FSA rejects EC proposals to relax animal protein ban

At its meeting in Cardiff [September 7], the FSA Board agreed to recommend that government ministers reject proposals to lift the feed ban when they meet EU ministers in Brussels to discuss the issue.

This decision was reached despite advice from the FSA’s executive that the proposed relaxation would pose ‘a negligible risk to consumers’ of exposure to bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE).

Negligible risk​

Other food safety experts, including former chairman of the European Food Safety Authority, Professor Patrick Wall, have long called for a lifting of the ban. They argue that feeding animal protein to animals presents negligible risk and is also wasteful of a precious resource. Wall pointed out that BSE was not caused as a result of feeding animal protein to animals, but from feeding ‘contaminated’ animal protein to animals.

However, Board members were swayed by the arguments of various UK medical health experts and the consumer group Which?, together with reservations by various industry groups and food companies such as poultry processor Bernard Matthews. They were also not convinced that there was any compelling economic case for lifting the ban at this time.

They expressed concerns about a potential public backlash against such ‘unnatural’ feeding practices and lingering worries that the experts couldn’t guarantee it would be completely risk-free. In particular, the Board was worried that cross contamination, resulting in same-species feeding, could not be avoided in practice.

FSA Board Member Nancy Robson said: “The message from research is clear: the public would not support these changes.” ​

Scepticism​

Board member for Scotland and a member of the Scottish Food Advisory Committee, Dr James Wildgoose, also expressed scepticism about the proposals ‘"for scientific reasons as well as consumer acceptance reasons​".

The EC is proposing to amend EU rules to allow the feeding of processed animal protein (PAP) derived from non-ruminants (other than fish) to non-ruminants of different species. The EC anticipates taking a vote on the proposal later this year, with implementation subject to the availability of validated tests to monitor compliance.

“I am concerned that there is not a risk assessment associated with the intra-feeding of PAP, for example poultry PAP to poultry and pig PAP to pigs​,” said Wildgoose.

Board member for Northern Ireland and chair of the Northern Ireland Food Advisory Committee, Dr Henrietta Campbell, added: “The precautionary principle has been central since 1996 and I don’t think we are ready to change from that.”​

This argument was supported by John Spence, Board member for Wales and chair of the of the Welsh Food Advisory Committee. He expressed fears about the damage a change would cause to consumer confidence in the food supply chain. "This is now not the time to seek change to the rules,”​ he said.