EU Proposes New Rules For Labeling Animal Feed

BRUSSELS -(Dow Jones)- The European Commission Tuesday proposed simpler rules for the marketing of animal feed and pet food.

The proposal simplifies the existing procedures for labeling and marketing animal feed and pet food, while making the overall system more efficient and maintaining the same level of protection of animal health, animal welfare and public health, the commission said.

The new rules are also aimed at improving the competitiveness of the E.U. Livestock sector, which contributes to almost half of all E.U. agricultural output. Together the feed and pet food industry represents a turnover of roughly EUR50 billion in the EU.

The proposal aims to greatly reduce "red tape" for feed operators by removing unnecessary administrative burdens and technical requirements, which are no longer necessary since an integrated food safety approach has now been implemented from farm to fork.

Pre-market authorizations are to be made proportionate to risks and no longer based on predefined feed groups, such as products acting as proteins sources.

The draft Regulation sets out certain general provisions for the labeling of all feed, such as the need to indicate the type of feed, the name and address of the operator, the list of feed additives and the net weight.

On top of this, specific mandatory labeling requirements are laid down for feed materials, compound feed, including pet food, and "dietetic" feed.

Commission Web site: http://europa.eu/index_en.htm

Originally published at CattleNetwork.com