Office of the Under Secretary, Research, Education, and Economics; Notice of the Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture Meeting

AGENCY:

Agricultural Research Service, USDA.

ACTION:

Notice of meeting.

SUMMARY:

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, the United States Department of Agriculture announces a meeting of the Advisory Committee on Biotechnology and 21st Century Agriculture (AC21).

DATES:

January 5-6, 2006, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on January 5 and 8 am to 4 pm on January 6. Written requests to make oral presentations at the meeting must be received by the contact person identified herein at least three business days before the meeting.

ADDRESSES:

Room 107A, USDA Jamie L. Whitten Building, 12th Street and Jefferson Drive, SW., Washington, DC 20250. Members of the public should enter the building through the Jefferson Drive entrance. Requests to make oral presentations at the meeting may be sent to the contact person at USDA, Office of the Deputy Secretary, 202 B Jamie L. Whitten Federal Building, 12th Street and Jefferson Drive, SW., Washington, DC 20250.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Michael Schechtman, Designated Federal Official, Office of the Deputy Secretary, USDA, Telephone (202) 720-3817; Fax (202) 690-4265; E-mail mschechtman@ars.usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

The eleventh meeting of the AC21 has been scheduled for January 5-6, 2006. The AC21 consists of 19 members representing the biotechnology industry, international plant genetics research, farmers, food manufacturers, commodity processors and shippers, environmental and consumer groups, and academic researchers. In addition, representatives from the Departments of Commerce, Health and Human Services, and State, and the Environmental Protection Agency, the Council on Environmental Quality, and the Office of the United States Trade Representative serve as “ex officio” members.

At this meeting, the Committee will aim to complete major work on a paper examining the impacts of agricultural biotechnology on American agriculture and USDA over the next 5 to 10 years, through review and revision of the current draft Chair's text for the paper, and prepare for future work of the committee.

Background information regarding the work of the AC21 will be available on the USDA Web site at http://www.usda.gov/agencies/biotech/ac21.html. On January 5, 2006, if time permits, reasonable provision will be made for oral presentations of no more than five minutes each in duration.

The meeting will be open to the public, but space is limited. If you would like to attend the meetings, you must register by contacting Ms. Dianne Harmon at (202) 720-4074, by fax at (202) 720-3191 or by e-mail at dharmon@ars.usda.gov at least 5 days prior to the meeting. Please provide your name, title, business affiliation, address, and telephone and fax numbers when you register. If you require a sign language interpreter or other special accommodation due to disability, please indicate those needs at the time of registration.