Unit Feed and Feed Additives

The main working fields of Unit 84 are, firstly, the assessment of the safety of feed and feed additives for humans and animals as well as, secondly, the assessment of undesirable substances/contaminants in feed and food.

The main areas of activity in the field of "contaminants in the food chain" are the  following:

• Toxicological evaluation and risk assessment of (selected) contaminants in the food chain
• Drafting of expert reports and opinions on the contamination of food and feed as part of the advisory services provided to federal and regional authorities.

In its work in the field of contaminants in the food chain, the Unit is supported by the BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment Committee for Contaminants and other Undesirable Substances in the Food Chain.

Feed must always be safe and must not pose a threat to the health of animals. Equally, it must be ensured that both food products of animal origin (e.g. milk, meat, eggs, fish, honey) and the processed products made from them are safe and do not constitute a health risk for consumers.

Food products that are not safe may not be brought into circulation. Equally, feed may not be fed to animals if it is to be assumed that this might impair the health of humans or animals or have an adverse effect on animal production. Feed safety therefore plays a key role in food safety.