BY-PRODUCTS ▶▶▶


EU lifts ban on using animal by-products


The EU has lifted its ban on the use of animal by- products for animal feed. The proposed change in legislation allows processed animal protein (PAPs) from pigs to be used in poultry feed, and from poultry to be used in pig feed. On 2 July, the EU Council voted unanimously to adopt the TSE regulation.


BY MELANIE EPP I


Carine van Vuure, Manager Nutrition and Regulatory Affairs at Darling Ingredients, and a member of the European Fat Processors and Renderers Association ( EFPRA), sees many benefits in using PAPs.


n the wake of the BSE (bovine spongiform encephalopa- thy) crisis in 1994, a ban on the use of PAPs in ruminant feed was put in place. Experts believe BSE is caused by feeding cattle feed made with meat and bone meal from


infected animals. In an effort to avoid possible cross-contami- nation, the ban on the use of PAPs was extended to all farm animals in 2001. The reasoning behind lifting the ban now is two-fold. First, the European Green Deal and the Farm to Fork Strategy en- courages the use of by-products from within the food indus- try, and also promotes the use of sustainable and local ingre- dients. “PAPs fit very well with these requirements,” said Carine van Vuure, Manager Nutrition and Regulatory Affairs at Darling Ingredients, and a member of the European Fat Pro- cessors and Renderers Association (EFPRA). Additionally, the risk of cross-contamination appears to be slim.The last case of BSE in cattle in the EU was in 2016, and the last case in the UK was in 2018. Twenty four of 27 member states have been classified as having a negligible risk status.


Proven to be safe The ban on the use of PAPs in feed for cows, sheep and other ruminants, and on intra-species recycling, remains in force and rules will only change to allow additional types of PAPs to be used in pig and poultry feed when they have been proven to be safe. The benefits of lifting the ban are many, said Van Vuure. For poultry slaughterhouses, there are more possibili- ties for the use of their slaughter by-products, especially for products that are not used in pet food products. Such prod- ucts include poultry blood meal, feather meal and lower protein meals. At the production levels, farmers of laying hens and broilers will be able to reduce their reliance on soybean meal in feeds by using locally-produced pork meal, said Van Vuure. While it might seem unnatural, pigs and poultry are omnivores that benefit from a balanced diet that includes a rich source of protein. Aside from reducing waste and reliance on imported protein, the use of processed animal products in feed could improve feed quality as well, as digestibility of this type of protein and phosphorus is high.Depending on the require- ments set in the processing chain, feed for poultry and pigs could actually become cheaper, too, she added. Also, the car- bon footprint of the diet will be improved. “A lot of farmers remember the time before the ban as a time with better bal- anced diets, due to the use of animals proteins,” said Van Vuure. “So, we will see less feather pecking and improved health in general.”


Welcomed by industry The change was welcomed by farm interest groups such as Copa-Cogeca and the Association of Poultry Processors and Poultry Trade (AVEC). The EU’s proposal acknowledges the ab- sence of food safety risk in its authorisation of these products and offers a legislative framework that provides a high level of security for all members of the supply chain, said Paul-Henri Lava, Senior Policy Advisor at AVEC. AVEC welcomes the possibility to diversify its feed supply by using processed animal proteins from pigs, said Lava, and ex- pects poultry PAPs to provide a similar source of protein for the pig sector. “PAPs are used by most of our competitors without any restrictions, while avian and porcine PAPs for use in fish feed have been authorised for more than eight years in the EU without any issues,” said Lava. The interest group welcomes


6 ▶ ALL ABOUT FEED | Volume 29, No. 7, 2021


PHOTO: DARLING INGREDIENTS


PHOTO: OLINKYKFOTO


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