08/06/2015: Mycotoxins and other hazards controlled by the use of FSP

by Els van der Boon, GMP+


First published in International Aquafeed, May-June 2015

"Safe feed and food starts with secure risk management. For this, GMP+ International offers knowledge and information through the Feed Support Products (FSP). The Feed Support Products are intended to support all (future) GMP+ certified companies when setting up their company-specific HACCP system"

The responsibility for use and implementation remains with the GMP+ certified companies, the Feed Support Products can offer support in this process. The FSP is also intended as a reference for the auditors within the framework of GMP+ certification.

Products of FSP
The following products are a part of FSP:

1. Fact Sheets 
The fact sheets show background details regarding the hazards and the (explanation of the) severity of the risk to animals and humans. The content of the fact sheets is as follows: Nature, history and prevalence; Transmission to the environment, plants, animals and humans; Diagnosis of poisoning; Potential hazards and adverse effects; Severity of the hazard; Standards; Analysis methods and Control measures. The company making specific risk analyses can use the information. Fact sheets are available for several mycotoxins and other undesirable substances (hazards) in the Risk Assessments and for processing aids.

2. Generic Risk Assessments 
This section of FSP contains about 200 risk assessments of feed materials for Food-producing animals (including goats, poultry, cattle, sheep and pigs, but also horses and rabbits). Farmed fish will be included. The risk assessments in the FSP database are of a generic nature and represent a worst-case scenario. The risk assessment gives information about a production process and the resulting possible hazards.

3. Product list 
This list gives a short summary of all products available. The products (about 600) on the list may be used as a feed material in the GMP+ Feed Certification scheme.

4. Product standards 
Standards with maximum permitted levels have been issued by legislation and by GMP+ International for many hazards in order to be able to determine if a feed material is safe. All the standards are a part of the GMP+ FC scheme, GMP+ BA1 Product Standards. Also the standards for mycotoxins are included.

5. GMP+ Monitoring database 
A service from GMP+ International is the GMP+ Monitoring database. Companies can put their analysis into the database and can share these results with a group of companies or with the GMP+ community. Sharing is an option, not a requirement. Monitoring results can be used to assess the likely occurrence of a hazard.
 
The GMP+ Monitoring database is an easy tool for storing and sharing analysis results. You can easily check if the products meet the standards.

6. Guidance
At the beginning of 2014, the first GMP+ guidance about implementation of a Feed Safety System in accordance with the GMP+ Feed Certification scheme had been launched. The D1.2 GMP+ Guidance contains all needed information and steps and can be ordered via the web shop of GMP+ International.

Your benefits
FSP provides ease of use, a uniform source of relevant data, linking of relevant files and efficient searching. The benefits of use are:

• up-to-date knowledge of risks of feed materials
• up to date knowledge of undesirable substances;
• assessed by independent experts;
• uniform source of knowledge;
• automatically linking of all relevant files.

Core values
The Feed Support Products operates from four core values:
 
1. Practical information 
The information in FSP about processing, possible hazards, risk assessments and monitoring data is received from GMP+ companies

2. Science based 
The (generic) risk assessments of feed materials fully comply with the requirements referred to in the HACCP manual for the animal feed sector (2008). 
To substantiate potential adverse effects of a hazard, the information is published in fact sheets for both undesirable substances and technical processing aids. The severity of hazards indicated in fact sheets and risk assessments has been evaluated by scientists of RI-KILT.

3. Independence
Independent committees review the policy and technical aspects of FSP; these are the International Expert Committee Animal Feed (IEC Animal Feed) and the Technical Committee FSP (TC FSP). TC FSP acts as a HACCP team for the FSP. The TC FSP has members who are representatives of different subsectors and knowledge areas (chemical and microbiological).
       
The meeting of TC FSP will at least take place 2 times a year. Besides the regular members of the TC FSP ‘advisors’ can be invited to TC meetings. These advisors are either laboratory representatives, representatives of the Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, or scientists (eg. Rikilt).  Also, independent advisors from certification bodies or consultancy agencies can be invited to (parts of) the TC.

4. Transparency 
GMP+ uses transparent communication to all stakeholders as well as transparent working methods. Procedures for changes are described. Every change is communicated to the GMP+ community via the FSP newsletters.
What do we do to have the FSP up to date?

The content of the different products continuously changes due to new feed legislation, regulations, emerging risks and new scientific information. Changes include new feed materials/products, hazards, new “product-hazard combinations” and new standards (legislation). GMP+ International within FSP periodically processes these changes by a maintenance procedure.

Changes in hazards (severity, effect) are processed in factsheets and/or risk assessments. If needed, changes in risk assessments, factsheets, GMP+ standards or monitoring program, are discussed within the TC FSP. Reasons for changes can be (among others):
In general:

• New feed legislation; 
• Early Warning System (EWS) from GMP+ 
• Rapid Alert System for Food and Feed (RASFF);
• Feed Crises; 
• New scientific information/new hazards (eg. from TNO, Rikilt, EFSA);
• Practical experiences from companies

Some Information must be evaluated immediately when immediate action is required, for instance in the case of a newly emerging risk. Other types of information, for instance scientific information, can be processed at a later stage and will be filed for planned maintenance of FSP information (annually).

If new non-conformities related to food and feed safety occur there must be a short-term evaluation about the consequence for feed (if it is a non-conformity from food) and the consequences for FSP. New hazards can be communicated in a short term to the feed sector.

GMP+ certified companies are being informed of changes in risk assessments and/or fact-sheets by means of newsletters. All newsletters can be found on the GMP+ portal www.gmpplus.org (under “In the Spotlight”).


Read the magazine HERE.

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