Feed, feed ingredient and pet food manufacturers will hear the latest on major new product safety requirements likely to be implemented by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) during the fourth annual Feed and Pet Food Joint Conference, scheduled for September 25-26 in Indianapolis, Ind.
More than 300 industry members are expected to attend the event, hosted by the National Grain and Feed Association (NGFA) and the Pet Food Institute (PFI) at the downtown JW Marriott Hotel.
"Given the Food and Drug Administration's ongoing efforts to implement the expansive Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA), the program will place a major emphasis on the anticipated regulatory requirements that feed, feed ingredient suppliers and pet food manufacturers will face, as well as the growing demands being made on these industries by their customers," said NGFA President Randy Gordon.
"The array of high-caliber industry faculty and legal experts on the program will provide insights into not only what likely will be required, but how to comply in the most cost-effective way possible," said PFI President Duane Ekedahl. "We encourage companies to send their key management and operations personnel, as they will benefit from the interaction."
This segment of the program will focus on the anticipated impacts of FDA's soon-to-be-announced proposed rule under the FSMA that will require feed and pet food manufacturers to conduct a hazard analysis and implement preventive controls to address "reasonably foreseeable" hazards to provide assurance that such products are safe. During the session, Brian Waldman, partner at the Washington-based law firm of Arent Fox, will provide legal perspectives on the pending requirements, and industry experts from PFI and NGFA will offer insights and comments on anticipated compliance issues.
Meanwhile, Dr. Martine Hartogensis, deputy director, Office of Surveillance and Compliance at the FDA's Center for Veterinary Medicine, will review the status of FSMA rulemaking, as well as the agency's wide-ranging regulatory and guidance initiatives planned in 2014 for the feed and pet food industries. In addition, NGFA Vice President of Feed Services David Fairfield will discuss work being done by the Food Safety Preventive Controls Alliance to develop feed and pet food education and training materials designed to facilitate FSMA compliance. And the Association of American Feed Control Official's (AAFCO) feed ingredient-approval process and other initiatives underway at the professional organization of state and federal regulators will be addressed by AAFCO Immediate Past President Robert Waltz.
The feed and pet food safety theme will continue with a presentation by Dr. Benjamin Warren, director of product safety and regulatory affairs at Land O'Lakes Inc., on how feed and pet food manufacturers can source raw materials and ingredients that meet desired safety and quality parameters.
Other topics featured on the program include:
- Issues surrounding ballot initiatives to require labeling of food products containing biotech ingredients (including feed) featuring Dr. Cathleen Enright, executive vice president for the Biotechnology Industry Organization.
- A 2014 market outlook for grains, oilseeds and other ingredients used by the feed and pet food sectors, featuring NGFA Director of Economics and Government Relations Max Fisher.
- A panel featuring top leadership from the poultry, swine and rendering industries on challenges affecting their sectors of animal agriculture.
- A focus on international trade initiatives designed to expand market access for U.S. agricultural products, including meat and poultry featuring Karil Kochenderfer, principal, LINKAGES - Global Trade, Government and Public Affairs.
- Perspectives on the need for greater transparency between feed and pet food companies and their stakeholders by Andy Vance, staff editor, marketsand economics at FEEDSTUFFS magazine.
- The legislative and regulatory outlook in Washington, featuring James Wiesemeyer, senior vice president, Informa Economic
PFI and NGFA noted that the conference will kick-off with a welcome reception from 5-7 p.m. in the conference's trade show on September 24. The official program will occur all day on September 25 and conclude by 11 a.m. on September 26.
Program, registration and hotel reservation information is available at www.ngfa.org/feedpetfood.
