The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) announced that its memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will not be renewed when it expires on October 1, 2024. MOU 225-07-7001, which outlines the two organizations’ responsibilities for defining animal feed ingredients, has been in place for 17 years.
“AAFCO believes that its ingredient definition process has been a shining example of successful collaboration and partnership between states and the federal government,” said Austin Therrell, executive director of AAFCO. “Although we are disappointed that the MOU is not being renewed, we are committed to being a conduit between the FDA and state regulatory programs, and to our work to provide standardization to the animal food industry.”
FDA will continue to accept AAFCO Feed Ingredient Definition requests until the MOU expires. AAFCO investigators require roughly 30 days to prepare ingredient definition requests for FDA, so AAFCO will stop accepting requests on September 1 in order to submit all definition requests prior to the October 1 expiration.
AAFCO and FDA are independently working on plans that will provide a seamless transition and continue to support the U.S. animal food industry. FDA is also evaluating its animal food ingredient review authorities and processes to determine if changes are needed to better serve public health and ensure that new ingredients have a predictable path to market. Further details about the transition will be shared by both organizations in the coming weeks.
“This decision opens the doors for AAFCO to look at new and innovative solutions in the ingredient space, and to seek out additional partners that can provide strong, science-based guidance to our state officials,” added Therrell.
NGFA responds
David Fairfield, National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) senior vice president, feed, said: NGFA has strongly supported the long-standing relationship between FDA and AAFCO to define animal feed ingredients. The FDA/AAFCO ingredient definition process utilized federal and state expertise, along with stakeholder input, to ensure the safety and utility of ingredients, thereby protecting animal health, the safety of animal-based foods consumed by humans, and public health. FDA’s participation within the AAFCO process has been effective and yielded a comprehensive list of ingredients that promote a common understanding and acceptance within the industry, FDA and state regulators, consumers, and global trade partners. The process also provided harmonization between state and federal regulatory authorities that is vital.
NGFA is disappointed the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between FDA and AAFCO that facilitates their current partnership to define feed ingredients will not be renewed when it expires on Oct. 1, 2024. However, we look forward to engaging with both AAFCO and FDA regarding future ingredient approval processes that will support the U.S. animal food industry, facilitate innovation, ensure the safety and utility of ingredients, and protect public health.
AFIA also comments
American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) president and CEO, Constance Cullman, issued the following statement:
“AFIA’s members are disheartened that the FDA will end its partnership with AAFCO, which for decades has ensured the regulatory review of animal food products is efficient, predictable and functional. In the United States, it takes an average three to five years and $600,000 per ingredient before animal food innovators gain the approvals they need to sell and use their products in diets for domestic livestock and pets. Our members are concerned that uncertainty in the regulatory review processes brought about by today’s announcements will only increase those figures, making the U.S. animal ingredient marketplace an unattractive place to do business.
“The AFIA will continue working with the FDA and AAFCO on next steps to ensure any proposed changes to the current review processes bring about clear requirements for members and some sense that new ingredients will be reviewed in a timely and consistent manner across state and federal jurisdictions.”
