June 24, 2009
EU to enforce improved feed regulation
An EU regulation that will allow farmers and pet owners to get better feed information is expected to enter into force later this year.
The move is aimed at boosting food safety in the EU, and the new regulation will replace the current legislation on the marketing and the use of feed while promoting innovation and competitiveness in the European feed sector. The new ruling, which simplifies existing legislation, is also expected to lead to a more integrated single market for feed by reducing the administrative burden for feed operators.
The new regulation addresses the different needs of the specific types of feed buyers, including livestock farmers and pet owners.
The new rules will expand the responsibility of feed business operators to those dealing with pet food, an area in which the recent melamine incidents revealed a gap, and included a list of prohibited substances for feed use.
The new regulation has abolished the requirement to undergo a pre-market authorisation procedure for bio-proteins, which now have to comply with the general provisions for feed materials.
Mandatory labelling particulars will be required for feed materials and mixed feed, and any claim attached to a feed must be properly substantiated.
The new regulation will provide solution to the controversial issue of the declaration of feed materials in compound feed in a balanced way to allow innovation and appropriate information for the customers. A guide on good labelling for animal feed will also be created on the initiative of feed manufacturers and users, and approved by the Commission. EU codes of good labelling practices will be developed to improve customer information.
The new ruling will also establish a Community Catalogue of feed materials, which will transfer the initiative for updating the EU''s list of feed materials, specifying the most relevant compounds used in feed. Market transparency will be improved, as the list of feed materials will better reflect current formulations and more quickly incorporate innovations such as co-products from biofuel production.