(CNN) -- A March meeting of outside advisers to the United States Food and Drug Administration to discuss the composition of flu vaccines for this fall's flu season has been canceled, a member of the advisory committee told CNN.

The meeting of the Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, or VRBPAC, is held every March "to pick flu strains, because it's a six-month production cycle for a vaccine released in September," Dr. Paul Offit, a member of VRBPAC, told CNN Wednesday.

He said this year's meeting had been set for March 13, and he received an email this afternoon saying it had been canceled.

"No indication it's been postponed," he told CNN; "cancelled."

He said it wasn't clear who directed the meeting to be cancelled or why, and said it's also not clear now how flu vaccine manufacturers will get guidance on the composition of seasonal flu vaccines - "relying on WHO recommendations? What's the plan?" he said.

An email to the US Department of Health and Human Services seeking comment wasn't immediately returned.

The-CNN-Wire

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