“World compound feed production is fast approaching an estimated 1 billion tonnes annually. Global commercial feed manufacturing generates an estimated annual turnover of over US $400 billion. China, United States, Europe and Brazil produce over 60% of global compound feed. Over 45% of compound feed production is for poultry.”
Alexandra de Athayde, the Executive Director of International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) is our guest this month. Informing us about the global feed industry, Alexandra de ATHAYDE states that world compound feed production is fast approaching an estimated 1 billion tonnes annually. Stating that IFIF’s work is basically centred on three strategic pillars, including sustainability, regulatory matters and education, ATHAYDE also points out that the global feed industry is under increasing pressure to supply sustainable, safe and healthy feed.
ATHAYDE informs us that IFIF conducts the 5th Global Feed & Food Congress (GFFC) which will be held in Antalya, Turkey on 18-21 April 2016 with the theme “Equity and Prosperity for all” and the congress will focus on significant issues such as food and feed safety, technology and sustainability.
Ms. Athayde, first of all could you please give us some information about IFIF? How many members do you have and what are your activities as a federation in the industry? What is the share of your members in total feed industry?
The International Feed Industry Federation (IFIF) represents over 80% of total compound animal feed production worldwide. IFIF is made up of national and regional feed associations from Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe, North and South America and the Middle East, as well feed related organizations and corporate members from around the globe. IFIF is a non-profit organization founded on 1 December 1987.
IFIF provides a unified voice and leadership to represent and promote the global feed industry as an essential participant in the food chain that provides sustainable, safe, nutritious and affordable food for a growing world population. To support our industry on the road to the future, IFIF’s work is centred on three strategic pillars, including sustainability, regulatory matters and international standards, and supporting education and sharing of best practices.
Sustainability
IFIF works with governmental, private sector, and nongovernmental partners on a number of fronts to measure, benchmark and improve the sustainability of the livestock production chain. Notably, IFIF provides leadership and expert input to the multi-stakeholder FAO-led sustainability initiatives, including the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock and the Partnership on Livestock Environmental Assessment and Performance (LEAP). Most recently, IFIF became a founding member of the Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI), which will develop a golden global standard for assessing and benchmarking feed industry impact and improvement in LCA calculation. IFIF has also together with the EU Association of Specialty Feed Ingredients and their Mixtures (FEFANA) and a consortium of international companies and associations finalised the Specialty Feed Ingredients Sustainability Project (SFIS).
Regulatory & International Standards
IFIF collaborates with FAO, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE), the Codex Alimentarius Commission and other international bodies and agri-chain partners. For example, every year IFIF in cooperation with the FAO organises the International Feed Regulators Meeting (IFRM), which brings together feed industry representatives and government officials from around the world. I am delighted that the 9th International Feed Regulators Meeting (IFRM) will be held in Antalya, Turkey, on 21 April 2016 directly following the 5th Global Feed & Food Congress (GFFC).
Pillar III: Education & sharing of Best Practices
FAO and IFIF published and launched the “Feed Manual of Good Practices” for the Feed Industry to increase safety and feed quality at the production level. The Feed Manual has now been distributed to regulators and industry globally and is available in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish language. In 2015 IFIF launched the Global Animal Nutrition Programme 'Train the Trainer' Pilot Project.
Could you please give us some information about international feed industry regarding the data you have? What are the feed varieties which are produced around the world and what is the production amount? How many companies producing feed are there in the world?
World compound feed production is fast approaching an estimated 1 billion tonnes annually. Global commercial feed manufacturing generates an estimated annual turnover of over US $400 billion. Four countries produce over 60% of global compound feed: China, United States, Europe and Brazil and we are seeing significant feed production growth rates in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Over 45% of compound feed production is for poultry – see chart below. You can also find specific country and regional information in the national and regional updates section of our IFIF Annual Report.
In 2016 IFIF anticipates global feed production growth of about 1-2%, moving closer to 1 billion tons produced, in line with the forecasted increase in animal protein production by FAO. However this will vary widely by region, with significant feed production growth rates anticipated in Asia, Africa and Latin America. IFIF also anticipates that there will be continued growth for both existing and innovative specialty feed ingredients.
Many agricultural products which are used for feed raw material (grains, pulses etc.) are also used directly for human nutrition too. Does this situation limit the raw material sources of feed industry? What is the general situation in terms of production of feed raw materials?
