David Bossman, President of the American Feed Industry Association, and Ian Spencer, Stock Feed Manufacturers’ Council of Australia, sign Co-operative Agreement.

The Stock Feed Manufacturers’ Council of Australia (SFMCA) and the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA) signed a co-operative agreement at the Australasian Milling Conference in Melbourne, on Tuesday 23 March 2004. 

Ian Spencer, SFMCA President, identified that the co-operative agreement signed between the two feed industry organisations will “strive to harmonize international feed industry positions, collaborate on developments impacting feed regulatory issues, strengthen the feed industry’s voice on global issues, establish communication channels and dialogue on trade issues and provide new educational opportunities.”

Speaking at the Australasian Milling Conference, David Bossman, AFIA President, emphasized the increasing global demand for animal protein and the challenge this presents for feeding the hungry and changing world.

The finding of BSE in the United States has “provoked a loss of confidence in food supply, particularly in the animal proteins produced,” Bossman told the conference. “Concern over food safety has prompted the US government to implement revised animal feeding controls which force the U.S. feed industry to look more closely at feed ingredients, feed production processes and quality systems” Bossman explained.

Bossman stated, “In the U.S., I can proudly say that the vast majority of feed industry members are making food safety their number one issue.”

Following the signing of the co-operative agreement, Spencer commented that the “benefits in signing this agreement will allow the two feed organizations to better serve their members on the international front and offer them increased global opportunities.  Both the SFMCA and AFIA are committed to providing consistent, safe and quality feed that will continue to ensure consumer confidence in the crucial roles they perform in modern food production.”