The Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO), in partnership with Kansas State University’s Olathe Innovation Campus, has launched a new review process for animal food ingredients. The Scientific Review of Ingredient Submissions (SRIS) program is designed to speed up the evaluation and approval of new ingredients used in animal food and feed.
The SRIS programme, approved by AAFCO members in January, will accept applications later this year. It aims to complete scientific evaluations at twice the pace of previous methods, while maintaining established safety and transparency standards.
All submissions will be routed through AAFCO, which will prepare them for review. Scientific assessments will be carried out by a panel organised by K-State Olathe and led by Dr. Haley Larson. The panel will include experts from universities and independent consultants across the US and will assess ingredients for use in both companion animal food and livestock feed.
Once the review panel completes its assessment, recommendations will be submitted to AAFCO membership for final approval. Approved ingredients will be listed in AAFCO’s Official Publication, which is recognised by regulatory agencies and industry stakeholders as the primary reference for feed ingredients.
The SRIS process replaces AAFCO’s previous Ingredient Definition Request pathway, which ended following the expiration of a memorandum of understanding with the US Food and Drug Administration.
AAFCO stated the SRIS program will serve as a complement to the FDA’s current GRAS (Generally Recognised as Safe) Notice process, offering the industry another route to market for new products.