Environmental sustainability: a feed and livestock industry perspective

Nick MajorEU Food SCP RT Plenary meeting

20 November 2013

FEFAC in a nutshell• Created in 1959 – 50th Anniversary in 2009• Represents industrial compound feed and premixtures manufacturers• 28 Members:

– 23 Member Associations from 22 EU Member States – 3 Observer Members (Turkey, Serbia, Russia)– 3 Associate Members (Switzerland, Norway, EMFEMA)

• 153 mio. t of industrial compound feed in EU-28 in 2012• 7 Technical Committees to assist the FEFAC Council

– Animal Nutrition– Industrial Compound Feed Production– Premix & Mineral Feed– European Feed Manufacturers Guide (EFMC)– Fish Feed– Milk Replacers– Sustainability: NEW !

UECBV is the European Livestock and Meat Trades Union. It represents at the EU level the national federations of the:

• livestock traders • livestock markets • meat industry: slaughterhouses, cutting and

preparation plants• wholesale meat traders • international meat traders

UECBV focuses on cattle, beef / horses, horsemeat / sheep and goats, sheep and goat meat / pigs, pork.

November 2013, Brussels

What is the UECBV?

Our « Credo »• Products of animal origin form an integral

part of the European diet providing key nutritional benefits.

• Nutritionally optimised feed is essential to mitigate the environmental impact of animal products

• Pro-active attitude of the EU feed and livestock industry

Our « Credo »• Promotion of ecologically intensive

production systems, resource efficiency• Changes in diet patterns and composition to

reduce emissions• Improvement of feed efficiency• Further optimisation of use of co-products• Harmonization of environmental footprinting

methodology• Facilitation of cross-sector initiatives

Sustainability for the feed and livestock industry

Safe supply Competitiveness

Resource-efficiency

Responsible feed chain

The need for harmonized measure of environmental impacts

• Feed and livestock industry under pressure• Need to communicate on reliable figures, but

environmental footprinting is complex• No green washing: methodology should be

transparent• Common methodology is a pre-competitive

issue and is part of customers expectations• Need for global harmonization !• Sustainable development is an opportunity !

Harmonization: a success factor for environmental footprinting

• New FAO report from October 2013: refined methodology

• The estimation of both livestock and the dairy sectors contribution to global human-related GHG emissions dropped from 18% in the previous FAO reports to 14,5%.

• 20% drop in the global livestock GHG emissions (vs 2006 report): importance of accuracy

The importance of feed in the environmental footprinting of animal products…• FAO report from October 2013: Feed

production represents 45% of the carbon footprint of livestock products globally

• Example: Pig production, 61% of the carbon footprint comes from feed (of which 13% from land use change, also highly dependent on methodology)

… but we have also strenghts

• Nutritional know-how to achieve a sustainable diet for animals– Comprehensive knowledge of nutritional

characteristics of feed ingredients– Accurate assessment of animal nutritional needs

• Adding value to co-products from food/biofuels industries through feed reduces competition for resources and improves synergies within the food chain.

Harmonization of environmental footprinting: feed and livestock industry activities• At EU level: Food SCP Round Table

(ENVIFOOD Protocol)– Scientifically reliable and uniform methodology for

food and drinks– Pilot test of the ENVIFOOD Protocol

• International level (FAO) : – Sector specific guidance on environmental

performance assessment– Database on GHG emissions associated with feed

crops

Next step: pilot test of the Product Environmental footprint (PEF)

• Feed is a significant contributor to the environmental footprint of animal products.

• Methodology for feed should be harmonized accross all animal products.

• Outcome of LEAP Parntership as starting point to ensure global consistency.

• Animal products can build on the feed PEFCR

• Modular and supply chain approach

PEF pilot: modular and supply chain approach

Environmental footprinting should take place in a comprehensive sustainability approach

• Resource efficiency goes beyond environmental footprinting.

• So does responsible supply.• Economic and social pillars should not

be forgotten• These elements should be addressed by

the upcoming sustainable food communication from the EC.

Need to develop resource efficiency indicators• Feed conversion rate is obvious, but the

nature of the resources should also be taken into account.

Evolution of animal performance for broiler (IFIF)

Sustainable sourcing of raw materials• First priorities

– Develop core criteria for sustainable soy• Next steps

– Engage reflection on other raw materials– Develop widely applicable criteria

Thank you for your attention

Walking on the road to sustainable feed for sustainable food