Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 249 / Friday, December 28, 2001 / Notices 67169

Act of 1946 (7 U.S.C. 1621–1627).

Congress requested that AMS hold a

public meeting to seek input from all

interested parties (H.R. No. 275, 107th

Congress, 1st session, at 65). Therefore,

AMS, is giving notice of a public

meeting to allow anyone, especially

those who are interested in food safety

issues, an opportunity to present their

input regarding MDP. This public

meeting is scheduled for Thursday,

January 10, 2002. The public meeting

will begin at 8:30 a.m. and is scheduled

to end at 1 p.m. It will be held at the

Jamie L. Whitten Federal Building,

Room 107–A, United States Department

of Agriculture, 12th and Jefferson Drive,

SW, Washington DC 20250.

Those parties who wish to speak at

the meeting should register on or before

January 7, 2002. To register to speak,

please e-mail

Robert.Epstein@USDA.gov, or send a fax

to Dr. Robert Epstein at (202) 720–6496.

Registrants should include their name,

address, and daytime telephone

number. Depending on the number of

registered speakers, time limits may be

imposed on speakers, and speakers who

have registered in advance will be given

priority if time is limited.

The proposed agenda for the meeting

will include discussions of: (1) MDP

Overview and Framework, (2) MDP

sampling rationale and principles, (3)

Public health agencies program needs,

and (4) Public recommendations and

concerns.

Upon entering the Jamie L. Whitten

Federal Building, visitors should inform

security personnel that they are

attending the MDP Public Meeting.

Identification will be required to be

admitted to the building. Security

personnel will direct visitors to the

registration tables located outside of

Room 107–A. Registration upon arrival

is necessary for all participants,

including those who have registered to

speak in advance.

If you require special

accommodations, such as a sign

language interpreter, please contact the

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. The meeting will

be recorded, and information about

obtaining a transcript will be provided

at the meeting.

Dated: December 21, 2001.

A. J. Yates,

Administrator, Agricultural Marketing

Service.

[FR Doc. 01–31967 Filed 12–21–01; 2:27 pm]

BILLING CODE 3410–02–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection

Service

[Docket No. 01–119–1]

Availability of an Environmental

Assessment for Field Testing Avian

Encephalomyelitis-Fowl PoxMycoplasma Gallisepticum Vaccine,

Live Virus, Fowl Pox Vector

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of availability and

request for comments.

SUMMARY: We are informing the public

that the Animal and Plant Health

Inspection Service has prepared an

environmental assessment concerning

authorization to ship for the purpose of

field testing, and then to field test, an

unlicensed avian encephalomyelitisfowl pox-mycoplasma gallisepticum

vaccine for use in poultry. The

environmental assessment, which is

based on a risk analysis prepared to

assess the risks associated with the field

testing of this vaccine, examines the

potential effects that field testing this

veterinary vaccine could have on the

quality of the human environment.

Based on the risk analysis, we have

reached a preliminary determination

that field testing this veterinary vaccine

will not have a significant impact on the

quality of the human environment and

that an environmental impact statement

need not be prepared. We intend to

authorize shipment of this vaccine for

field testing following the close of the

comment period for this notice unless

new substantial issues bearing on the

effects of this action are brought to our

attention. We also intend to issue a

veterinary biological product license for

this vaccine, provided the field test data

support the conclusions of the

environmental assessment and the

issuance of a finding of no significant

impact and the product meets all other

requirements for licensure.

DATES: We invite you to comment on

this docket. We will consider all

comments we receive that are

postmarked, delivered, or e-mailed by

January 28, 2002.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments

by postal mail/commercial delivery or

by e-mail. If you use postal mail/

commercial delivery, please send four

copies of your comment (an original and

three copies) to: Docket No. 01–119–1,

Regulatory Analysis and Development,

PPD, APHIS, Station 3C71, 4700 River

Road Unit 118, Riverdale, MD 20737–

1238. Please state that your comment

refers to Docket No. 01–119–1. If you

use e-mail, address your comment to

regulations@aphis.usda.gov. Your

comment must be contained in the body

of your message; do not send attached

files. Please include your name and

address in your message and ‘‘Docket

No. 01–119–1’’ on the subject line.

Copies of the environmental

assessment may be obtained from the

person listed under FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT. Please refer to the

docket number, date, and complete title

of this notice when requesting copies. A

copy of the environmental assessment

(as well as the risk analysis with

confidential business information

removed) and any comments that we

receive on this docket are available for

public inspection in our reading room.

The reading room is located in room

1141 of the South Building, 14th Street

and Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC. Normal reading room

hours are 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday

through Friday, except holidays. To be

sure someone is there to help you,

please call (202) 690–2817 before

coming.

APHIS documents published in the

Federal Register, and related

information, including the names of

organizations and individuals who have

commented on APHIS dockets, are

available on the Internet at http://

www.aphis.usda.gov/ppd/rad/

webrepor.html.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr.

Albert P. Morgan, Chief Staff Officer,

Operational Support Section, Center for

Veterinary Biologics, Licensing and

Policy Development, VS, APHIS, 4700

River Road Unit 148, Riverdale, MD

20737–1231; telephone (301) 734–8245,

fax (301) 734–4314.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Under the

Virus-Serum-Toxin Act (21 U.S.C. 151

et seq.), a veterinary biological product

must be shown to be pure, safe, potent,

and efficacious before a veterinary

biological product license may be

issued. A field test is generally

necessary to satisfy prelicensing

requirements for veterinary biological

products. Prior to conducting a field test

on an unlicensed product, an applicant

must obtain approval from the Animal

and Plant Health Inspection Service

(APHIS), as well as obtain APHIS’

authorization to ship the product for

field testing.

