The Canadian Food Inspection Agency is gathering stakeholder input on proposed changes until April 8 as part of its review of the federal livestock feed regulatory framework.

Sergio Tolusso, the National Manager in the Animal Feed Division of the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, notes the current regulations include, as part of one of the schedules, Table-4 which outlines maximum and minimum nutrient levels for a variety of species for which feeds are regulated.

Sergio Tolusso-Canadian Food Inspection Agency:

This table is used as a way to require feeds to be registered by the agency or exempt feeds from being registered by the agency.

One of the pieces we're proposing as part of this modernization effort is actually remove this table all together from the scope of the regulations.

However what we will do is replace it with a series of maximum levels for certain nutrients because things like copper and zinc, while they're required for good nutrition of livestock, if they are administered in excess amounts they could have adverse animal health implications or even food safety implications if some of these nutrients actually accumulate in the tissues or the products we get from animals for human food consumption.

So the Table-4 approach that we've been using in the past may have outlived its usefulness and so we are conscious of trying to come into the 21 century in terms of what does animal nutrition science is telling us but, at the same token, to make sure that there are some limits put into place for health and safety reasons on the feeding of certain nutrients.

For more information visit the Canadian Food Inspection Agency web site and search "feeds act modernization."