As the director of communications for the North American Renderers Association (NARA), I’ve had the opportunity to spread the word about rendering’s enormous sustainability benefits and how our industry assists many others by producing countless new goods made with rendered material – proving that rendering really is (in the literal definition of the term) recycling.
It is my pleasure to introduce the American Feed Industry Association's inaugural, "Our Industry, Our Promise" report, which provides an overview of the challenges the U.S. animal food industry is currently facing and the ways the association is delivering on its policy priorities on behalf of its 650+ members.
The American Feed Industry Association’s (AFIA) membership includes a diverse group of professionals committed to securing a safe, sustainable and stable food supply. My personal involvement with the AFIA began with the Equipment Manufacturers Committee (EMC) back in 1994. The EMC represents the interests of equipment manufacturer members of the AFIA. Their primary focus is to efficiently serve and support the needs of the animal food industry. This includes ensuring regulatory, environmental and safety compliance.
The use of animal food ingredients to address animal wellness, food safety and production efficiency is bursting forward worldwide with the development of innovative products demonstrating proven efficacy and safety. Across continents and animal management systems, animal food additives are making their mark by fostering improvements for animal care and environmental protection.
When I was forwarded an article from a good friend (thanks Chad) and saw the headline – Whole Milk Mounts it’s Triumphant Comeback “Hot girls are ditching the alternatives and are going back to basics,” I figured I needed to read this. My first thought was, some of us never left whole milk (or dairy products in general), so I guess I’m not a hot girl???
During my frequent business travels in 2019 I developed a rating system for airport bathrooms that ranked stall size, placement of hooks and shelves, accessibility to soap, hand drying features, cleanliness and décor. Southwest Regional ranked top of the list, Dulles a dismal bottom. Recently, I had the opportunity to dust off my scoring system as I travelled, fully masked and vaccinated, through five different airports in six days in service to our members.
We’ve all been there: you’re at the grocery store searching for the perfect-sized, unbruised apple when your arm accidentally knocks an apple onto the floor. What happens to that apple, or the other bruised apples no one buys? Or the bread, eggs or dairy products that are beyond their sell-by date? Unfortunately, a lot are wasted, but more efforts are underway to curb food loss.
On Sept. 16, China formally applied to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), formerly the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), from which the Trump administration withdrew the United States in 2017.
In advance of the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) happening on Thursday, Elanco Animal Health and Agri-Pulse brought together livestock industry leaders, producers and government officials through a virtual forum last week to catalyze action and encourage stakeholder engagement with the livestock industry value chain and the private sector. As I listened, I heard the comments as a call to action for the private sector, and the feed industry in particular, to provide and account for the environmental and economic value of the solutions we provide in our livestock and poultry feed.