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Bill would create new pathway at FDA for feed additives for livestock

A bill has been introduced in the US Senate that would create new regulations for feed additives to increase livestock efficiency, production, and increase sustainability. 

David Fairfield, senior vice president with the National Grain and Feed Association, says the bill would allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) bring products to market quicker. “It will provide them with a greater incentive to invest in research into these types of products because they can hopefully introduce them to producers in a more efficient manner.”

The Innovative Feed Enhancement and Economic Development (FEED) Act of 2023 would establish a pathway at the FDA for a new category of animal food substances that act in the animal’s gut microbiomes or the feed they are digesting to provide non-nutritive benefits.

Fairfield says the livestock industry is facing several environmental challenges and feed additives can help improve sustainability efforts. “There are a number of feed additives that can produce environmental benefits. Reducing emissions from animals, reducing the amount of nutrients that are generated from animals.”

Fairfield says it would also make the US more competitive on the global market. “A number of other countries around the world already allow their livestock producers access to these types of products because they’re approved on a regulatory basis.”

The bill was introduced by a bipartisan coalition of Senators, including Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Jerry Moran (R-KS), and Michael Bennet (D-CO).

American Feed Industry Association CEO Constance Cullman says the legislation will help meet marketplace demands and bring more innovation to animal health, food safety and the environment.