US feed lobbyists welcome staggered approach to FSMA feed rule execution

In its initial reaction to the directive, the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) welcomed the agency’s recognition of its request for a phase-in approach to implementation, saying the final rule gives all feed facilities more time to adjust to basic program requirements such as Current Good Manufacturing Practices (CGMPs) before adhering to the rule’s more complicated aspects.

And the US trade group said the FDA has acknowledged the difference in human and animal food by making the CGMPs more applicable to feed manufacture and hazards therein.

Feed industry stakeholders had been waiting to access the data since August 31 2015 – the deadline for the FDA to send the final FSMA documents to the Federal Register – but federal officials had cautioned that such processing delays were normal.

The first implementation deadline for the rule, which can be read here​​, is in September 2016.