ANIMAL FEED SECTOR - INTRODUCTION
Related links: FEMAS | FEMAS Register | TASCC | TASCC Register | UFAS | UCO | IFIS | Partnerships

The Assurance of Animal Feedingstuffs - A Brief Outline

Animal feedingstuffs were thrown into the limelight by BSE and other feed scares and, as a result, a number of standards have been developed to ensure the safety of animal feed and consequently human food.

The UK has been a leader in producing industry assurance schemes and a series of related schemes are now owned by the UK Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC).

• The Universal Feed Assurance Scheme (UFAS) provides assurance of feed manufacturers and represents around 95% of commercial feed tonnage, feed merchants and suppliers of feed materials to home-mixers (farmers who make their own feeds).
  
• The Feed Material Assurance Scheme (FEMAS) provides assurance for feed ingredients.
  
• The Trade Assurance Scheme for Combinable Crops (TASCC) provides assurance to those companies involved and is divided into four modules. The hauling and storing of grains, pulses and oilseeds, the testing of grains, pulses, oilseeds and dry feed materials and the merchanting of bulk combinable crops. By linking with other schemes, such as those offering assurance for farm produce (ACCS Assured Combinable Crops, Genesis Quality Assurance Scheme, etc), the aim is to assure the whole supply line for animal feed, from selection and purchase of raw materials to point of sale of finished animal feed.

Additionally PAI and AIC have been involved with European partners in the development of the International Feed Ingredients Scheme (IFIS) which seeks to harmonize the various national animal feed safety schemes

All schemes are founded on the principles of the internationally recognized methodology of Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) having been in operation for a number of years. The assurance schemes have received widespread acceptance from European food manufacturers and retailers.

In the UK, retailers in particular are now requiring their suppliers to source feedingstuffs from assured sources, a trend that will spread across Europe and the Americas over the coming years. Other countries are showing increasing interest in the UK, Belgian and Dutch assurance schemes; partly as a means of addressing their own concerns and partly to ensure that they continue to meet the criteria of their UK, Belgian and Dutch customers, who require 'safe feedingstuffs'.

PAI Ltd is proud to be one of the Certification and Inspection Bodies involved in these AIC Schemes. PAI are the certifiers of the AIC FEMAS and TASCC Schemes.

For further details please contact Martin Jowett on 01423 878878 or 0845 226 5401 or Martin.Jowett@ThePAIGroup.com