Regulatory Update from AFIA’s Committee Meeting 2015

At the January 2015 American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) Committee Meeting, there were several important discussions regarding the current and upcoming federal and state regulations for animal feed and pet food.

FDA/ CVM and AAFCO Memorandum of Understanding

The Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) and the Association of American Feed Officials (AAFCO) had last been extended until September 1, 2015; however, CVM is proposing to extend the MOU until 2017. AAFCO has not yet responded to this proposal, and the consensus is that AAFCO may want some concessions from CVM in order to sign off on MOU. Timing of AAFCO response is an issue, because regardless of the proposal AAFCO makes, CVM has indicated that it will take six months to review the MOU before approval; therefore, there could be a gap in time not covered by the MOU.

Citizen Petitions

Richard Sellers, Senior Vice President of AFIA, was not optimistic regarding submission of either of two Citizen Petitions prepared by the AFIA legal team. One petition addresses the extensive documentation for ingredient utility and the other addressing the poor/unfair notification process in general.