Feed the world

According to the WHO Food and Agriculture Organisation there are several factors that will drive the global animal feed industry, including population growth, feed grain prices, environmental concerns and health and food safety issues. Food Solutions asks Roger Gilbert, Secretary General for the International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF), for his opinions on the challenges facing the industry.

“We need to look to other protein sources, either on a regional or local basis or globally, to help feed manufacturers reduce cost”
-Roger Gilbert, IFIF

FS. What is the current situation regarding protein sources for the animal feed industry?
RG. The variety of protein sources available to the feed industry is diverse, however, those that provide the volume we need are limited. Soybeans, fishmeal and animal by-products are the most important in terms of their protein concentration and provide us the bulk of our protein requirement. However, we need to look to other protein sources, either on a regional or local basis or globally, to help feed manufacturers reduce costs. The later could include protein from other oilseeds such as rapeseed or from new fish resources, such as krill.

FS. What are the challenges in this area and how are you tackling them?
RG. The overall objective must be to reduce the cost of livestock production in order to provide more affordable animal protein products for consumers, particularly those in emerging economies and in developing countries. Their food prices are relatively high due to higher raw material costs (protein sources are often imported) and the efficiency in feed production. The following three steps could help reduce food prices in developing countries: reducing protein costs (and energy costs) to the feed manufacturer is key a first step, ensuring the most effective use – through better feed formulation based on animo acid profiles – is a second step and ensuring the resulting, accurately formulated ration are delivered to the livestock producer in the best condition is the third. Obviously, all three factors have been and are continually being reviewed in the developed world.

FS. Feed suppliers have had to cope with increasing safety concerns, epitomised by the mad cow disease crisis – what demands are these safety concerns placing on the feed suppliers and how is this situation being dealt with?
RG. The impact of BSE and the response to the disease by the feed industry has been different in different countries and regions. In the EU for example, all animal by-products have been removed from the feed/food chain under the EU’s Feed Ban while the feeding of by-products from any species to the same species has been outlawed entirely. Elsewhere, governments have handled the management of the BSE risk differently based on their own in-country risk analysis. It is important to note that animal by-products are an important source of protein and energy in livestock feed where there is no BSE to be found or authorities are confident that there is no risk from transmission.

The international feed industry defends the use of animal protein and animal by-products in livestock feeds based on sound science.

BSE led to the Codex Alimentarius – the United Nation’s organisation responsible for safety in foodstuffs traded across borders and for encouraging trade in foodstuffs – setting up an ad hoc Task Force on Feed to produce an internationally binding standard (the Code of Practice of Good Animal Feeding) for feed manufacturers. The Code ensures food products produced are safe with regard to the feed livestock have consumed regardless of whether they have been fed commercially-prepared feed or feed made on farms. The Codex Code took five years to develop and was adopted in July 2004 by the 170-plus member governments of the Codex Commission. Feed manufacturers must conform to the standards within the Code and are doing so. Codex member countries are incorporating the requirements of the Code within their national feed laws where they exist.

The feed industry, through the IFIF and FAO (the United Nation’s Food and Agriculture Organisation) and supported by STDF (the Standards and Trade Development Facility run by the World Trade Organisation), have developed a Feed Manual which will be available in late August 2008 to explain in feed manufacturing terms the application of the Code of Practice of Good Animal Feeding.

Food safety begins with feed safety where milk, meat, fish and eggs are concerned. Our Federation is keen to ensure that all feed manufacturers are in compliance with the terms and conditions of the Codex Code.

FS. What are your thoughts about transparency in the animal food chain? How can transparency help improve the food security and supply better protein feed provision?
RG. To my mind transparency equates to traceability. Traceability gives us the transparency we need in order to eliminate risk from the food chain beginning with the raw material we use. Our legal requirement – under the terms of the Codex Code of Practice for Animal Feeding – only requires us to trace one step back and one step forward.

Many countries do this successfully already. It means feed industry suppliers are fully aware that we need to know the bona fides of the materials they are supplying. We also need to know where the finished products we make are going and how they are being used. Our labels describe what’s in the product and include information on their safe use.

FS. It is clear that the feed industry must continue to look for alternative and enhanced sources of protein for animal feeds – what are the alternative and enhanced options? In your opinion, what are the best options?
RG. Alternative sources of protein for use in animal feeds include krill, bio-proteins, distillers grains from the production of corn-based ethanol and genetically-modified cereals and oilseeds. There are lots of other potential sources of protein, but these are the significant ones.