To determine whether to authorize

shipment and grant approval for the

field testing of the unlicensed product

referenced in this notice, APHIS

conducted a risk analysis to assess the

potential effects of this product on the

67170 Federal Register / Vol. 66, No. 249 / Friday, December 28, 2001 / Notices

safety of animals, public health, and the

environment.

Based on the risk analysis, APHIS has

prepared an environmental assessment

(EA) concerning the field testing of the

veterinary biological product:

Requester: Biomune Company.

Product: Avian EncephalomyelitisFowl Pox-Mycoplasma Gallisepticum

Vaccine, Live Virus, Fowl Pox Vector.

Field test locations: Iowa, Minnesota,

Nebraska, North Carolina, Pennsylvania,

Texas, and Virginia.

The above-mentioned product is a

modified live avian encephalomyelitis

vaccine in combination with a live,

attenuated fowl pox virus that has been

genetically modified to express

Mycoplasma gallisepticum antigens.

The vaccine is for use in chickens as an

aid in the prevention of avian

encephalomyelitis, fowl pox, and

Mycoplasma gallisepticum.

The EA has been prepared in

accordance with: (1) The National

Environmental Policy Act of 1969

(NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et

seq.), (2) regulations of the Council on

Environmental Quality for

implementing the procedural provision

of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), (3)

USDA regulations implementing NEPA

(7 CFR part 1b), and (4) APHIS’ NEPA

Implementing Procedures (7 CFR part

372).

Unless substantial environmental

issues are raised in response to this

notice, APHIS intends to issue a finding

of no significant impact (FONSI) based

on the EA and authorize shipment of the

above product for the initiation of field

tests following the close of the comment

period for this notice.

Because the issues raised by field

testing and by issuance of a license are

identical, APHIS has concluded that the

EA that is generated for field testing

would also be applicable to the

proposed licensing action. Provided that

the field test data support the

conclusions of the EA and the issuance

of a FONSI, APHIS does not intend to

issue a separate EA and FONSI to

support the issuance of the product

license and would determine that an

environmental impact statement need

not be prepared. APHIS intends to issue

a veterinary biological product license

for this vaccine following completion of

the field test, provided no adverse

impacts on the human environment are

identified and the product meets all

other requirements for licensure.

Authority: 21 U.S.C. 151–159.

Done in Washington, DC, this 20th day of

December 2001.

W. Ron Dehaven,

Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant

Health Inspection Service.

[FR Doc. 01–31946 Filed 12–27–01; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3410–34–P

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Food Safety and Inspection Service

[Docket No. 01–042N]

Codex Alimentarius: 10th Session of

the Codex Committee on Food Import

and Export Inspection and Certification

Systems

AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary

for Food Safety, USDA.

ACTION: Notice of public meetings,

request for comments.

SUMMARY: The Office of the Under

Secretary for Food Safety, U.S.

Department of Agriculture (USDA), the

Food and Drug Administration (FDA),

and the U.S. Department of Health and

Human Services (HHS), are sponsoring

two public meetings, on January 8 and

February 7, 2002, to provide

information and receive public

comments on agenda items that will be

discussed at the Tenth Session of the

Codex Committee on Food Import and

Export Inspection and Certification

Systems (CCFICS), which will be held

in Brisbane, Australia, February 25 to

March 1, 2002. The Under Secretary and

FDA recognize the importance of

CCFICS, and the need to provide

interested parties the opportunity to

obtain background information and

comment on the Tenth Session.

DATES: The public meetings are

scheduled for Tuesday, January 8, 2002

from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m., and

Thursday, February 7, 2002 from 1:00

p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

ADDRESSES: The public meetings will be

held in Conference Room 1409, Federal

Office Building 8, Food and Drug

Administration, 200 C Street, SW.,

Washington, DC. Submit one original

and two copies of written comments to

the FSIS Docket Room, Docket #01–

042N, U.S. Department of Agriculture,

Food Safety and Inspection Service,

Room 102, Cotton Annex, 300 12th

Street, SW., Washington, DC 20250–

3700. To receive copies of the

documents referenced in this notice,

contact the FSIS Docket Room at the

above address. The documents will also

be accessible via the World Wide Web

at the following address: http://

www.codexalimentarius.net/ccfics10/

fc02 01e.htm

All comments received in response to

this notice will be considered part of the

public record to this notice will be

considered part of the public record and

will be available for viewing in the

Docket Room between 8:30 a.m. and

4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Patrick J. Clerkin, Associate U.S.

Manager for Codex, U.S. Codex Office,

FSIS, Room 4861, South Building, 1400

Independence Avenue SW.,

Washington, DC 20250–3700, telephone

(202) 205–7760; Fax: (202) 720–3157.

Persons requiring a sign language

interpreter or other special

accommodations should notify Mr.

Patrick J. Clerkin at the above phone

number.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

The Codex Alimentarius Commission

(Codex) was established in 1962 by two

United Nations organizations, the Food

and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and

the World Health Organization (WHO).

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.

CCFICS was established to develop

principles and guidelines for: food

import and export inspection and

certification systems; the application of

measures by competent authorities of

importing and exporting countries to

provide assurance that foods comply

with essential requirements; the

utilization of quality assurance systems;

and the format and content of official

certificates.

Issues To Be Discussed at the Public

Meeting

The following issues and referenced

documents will be discussed during the

public meetings:

1. Adoption of the Agenda,

DOCUMENT CX/FICS 02/1

2. Matters Referred from the Codex

Alimentarius Commission and Other

Codex Committees, DOCUMENT CX/

FICS 02/2

3. Draft Guidelines for Food Import

Control Systems—Comments at Step 6,

DOCUMENT CL 2001/25–FICS;

DOCUMENT ALINORM 01/30A,

Appendix IV; DOCUMENT CX/FICS

02/3