The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently released its final rule on animal feed, and NPPC has concerns with it.
Issued in response to the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the regulation gives FDA considerably more regulatory and enforcement authority over the production, distribution and storage of all animal feeds.
It is closely modelled on the rule for human food and takes an intensive "HAACP-like" approach to feed safety.
Although the rule contains an exemption for farms, it does not exempt people or businesses that produce feed for animals they own if the feed mill and animals are not on the same farm.
Feed mills that supply contract growers - even in the same system where there is common ownership of the mill and animals - will not be exempt, according to FDA.
Covered feed production facilities will be required to have a hazard analysis conducted, develop good manufacturing practices and implement preventative controls.
Compliance will be costly for covered facilities, with estimates on the hazard analysis alone in the $170,000 range.
NPPC, along with other animal agriculture organizations, is reviewing the underlying authority for the rule but doesn't believe it was the intent of Congress to give FDA such reach onto livestock farms. NPPC will be asking Congress for clarification to the FSMA.