[Federal Register: September 27, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 186)]
[Notices]
[Page 57669-57670]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr27se04-24]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Agricultural Marketing Service
[No.: TM-04-11]
Notice of Meeting of the National Organic Standards Board
AGENCY: Agricultural Marketing Service, USDA.
ACTION: Notice.
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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as
amended, the Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) is announcing a
forthcoming meeting of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB).
DATES: The meeting dates are: Tuesday, October 12, 2004, 8 a.m. to 5
p.m., Wednesday, October 13, 2004, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Thursday,
October 14, 2004, 8 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Requests from individuals and
organizations wishing to make an oral presentation at the meeting are
due by the close of business on September 27, 2004.
ADDRESSES: The meeting will take place at the Washington Marriott,
Salon E, 1221 22nd Street, NW., Washington, DC. Requests for copies of
the NOSB meeting agenda, requests to make an oral presentation at the
meeting, or written comments may be sent to Ms. Katherine Benham,
Advisory Board Specialist at USDA-AMS-TMD-NOP, 1400 Independence
Avenue, SW., Room 4008-So., Ag Stop 0268, Washington, DC 20250-0200.
Requests to make an oral presentation at the meeting may also be sent
via facsimile to Ms. Katherine Benham at (202) 205-7808 or
electronically to Ms. Katherine Benham at katherine.benham@usda.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Richard Mathews, Associate Deputy
Administrator, National Organic Program, (202) 720-3252.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 2119 (7 U.S.C. 6518) of the Organic
Foods Production Act of 1990 (OFPA), as amended (7 U.S.C. 6501 et seq.)
requires the establishment of the NOSB. The purpose of the NOSB is to
make recommendations about whether a substance should be allowed or
prohibited in organic production or handling, to assist in the
development of standards for substances to be used in organic
production and to advise the Secretary on other aspects of the
implementation of the OFPA.
[[Page 57670]]
The NOSB met for the first time in Washington, DC, in March 1992,
and currently has six committees working on various aspects of the
organic program. The committees are: Compliance, Accreditation, and
Certification; Crops; Livestock; Materials; Handling; and Policy
Development.
In August of 1994, the NOSB provided its initial recommendations
for the National Organic Program (NOP) to the Secretary of Agriculture.
Since that time, the NOSB has submitted 53 addenda to its
recommendations and reviewed more than 264 substances for inclusion on
the National List of Allowed and Prohibited Substances. The last
meeting of the NOSB was held on April 28-30, 2004, in Chicago,
Illinois.
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) published its final National
Organic Program regulation in the Federal Register on December 21, 2000
(65 FR 80548). The rule became effective April 21, 2001.
The principal purposes of the meeting are to hear discussions
between NOP and NOSB regarding the status of previous NOSB materials
recommendations; NOSB recommendations concerning compatibility,
commercial availability, and minor non-compliances; a NOP/NOSB
framework for collaboration; an action plan for a NOSB Executive
Director; and the process for reviewing materials. The NOSB will
receive an update on the statement of work for TAP contractors, discuss
issues concerning a letter of understanding with the Organic Materials
Review Institute, and participate in working sessions that consider
committee drafts designed to provide feedback to the NOP on directives
regarding inerts, fishmeal as a feed supplement, antibiotics, and NOP
scope. The Board will receive public input on materials issues,
standards for pet food and aquatic animals, and hear a presentation on
integrated organic program research grants from the USDA Cooperative
State Research Education and Extension Service (CSREES).
The Materials Committee will present, for NOSB consideration, an
action plan to establish standard operating procedures for facilitating
the sunset review of materials and discuss issues involving OFPA
provisions for materials and interpretations of those provisions and
the National List. The Materials Committee will also discuss revising
the Federal Register notice for petitioning substances and consider
issues in refining the process for materials review. The Handling
Committee will provide an update on materials approved as food contact
substances and present, for NOSB consideration, action plans to address
issues concerning organic yeast and pet food standards. The Livestock
Committee will present, for discussion, the formation of a task force
on wild caught and aquaculture standards. The Policy Development
Committee will present a draft committee recommendation for scheduling
NOSB meetings and provide an update on board policy manual revisions.
Finally, the Crops Committee will discuss issues concerning the use of
extraction methods, including the use of potassium carbonate and
hydrolyzed extracts, and submit, for consideration, its recommendation
on the Compost Tea Task Force report.
Materials to be reviewed at the meeting by the NOSB are as follows:
for Crop Production: Soy Protein Isolate.
For further information, see http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop. Copies of
the NOSB meeting agenda can be requested from Ms. Katherine Benham by
telephone at (202) 205-7806; or by accessing the NOP Web site at http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop
.
The meeting is open to the public. The NOSB has scheduled time for
public input on Tuesday, October 12, 2004, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.; and
Thursday, October 14, 2004, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. Individuals and
organizations wishing to make an oral presentation at the meeting may
forward their request by mail, facsimile, or e-mail to Ms. Katherine
Benham at addresses listed in ADDRESSES above. While persons wishing to
make a presentation may sign up at the door, advance registration will
ensure that a person has the opportunity to speak during the allotted
time period and will help the NOSB to better manage the meeting and to
accomplish its agenda. Individuals or organizations will be given
approximately 5 minutes to present their views. All persons making an
oral presentation are requested to provide their comments in writing.
Written submissions may contain information other than that presented
at the oral presentation.
Written comments may also be submitted at the meeting. Persons
submitting written comments at the meeting are asked to provide 30
copies.
Interested persons may visit the NOSB portion of the NOP Web site
http://www.ams.usda.gov/nop to view available documents prior to the
meeting. Approximately 6 weeks following the meeting interested persons
will be able to visit the NOSB portion of the NOP Web site to view
documents from the meeting.
Dated: September 20, 2004.
A.J. Yates,
Administrator, Agricultural Marketing Service.
[FR Doc. 04-21552 Filed 9-24-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3410-02-P