, to submit comments 

on the petition and on issues associated 

with the claim ‘‘natural’’ in general. The 

notice also announced that, to facilitate 

the comment process, the Agency would 

hold a public meeting to discuss the 

petition. The public meeting was held 

on December 12, 2006. In the December 

5, 2006, Federal Register notice, FSIS 

also announced that after the comment 

period for the petition closes, the 

Agency will initiate rulemaking on the 

‘‘natural’’ claim. 

At, as well as after, the December 12, 

2006, public meeting, FSIS received 

several comments requesting that the 

Agency extend the comment period 

provided in the December 5, 2006, 

Federal Register notice by an additional 

60 days from the initial closing date of 

January 11, 2007. The comments were 

submitted by a representative of a food 

ingredient manufacturer, a trade 

association that represents flavor 

manufacturers and others with an 


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2258 Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 11 / Thursday, January 18, 2007 / Notices 

interest in the U.S. flavor industry, and 

a group of trade associations that 

represent the meat, poultry, and food 

processing industries. 

All of the comments stated that 

because the issues surrounding the 

claim ‘‘natural’’ are complex, interested 

parties need additional time than what 

was provided in the December 5, 2006, 

Federal Register notice to prepare 

thoughtful comments. The comments 

also argued that, to properly consider 

issues associated with the petition and 

the claim ‘‘natural,’’ stakeholders must 

have access to the information 

presented by both FSIS and the public 

at the December 12, 2006, public 

meeting. One comment stated that it is 

important that stakeholders have the 

opportunity to thoroughly evaluate 

possible changes to the definition or 

criteria for labeling a meat or poultry 

product ‘‘natural’’ to ensure that the 

industry is able to continue to market 

products that bear the ‘‘natural’’ claim 

and to ensure that these products meet 

consumer expectations. 

In addition to the reasons discussed 

above, the comments also argued that 

because the comment period includes 

the upcoming holidays, trade 

associations may have a difficult time 

collecting meaningful input from their 

members before the January 11, 2007, 

closing date. The comments also stated 

that the comment period falls during 

what is typically the busiest time of year 

for meat and poultry companies. One 

comment stated that FSIS gave little 

notice before the December 12, 2006, 

public meeting, and that interested 

parties lost time preparing comments for 

the public meeting and rearranging their 

schedules to attend the public meeting. 

FSIS agrees that the issues 

surrounding the labeling claim 

‘‘natural’’ are complex, and that 

interested parties should have 

additional time to consider information 

presented at the December 12, 2006, 

public meeting. Therefore, to facilitate 

the comment process, the Agency has 

decided to re-open and extend the 

comment period until March 5, 2007. 

The transcript of the December 12, 2006, 

public meeting is now available on the 

FSIS Web site at http:// 

www.fsis.usda.gov/News_&_Events/ 

2006_events/index.asp for viewing by 

the public. Therefore, this notice 

announces that the Agency is reopening and extending the comment 

period for the Hormel petition until 

March 5, 2007. 

Additional Public Notification 

Public awareness of all segments of 

rulemaking and policy development is 

important. Consequently, in an effort to 

ensure that the public and in particular 

minorities, women, and persons with 

disabilities, are aware of this proposal, 

FSIS will announce it on-line through 

the FSIS Web page located at http:// 

www.fsis.usda.gov/ 

regulations_&_policies/ 

2006_Proposed_Rules_Index/index.asp. 

The Regulations.gov Web site is the 

central online rulemaking portal of the 

United States government. It is being 

offered as a public service to increase 

participation in the Federal 

government’s regulatory activities. FSIS 

participates in Regulations.gov and will 

accept comments on documents 

published on the site. The site allows 

visitors to search by keyword or 

Department or Agency for rulemakings 

that allow for public comment. Each 

entry provides a quick link to a 

comment form so that visitors can type 

in their comments and submit them to 

FSIS. The Web site is located at 

http://www.regulations.gov. 

FSIS also will make copies of this 

Federal Register publication available 

through the FSIS Constituent Update, 

which is used to provide information 

regarding FSIS policies, procedures, 

regulations, Federal Register notices, 

FSIS public meetings, recalls, and other 

types of information that could affect or 

would be of interest to our constituents 

and stakeholders. The update is 

communicated via Listserv, a free e-mail 

subscription service consisting of 

industry, trade, and farm groups, 

consumer interest groups, allied health 

professionals, scientific professionals, 

and other individuals who have 

requested to be included. The update 

also is available on the FSIS Web page. 

Through Listserv and the Web page, 

FSIS is able to 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 

http://www.fsis.usda.gov/ 

news_and_events/email_subscription/. 

Options range from recalls to export 

information to regulations, directives 

and notices. Customers can add or 

delete subscriptions themselves and 

have the option to password protect 

their account. 

Done in Washington, DC: January 12, 2007. 

Barbara J. Masters, 

Administrator. 

[FR Doc. 07–192 Filed 1–12–07; 3:10 pm] 

BILLING CODE 3410–DM–P 

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

Forest Service 

Lolo National Forest—Butte Lookout 

Project 

AGENCY: Forest Service, USDA. 

ACTION: Notice of Intent to prepare 

Environmental Impact Statement. 

SUMMARY: The Forest Service will 

prepare an environmental impact 

statement (EIS) for timber harvesting, 

prescribed burning, road access 

changes, and watershed rehabilitation in 

a 12,000-acre drainage area near 

Missoula, Montana. 

DATES: Comments concerning the scope 

of the analysis should be received in 

writing within 30 days following 

publication of this notice. Comments 

received during the initial scoping in 

December 2005, will be considered in 

the analysis and do not need to be 

resubmitted during this comment time 

period. 

ADDRESSES: Send written comments to 

Maggie Pittman, District Ranger, 

Missoula Ranger District, Building 24 

Fort Missoula, Missoula, MT 59804. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Don 

Stadler, Interdisciplinary Team Leader, 

Missoula Ranger District, as above, or 

phone: (406) 329–3731. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

responsible official who will make 

decisions based on this EIS is Deborah 

L. R. Austin, Lolo National Forest, 

Building 24 Fort Missoula, Missoula, 

MT 59804. She will decide on this 

proposal after considering comments 

and responses, environmental 

consequences discussed in the Final 

EIS, and applicable laws, regulations, 

and policies. The decision and reasons 

for the decision will be documented in 

a Record of Decision. 

In 1996, Missoula District completed 

an ‘‘ecosystem analysis at the watershed 

scale’’ for the South Fork of Lolo Creek 

watershed. Ecosystem analysis takes a 

look at the big picture and integrate 

projects to achieve long-term Lolo 

National Forest management goals and 

desired future conditions. This 

ecosystem analysis provided the basis 

for this proposed action. 

The proposed management action is 

to harvest and/or burn about 70 units 

totaling about 1,455 acres using one to 

five commercial timber sale(s), and to 

decommission around 27.9 miles of 

system and non-system roads. Of that 

1,455 acre total, about 1,180 acres 

would be regneration harvested and/or 

burned and about 275 acres would be 

commercially thinned. Less than one 


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