Eight industry sector federations and stakeholder organizations* have worked together to develop a catalog of measures aimed at creating a supportive legislative environment that stimulates and increases feed circularity without compromising safety.

“We detailed these proposals in the catalog, illustrated by a non-exhaustive list of examples of regulatory restrictions faced by the feed chain to access certain materials and which deserve, in our view, a re-examination of their justification,” the authors said.

“Livestock and pet food chains provide an essential contribution to the optimized functioning and circularity of the food chain by valorizing secondary resources that cannot be used in human foods. More than ever, circularity has become strategic for animal feed business operators, backed by a high level of safety guaranteed by an effective legal framework, controls and traceability. However, a number of regulatory obstacles are currently limiting livestock feed circularity,” the authors said.

This catalog of measures has the potential to increase the use of different secondary nutrient streams in animal feed. These measures are expected to reduce competition for land use with food production, reduce imports of feed materials and reduce livestock system net greenhouse gas emissions, while maintaining safety, traceability and farmer and consumer confidence. This would support an effective Nutrient Circular Economy, contributing to food sovereignty, competitiveness and farm system resilience in the EU.

“This catalog of measures could be the basis for the development of an EU Feed Circularity Roadmap and should be considered in the EU Critical Raw Materials Act, in upcoming reviews of the Animal By-Products, Animal Feed Regulations and other EU policies,” the author concluded.

Download the catalogue here.

*The European Chemical Industry Council (CEFIC), the European Fishmeal and Fish oil Producers (EFFOP), the European Former Foodstuff Processors Association (EFFPA), the European Fat Processors and Renderers Association (EFPRA), the European Sustainable Phosphorous Platform (ESPP), the European Pet Food Association (FEDIAF), the European Feed Manufacturers’ Federation (FEFAC) and the International Platform of Insects for Food and Feed (IPIFF).