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FEMAS Standard

The FEMAS Scheme is owned by the Agricultural Industries Confederation (AIC) and provides accredited assurance of feed ingredients and is required by the compound feed industry and farm assurance in the UK. FEMAS is recognised by major retailers in the UK as a key link in the chain for the supply of safe food.

There is mutual recognition for feed ingredient assurance between FEMAS (AIC), the Dutch GMP+ International FSA (formerly PDV), Belgian GMP QC (Ovocom) and the German Q&S schemes.

The FEMAS standard has been designed to cover the assurance requirements for all feed ingredients used in the production of animal feed, whether they are the primary products of a production system or co-products and regardless of their country of origin. This standard is intended for use with all feed ingredients, including micro-ingredients such as flavours, vitamins and enzymes.

The principles of FEMAS have been developed by AIC to provide assurance to purchasers of feed ingredients that the feed ingredients they buy are safe and will meet the quality criteria specified. The FEMAS International Core Standard is designed for application in all countries where feed ingredients are produced and application for certification is open to feed ingredients suppliers in all countries.

The main aims of this FEMAS standard are:

i) The protection of health: both of the animals that consume the feed ingredients certificated under this standard and of the humans consuming the livestock products derived from those animals in the form of meat, milk, eggs and fish.

ii)To ensure that the feed ingredients certificated under FEMAS meet the quality expectations required by this standard and the purchaser.

To comply with this standard, participants will need to apply the principles of Hazard Analysis (HACCP) and Good Operating Practice. Participants certificated to the FEMAS Standard will have demonstrated that they have rigorous controls at each stage of the supply chain that meet standards currently recognised as international “good practice” and which maintain the safety and specification of the feed ingredients supplied. The FEMAS scheme is one part of a suite of AIC assurance schemes including animal feed manufacture (UFAS), storage and transport (TASCC) all operating in the same way to deliver safe feed for animal production.

FEMAS is a product certification programme, consequently each feed ingredient supplied by a participant will be assessed on its own merits and any certificates of compliance issued will specify the feed ingredients for which compliance is being certificated.

This FEMAS standard encompasses all the operations and activities of a participant that may have a bearing on the safety and specification of the feed ingredients supplied, from raw material procurement and supplier approval, through to the point at which any feed ingredients produced are delivered to the end user.

Although FEMAS represents ‘good practice’, compliance with this standard does not in itself absolve or diminish obligations that may be incumbent upon a participant as a result of any client, statutory or regulatory requirements. In addition to the requirements of this standard, participants must ensure that all feed ingredients they supply meet the current legislative requirements of both the country in which the participant is operating and the countries to which they supply feed ingredients.

FEMAS provides a credible independent verification that the trade is meeting its legal obligations under General Food Law, Regulation (EC) No.  178/2002 and associated regulations and codes of practice.  Both feed ingredient producers and compound feed manufacturers were fully consulted during the development of the FEMAS Scheme.

Martin Jowett
Scheme Manager
PAI Ltd

Tel: 01423 878878
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