Health assessment of feed
BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment is guided by the "Farm-to-Fork" principle: healthy foods can only be supplied by animals if they receive proper feed. On this basis, BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment also assesses the safety of feeds.
The BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment works according to the so-called ‘farm-to-fork’ principle in the area of ‘animal feed’: animals can only provide healthy food if they receive impeccable feed. Therefore, the path from animal husbandry (‘farm’) to the consumer's plate (‘fork’) is taken into account.
Our topics in the area of feed
What does the BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment do?
To ensure the safety of animal feed, the BfRshort forGerman Federal Institute for Risk Assessment evaluates animal feed with regard to its
- ingredients
- additives
- contaminants, i.e. undesirable substances that have entered the feed from the environment or during the manufacturing process
- and whether they contain genetically modified ingredients.
Feed additives
Feed additives are added to animal feed in order to
- positively influence palatability, flowability, stability or storability
- to positively influence the quality of animal products
- cover the animals' need for certain nutrients or active ingredients (e.g. trace elements and vitamins)
- to positively influence animal production, performance or animal welfare, in particular by influencing the gastrointestinal flora or the digestibility of feed, or
- to positively influence the ecological consequences of animal production.
Contaminants in feed
Harmful substances in animal feed are referred to as ‘undesirable substances’ or contaminants. They can be introduced into products as a result of environmental factors, but also as a result of processes during feed production.
The term ‘undesirable substances in feed’ is used when they are present in and/or on a product intended for animal nutrition and pose a potential risk to human or animal health or to the environment or may impair animal production.
The presence of undesirable substances in animal feed cannot be completely ruled out. Because undesirable substances can be ingested by livestock with the feed and enter foodstuffs such as milk, meat and eggs via the livestock, the health risk posed by these substances or products for both the animal and the consumer must be assessed.