Document ID: FDA-2022-D-0370-0001
Agency: fda
Document Type: Notice
Title: The Accredited Third-Party Certification Program: Questions and Answers; Draft Guidance for Industry; Availability
Posted Date: 2022-04-29T04:00Z

[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 83 (Friday, April 29, 2022)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 25432-25433]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-09232]

[[Page 25432]]

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DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

Food and Drug Administration

21 CFR Part 1

[Docket No. FDA-2022-D-0370]

The Accredited Third-Party Certification Program: Questions and 
Answers; Draft Guidance for Industry; Availability

AGENCY: Food and Drug Administration, Health and Human Services (HHS).

ACTION: Notification of availability.

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SUMMARY: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA, the Agency, or we) is 
announcing the availability of a draft guidance for industry entitled 
``The Accredited Third-Party Certification Program: Questions and 
Answers.'' The draft guidance, when finalized, will answer frequently 
asked questions relating to the requirements of the Accredited Third-
Party Certification Program, and is intended to assist accreditation 
bodies', third-party certification bodies', and eligible entities' 
understanding of the regulation and program requirements.

DATES: Submit either electronic or written comments on the draft 
guidance by July 28, 2022 to ensure that the Agency considers your 
comment on the draft guidance before it begins work on the final 
version of the guidance.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments on any guidance at any time as 
follows:

Electronic Submissions

    Submit electronic comments in the following way:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov. 
Follow the instructions for submitting comments. Comments submitted 
electronically, including attachments, to https://www.regulations.gov 
will be posted to the docket unchanged. Because your comment will be 
made public, you are solely responsible for ensuring that your comment 
does not include any confidential information that you or a third party 
may not wish to be posted, such as medical information, your or anyone 
else's Social Security number, or confidential business information, 
such as a manufacturing process. Please note that if you include your 
name, contact information, or other information that identifies you in 
the body of your comments, that information will be posted on https://www.regulations.gov.
     If you want to submit a comment with confidential 
information that you do not wish to be made available to the public, 
submit the comment as a written/paper submission and in the manner 
detailed (see ``Written/Paper Submissions'' and ``Instructions'').

Written/Paper Submissions

    Submit written/paper submissions as follows:
     Mail/Hand Delivery/Courier (for written/paper 
submissions): Dockets Management Staff (HFA-305), Food and Drug 
Administration, 5630 Fishers Lane, Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852.
     For written/paper comments submitted to the Dockets 
Management Staff, FDA will post your comment, as well as any 
attachments, except for information submitted, marked and identified, 
as confidential, if submitted as detailed in ``Instructions.''
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the Docket No. 
FDA-2022-D-0370 for ``The Accredited Third-Party Certification Program: 
Questions and Answers.'' Received comments will be placed in the docket 
and, except for those submitted as ``Confidential Submissions,'' 
publicly viewable at https://www.regulations.gov or at the Dockets 
Management Staff between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, 240-
402-7500.
     Confidential Submissions--To submit a comment with 
confidential information that you do not wish to be made publicly 
available, submit your comments only as a written/paper submission. You 
should submit two copies total. One copy will include the information 
you claim to be confidential with a heading or cover note that states 
``THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION.'' The Agency will 
review this copy, including the claimed confidential information, in 
its consideration of comments. The second copy, which will have the 
claimed confidential information redacted/blacked out, will be 
available for public viewing and posted on https://www.regulations.gov. 
Submit both copies to the Dockets Management Staff. If you do not wish 
your name and contact information to be made publicly available, you 
can provide this information on the cover sheet and not in the body of 
your comments and you must identify this information as 
``confidential.'' Any information marked as ``confidential'' will not 
be disclosed except in accordance with 21 CFR 10.20 and other 
applicable disclosure law. For more information about FDA's posting of 
comments to public dockets, see 80 FR 56469, September 18, 2015, or 
access the information at: https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-2015-09-18/pdf/2015-23389.pdf.
    Docket: For access to the docket to read background documents or 
the electronic and written/paper comments received, go to https://www.regulations.gov and insert the docket number, found in brackets in 
the heading of this document, into the ``Search'' box and follow the 
prompts and/or go to the Dockets Management Staff, 5630 Fishers Lane, 
Rm. 1061, Rockville, MD 20852, 240-402-7500.
    You may submit comments on any guidance at any time (see 21 CFR 
10.115(g)(5)).
    Submit written requests for single copies of the draft guidance to 
the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, Food and Drug 
Administration, 5001 Campus Dr., College Park, MD 20740. Send two self-
addressed adhesive labels to assist that office in processing your 
request. See the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION section for electronic 
access to the draft guidance.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Doriliz De Leon, Center for Food 
Safety and Applied Nutrition (HFS-607), Food and Drug Administration, 
5001 Campus Dr., College Park, MD 20740, 240-402-2772.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

    We are announcing the availability of a draft guidance for industry 
entitled ``The Accredited Third-Party Certification Program: Questions 
and Answers.'' We are issuing the draft guidance consistent with our 
good guidance practices regulation (21 CFR 10.115). The draft guidance, 
when finalized, will represent the current thinking of FDA on this 
topic. It does not establish any rights for any person and is not 
binding on FDA or the public. You can use an alternate approach if it 
satisfies the requirements of the applicable statutes and regulations.
    The FDA Food Safety Modernization Act (Pub. L. 111-353) added 
section 808 to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) (21 
U.S.C. 384d), which directs FDA to establish a program for 
accreditation of third-party certification bodies to conduct food 
safety audits and to certify that eligible foreign food entities 
(including registered foreign food facilities) and food produced by 
such entities meet applicable FDA requirements for purposes of sections 
801(q) (21 U.S.C. 381(q)) and 806 (21 U.S.C. 384b) of the FD&C Act. On 
November 27, 2015, FDA issued the final rule, ``Accreditation of Third-
Party Certification Bodies to Conduct Food Safety Audits and to Issue 
Certifications'' (also referred to as the TPP regulation) (80 FR 74569; 
21 CFR part 1, subpart M). This draft guidance,

[[Page 25433]]

when finalized, will answer frequently asked questions relating to the 
requirements of the Accredited Third-Party Certification Program 
established in 21 CFR part 1, subpart M (21 CFR 1.600 through 1.695, 21 
CFR 1.700 through 1.725), and is intended to assist the accreditation 
bodies', third-party certification bodies', and eligible entities' 
understanding of the TPP regulation and program requirements.

II. Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995

    While this guidance contains no collection of information, it does 
refer to previously approved FDA collections of information. Therefore, 
clearance by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) under the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521) is not 
required. The previously approved collections of information are 
subject to review by OMB under the PRA. The collections of information 
under the TPP regulation in 21 CFR part 1, subpart M have been approved 
under OMB control number 0910-0750.

III. Electronic Access

    Persons with access to the internet may obtain the draft guidance 
at either https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents or https://www.regulations.gov. Use the FDA website 
listed in the previous sentence to find the most current version of the 
guidance.

    Dated: April 25, 2022.
Lauren K. Roth,
Associate Commissioner for Policy.
[FR Doc. 2022-09232 Filed 4-28-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4164-01-P