All in the above list could be seen as controversial to a greater or lesser degree: krill is in plentiful supply in the southern oceans and has been a largely overlooked source of high-quality protein which would be especially useful for inclusion in aquatic feeds; Bio-proteins produced through a controlled fermentation process is a developed technology that uses natural gas as its feedstock but has not yet been exploited; distillers grains from the ethanol process needs further processing to provide our industry with a highly digestible and uniform protein source and genetic modification should be capitalised upon to provide protein compositions that allow us to maximise the production efficiency of our feeding systems.

All of these have their individual drawbacks as well and only tailored research and development work can address their constraints successfully. The removal of undesirable substances and inhibitors from these materials are two areas that require attention in all of the above sources. This work needs to be undertaken with greater urgency and requires government support and involvement.

FS. What are the environmental issues and challenges regarding protein sources for the animal feed industry and how are these issues being tackled?
RG. IFIF, through its European member FAFAC, is participating in the Round Table on Sustainable Soybean Production. This is one initiative the industry is involved with to help ensure that the industry’s environmental impact is reduced. We clearly see that providing more milk, meat and eggs through greater feeding efficiency as being key to reducing the impact of industry on the environment.

We would also claim that the feed industry has a significant positive impact on the environment. We use many by-products that would otherwise go to waste. We also use many crop and food industry by-products that people would not or could not consume themselves, yet are good quality feed ingredients. We don’t have to use food-grade ingredients if there are cost-effective alternatives available.

FS. What are your hopes for the future of protein sources for the animal feed industry?
RG. Time is of the essence. We delay development of sustainable and an expanded protein base at our peril. The world’s communities are demanding safer, higher quality and more foodstuffs, particularly with regard to livestock products. While current food price increases may be a result of record oil prices, crop output that has fallen short of demand in recent years and investors speculating in the commodities markets, demand for food among emerging economies and developing countries is putting added pressure on our livestock production systems.

Protein is the foundation of that production. The world’s population will increase 50% to nine billion people by 2050. We expect demand for animal protein products to treble over that same time period. Feed manufacturers will be expected to play their part is satisfying that demand at prices people can afford without compromising safety.

PET – Policy, Education and Technology
To overcome the challenges to sustainable, abundant and affordable food supply will require attention to specific areas that are summarised as PET – Policy, Education and Technology. Gilbert explains the three areas:

Policy: Regulations that may present trade barriers to the efficient exchange of food and feed ingredients need to be reviewed on science-based procedures. We would recommend a review of present trade regulations, to ensure that impediments to efficient exchange of food and feed ingredients are eliminated. Additionally, taxes on food should be reviewed, reduced and eliminated where possible to the benefit of consumers.

Education: The international animal feed industry will continue to work together in its effort to provide expertise to emerging developing nations. IFIF is determined to implement across the industry, the Codex-negotiated Code of Practice on Good Animal Feeding; this will provide a global standard for the industry to efficiently, sustainability and safely contribute to the supply of the incremental animal-source food required.

Technology: Investments in technological developments in genetics and nutrition, not excluding GMO-technology, need to be increased significantly and their outputs assessed on scientific basis. The resolution of the current global food crisis requires a decisive technological 'jump' which can only come about by very substantially increased global and national commitment to agricultural research and development.

Key objectives

The principle objectives of the IFIF are to:

• Bring together compound feed manufacturers and their partners
• Represent and promote the interests of the world’s feed industry
• Foster the activities of national and regional associations
• Examine and advise on common problems
• Collect and disseminate appropriate information
• Collect and disseminate feed production statistics
• Assist in organising meetings to promote the animal feed industry
• Identify international sources of expertise for the assistance of associations and their members
• Assist management of national and regional associations, when requested

Feed production by region

Feed production by region Output (million tonnes)
North America 160
Asia 132
European Union (25) 140
Latin America 66
Non-EU Europe 59
Middle East/Africa 29
Others 28

Feed Facts

• Total world feed output is around 614 million tonnes
• Four countries produce 430 million tonnes, or 70%, of the world’s industrial feed output
• Some 3800 feedmills produce over 80% of all compound feed produced
• The 10 largest companies globally produce 65 million tonnes