I believe at a global level, the central issue is not one of competition between feed and food. In fact livestock diets include a considerable quantity of crops and by-products from human food, fibre, and fuel production that are not suitable as human food use because of safety, quality, cultural, or digestibility considerations. The world still has sufficient arable land, pastures and water available, which are not currently being utilized or are being underutilized. Farmers today could in theory produce enough food to feed everyone in the world. However the central challenge is not one of food production, but of poverty and lack of access to food, poor infrastructure and poor logistics, all driven by economic underdevelopment, conflict, lack of free and fair trade and political instability.
In addition, the feed industry feed sector’s capacity to give value to the sharply rising volume of food industry co-products and surplus foods, which can be safely used in feed production, thereby creating nutrient rich human foods and reducing disposal waste, is a significant element to increase sustainability of livestock production. For example, in the US co-products account for between 30-50 percent of ingredients in animal diets, while in the EU co-products make up 60 percent of the feed industry raw material usage.
To meet future demands, IFIF will continue to champion science-based decisions and standards, the need for innovation and better technologies, as well as work to foster an appropriate science-based regulatory framework to facilitate market access and remove technical barriers to trade to meet future challenges.
What do you think that the biggest problems in feed industry? If there are, what are the short terms and long term solution suggestions for these problems?
The global feed industry is under increasing pressure to supply sustainable, safe and healthy feed. With the expanding global population, which is forecast to exceed 9 billion people by 2050, comes an associated higher demand for animal protein and, therefore, feed. Over the medium term this requires a significantly higher production of compound feed globally, as well as innovation and new technologies to continue to enhance the efficiency of feed and livestock production.
In 2015 global food markets were less volatile than in recent years, and foodstuff costs were well below their recent peaks. But looking ahead, the feed industry must continue to adopt financial risk tools in order to make any necessary rapid adjustments when faced with increasing commodity prices and market volatility.
In 2016 IFIF anticipates global feed production growth of about 1-2%, moving closer to 1 billion tons produced. In order to support the feed industry to meet the growing demand for animal protein in 2016, IFIF is committed to continue to support and encourage the sustainable development of animal production.
Feed is industry indirectly makes serious contributions to the issues like food safety and fight with hunger. Could you please tell us about the contributions that feed industry makes for food safety, sustainable and safe food production?
For our industry, and for the whole agri-chain, food and feed safety are absolutely essential and I believe so is sustainability. As we look at the forecast needed to feed over 9 billion people by 2050, the central challenge facing the agricultural chain, and also societies around the globe, is how to meet this demand safely and sustainably, keeping in mind environmental, economic and social factors.
IFIF believes that only by working together with all stakeholders in the feed and food chain, including governments, the private sector and non-governmental groups, can we meet these demands of more food, including for animal proteins like beef, poultry, fish and dairy products, in the future. Given the diversity of livestock production systems around the world, it is important to find solutions that work locally, while ensuring food safety and quality from farm to fork.
As mentioned already, to support our industry on the road to the future, and support food and feed safety and sustainable production, IFIF’s work is centred on three strategic pillars, including sustainability, regulatory matters and international standards, and supporting education and sharing of best practices.
For example, IFIF is a Codex Alimentarius recognised NGO and has been actively involved in the development of the Codex Code of Practice of Good Animal Feeding and over the last three years has been a member of the ad hoc Codex Intergovernmental Task Force on Animal Feeding (TF AF). IFIF is engaged to keep feed safety issues on the Codex agenda following the completion of the work of the Codex TF AF last year.
Following the official publication of the LEAP Global Feed LCA Guidelines methodology in April 2015, IFIF together with the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) and the European Compound Feed Manufacturers’ Federation (FEFAC) set up the Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI). The GFLI will work to implement the internationally recognized FAO/LEAP methodology by developing a high quality globally recognized, region specific and harmonized public database.
Through innovation and efficiency, animal feed has proven to be an essential part of the solution to make the livestock production chain more sustainable. Many of these critical issues, including food and feed safety and sustainability will be addressed our upcoming 5th Global Feed & Food Congress (GFFC).
As IFIF, you also work for environmental awareness and climate change. You have attended an event about this in UN Climate Change Conference in Paris. First of all what can you say about the environmental footprint of livestock and feed industry? What should be done in order to reduce the environmental affect of livestock based production? What is your game-plan in this issue?
