Mammalian Protein Feeding Ban Records

John Hall, Animal and Poultry Sciences, Virginia Tech

Livestock Update, June 1998

The ban on feeding animal derived proteins to ruminants began late last summer (See July 1997 Livestock Update for details). Producers (anyone with one cow or sheep) must maintain documentation of amounts and types of ANY feed that contains animal derived protein. This is regardless of the source of the protein even if it is from a non-restricted source. The documentation includes a feed tag and records of amounts purchased (receipts). All documents must be maintained for 1 full year.

Below is a summary of the ban, banned and approved protein sources and the records needed.

• Mammalian protein sources exempted from the ban are:
  • Pure porcine (swine) or pure equine (horse) protein
  • Blood and blood products
  • Gelatin
  • Milk and milk products
  • Inspected meat products which have been cooked and offered for human food and further heat processed for animal feed use

• Requirements for individuals feeding ruminant animals
  • Maintain copies of all purchase invoices and labels for feeds that contain animal protein
  • Make copies of the invoices and labeling available for inspection and copying by the FDA
  • FDA requires all size operations feeding animals (even one animal) to maintain the above records for a minimum of one year
  • Good record keeping will prevent problems from occurring

Brochures that you can use at educational are available from VDACS at the address below.

Contact: J. R. Crane
Virginia Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services
Office of Product & Industry Standards
P.O. Box 1163
Richmond, VA 23218
(804) 786-3542

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