During August the European Commission adopted a regulation amending Annex IV to Regulation (EC) No 999/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council regarding the feeding of non-ruminant farmed animals with protein derived from animals. This is the conclusion of several years of work building a science evidence base to support the legal framework, including the development of effective methods of analysis for official control.
The legislative changes proposed by the European Commission will enable the inclusion of protein from pigs into poultry feed and poultry protein into pig feed. The proposed regulatory change also allows for the use of insect protein in both pig and poultry feed adding to the use of insect protein in fish feed which has been permitted since 2017.
Importantly, the proposed amendments do not form part of the retained EU legislation adopted by the UK on 1st January 2021. Once they are implemented, they will be immediately applicable in Northern Ireland, but not automatically in mainland UK. The UK government are now reviewing the proposed EU legislation to determine its suitability for adoption in the UK.
In the UK, Fera continues to work with Defra and the UK control authorities in developing a parallel legislative proposal for the UK with all the necessary controls and safety considerations, with particular interest in supporting the review of the use of insect protein in pig and poultry feeds as a priority.
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Fera Science Ltd (Fera) welcomes the decision by the European Commission to increase access for sustainable protein in the animal feed sector by allowing new categories of feed ingredients in animal diets. We echo the statement from the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) and other industry leaders on both the impact and the opportunity this presents to the animal feed industry and the overriding importance for the continuing focus on safety in animal feed. We believe the lifting of restrictions to enable the use of insect protein in pig and poultry feed is a particularly important step in the development of sustainable sources of animal feed ingredients.
Fera Science Ltd has long recognised the potential for insects as a source of sustainable animal feed ingredients and have helped to develop the evidence base to facilitate regulatory change through many of the research programmes underpinning this decision. We applaud the work of our colleagues in the International Platform of Insects for Food and Feed (IPIFF), the UK Insect Industry and those across the industry and academia who have been central in driving this change. We continue to deliver research into the potential of insect protein, oils, chitin and frass to support the development of new, sustainable and environmentally friendly products, and Fera is proud to support many of the entrepreneurs and worldwide businesses operating in this sector. It is encouraging to see an accelerating pace of transformation in reforming the food and feed sector and the increasing trend towards healthy eating, sustainability, the circular economy and a reduced environmental footprint in the global food system. We believe alternative proteins – including insect proteins – are poised to deliver attractive returns to investors and corporations and be central to addressing the need to feed a growing global population, as well as a remedy to the ever-present challenge of reducing waste in food production and manufacture. Equally, we believe that there is an ever-present need to ensure high ethical and quality standards, safety and security in our food system.
These new “ethical and sustainable sources of protein” are constrained by concerns over technology and scalability, but equally by the lack of consistent evidence on nutritional performance, quality, and safety – particularly available for public scrutiny. The industry today is populated by young, start-up businesses – many very credible and a few are operating impressively at industrial scale. However, many are not, and this means there remains uncertainty and lack of credibility across the global sector. The use of insect products in fish feed and the expansion to permit use in pig and poultry feed presents a significant opportunity for this young industry, but equally raises an increased risk from supply sustainability and quality uncertainty of materials provided into the feed sectors – especially in relation to the inappropriate use of feeding material for the insects – which in some cases are high risk controlled waste streams.
There is also a lack of internationally recognised standards in this nascent industry leading to poor quality control systems in insect farms. It is noticeable in the past year that there is an increasing trend for new operators appearing within the waste sector and using insect farming for non-feed purposes including cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and exploring use in biofuels and bioplastics. These are equally important developments in the circular economy and creating value from multiple, complex and difficult to process waste materials. However, it is critical to regulate these activities effectively to ensure that insect products intended for industrial use do not enter the food chain. These regulations should minimise the risk of inadvertently introducing undesirable substances from high-risk waste materials used to feed the insects. A good example of this is the need to control abattoir waste and other specified risk materials such that residues of these potential insect feedstocks do not lead to elevated risk of prion transmission.
As a result, we not only argue for the ongoing need for credible, independent, commercially focused research that can safely evaluate the integration of waste streams and residues into existing production systems - but also for a pressing need for standardisation across the industry for insect derived products. This is important to investors and corporations considering stepping into this sector. There is an international shortage of competent food and feed safety laboratories and contract R&D organisations with expertise in Insect Bioconversion that can evaluate the integration of the technology and products into their existing operations for the development of safe, valuable and reliable products underpinned by global standards, independent of specific operational systems. To that end and in support of our long running R&D programme on sustainable proteins and position as advisor to regulators, we are excited to announce our investment in a new pilot scale insect rearing facility at our site in York. Supported by the latest technologies for evaluating safety and quality, our entomologists will use the new facility to undertake academic and industry contract research with partners. This will underpin commercial and regulatory decision/ policy making in the UK and internationally.
Through expert science and cutting-edge research into industrial insect applications, Fera Science brings significant value and assurance services to feed/food manufacturers and investors. Click here to find out more.