News | February 1, 2023
AAFCO Deeply Values FDA Partnership, Supporting Virtual Public Meeting
AAFCO Executive Director Austin Therrell provides a statement
CHAMPAIGN, Ill., Feb. 1, 2023 – Following the recent Association of American Feed Control Officials’ (AAFCO) Mid-Year Meeting in San Antonio, and noting its timely theme of “Working Better Together,” executive director Austin Therrell shared AAFCO’s support of the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine’s (CVM) upcoming Virtual Public Meeting in the following statement:
“AAFCO deeply values the FDA’s work and commitment to food safety, and our partnership has always been effective and well-matched — maximizing the purpose and mission of both organizations. In fact, this complementary partnership offers the most transparent pathway for engaging stakeholders and the public on new feed ingredients that are being considered for acceptance.”
“We support the FDA’s quest to improve the MOU and working relationship, and we want to make this process better and more transparent for all. After all, state regulators, industry partners, and consumers depend on the success of the AAFCO-FDA partnership to safeguard the following:
- Acceptance of new, safe feed ingredients;
- Fair, equitable definition process with nonpartisan, public review and approval opportunities;
- Innovation and efficacy through seamless communication between AAFCO and FDA’s CVM;
- Public input and involvement in the investigator’s process;
- Efficient, faster timeline for getting ingredients to market in the U.S.;
- Collaboration, accessibility, and transparency through systems and meetings; and
- Federal guidance for states that are dependent on this relationship.
“We encourage AAFCO members and the industry to join the Virtual Public Meeting, share their input, and help explore new ways to improve and enhance the AAFCO-FDA partnership for the best possible process.”
About FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine “Virtual Public Meeting”
Hosted by the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine and held on Feb. 9, the Virtual Public Meeting is a dialog about the FDA’s role in AAFCO’s feed-ingredient definition process. The listening session provides a forum for all stakeholders to come together, strategize, and solve problems and issues. Specifically, its purpose is to look at 1) how to improve FDA’s role in AAFCO’s feed ingredient definition process; 2) how to increase collaboration between AAFCO and FDA for a more transparent process; and 3) how to gather stakeholder input on the safety of each pending ingredient definition.