The global feed industry has a longstanding commitment to improve feed efficiency by reducing the feed conversion rates for all major livestock and farmed fish species. In fact, the feed industry is an ‘efficiency champion’ and is committed to the FAO objective of a sustainable livestock sector by actively developing and promoting ‘best practice’ feeding systems and technologies whose main contribution is improved resource efficiency of livestock production. As such, feed by virtue of continued innovation and efficiency gains, is a significant part of the solution to reduce the GHG impacts of livestock production.
Notably, the feed industry continues to develop better animal nutrition to avoid carbon or nitrogen losses into the atmosphere or water, through better use of forages, feed additives and diversifying protein sources such as canola meal and sunflower meal in feed rations, or legumes in pastures for ruminants.
In addition, key improvements in feed technology, such as balanced feeding and precision feeding the optimal addition of amino-acids and micro-nutrients, as well significant advances in feed processing technology, a key contributor to improving feed efficiency, are driving improvements in the environmental performance of the livestock production chain.
At the international level, sustainability is one of IFIF’s key strategic pillars: ‘produce more, using less at an affordable cost to the consumer’. In order to support this, IFIF is working with its members and other stakeholders, including the agri-food chain partners and international organizations, such as the FAO, on a number of important projects.
Let’s focus on the 5th GFFC Global Feed and Food Congress. First of all this year could you please give us some information about the main them of the congress which is “Equity and Prosperity for All”? What is the reason for choosing this theme and what does it stand for?
We are absolutely delighted that the 5th Global Feed & Food Congress (GFFC) will be held in Turkey, which is at the heart of a fast growing region for the feed & food sector. Our Congress theme “Equity and Prosperity for all” links to the global challenge to provide safe, affordable, nutritious and sustainable animal protein sources to feed 9 billion people by 2050 and reflects our shared vision to achieve this for a growing world population now and for the future. The Congress will feature exceptional speakers who will provide their insights and expertise in roundtables, plenaries and workshops.
The sessions at the 5th GFFC will cover the whole feed manufacturing and food processing value chain, with a special focus on Sustainability, Markets & Trade, Feed & Food Safety, Regulations & Standards, Animal Nutrition and Innovation and R&D.
In addition to world-class experts, we will have high-level speakers from global intergovernmental institutions, including from the FAO, the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) as well as CEO’s from leading global animal nutrition and food companies, food chain partners, national authorities, the research community and international Civil Society organizations at the Congress.
Since the Global Feed & Food Congress was first launched in 2005 by IFIF together with the FAO, we have held four very strong events, with our last Congress in Sun City, South Africa breaking all records in terms of attendance, speakers and quality. Our aim, together with the FAO and our regional partners, has always been to provide a global platform for industry, experts and governments to come together to discuss critical issues of food and feed safety, technology and sustainability. The last Congresses have succeeded brilliantly in this and we have no doubt that the 5th Global Feed & Food Congress in Antalya will not only meet the high standards set in the past, but will surpass them.
What can you say about the participation rate and interest for the congress so far? How many people to be expected to participate in the congress? Do you think that choosing Turkey and Antalya for the congress would provide broad participation from various regions compared to the former years?
We are very pleased that the preparations for our in Antalya, Turkey, on 18-21 April 2016 are in full swing and pressing well, thanks to the strong support also of our Turkish partners from TURKIYEMBIR led by Prof. Nizamettin Şenköylü and his team.
I am pleased to let you know that we have over 60 world class speakers confirmed so far and already over 250 international delegates registered. As mentioned, we expect to attract over 1,200 delegates from Turkey and from around the world and we believe Turkey’s strategic location geographically and in terms of the feed and food industries will attract participants from all over the world to the beautiful Antalya region.
Finally, what would you like to add about your federation, current studies or future plans and about feed industry?
2016 promises to be an important and exciting year for IFIF. We started with the launch of the Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI) to bring the major feed producing regions together with the aim to become the golden global standard for assessing and benchmarking feed industry impact and improvement in LCA calculations.
Following the successful Pilot Project in Nigeria of the IFIF Global Animal Nutrition Programme ‘Train the Trainer’ we will work to roll out this initiative to other world regions. The 5th GFFC in April will be directly followed by our 9th annual IFRM, also in Antalya, which will once again bring together feed regulators from around the world with IFIF members. In 2016 we will continue our efforts to support the building of national and regional feed associations, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Asia-Pacific. IFIF will continue to champion science-based decisions, the need for continued innovation and better technologies, as well as regulatory convergence and free and fair trade as a basis for sustainable production in the future.