IFIF committed to reducing livestock GHG emissions

As world leaders seek agreement at the UN conference on Climate Change (COP21/CMP11) in Paris, IFIF continues to collaborate with stakeholders on the agri-food chain to strengthen sustainable food production to help contribute to dietary quality and nutrient adequacy around the world through the provision of safe, affordable, nutritious and sustainable feed and food. Livestock raising and the consumption of animal products make a crucial contribution to the economic and nutritional wellbeing of millions of people around the world – particularly in developing countries. Yet the need to improve the environmental performance of the livestock sector will continue as the UN FAO estimates that demand for livestock products will further intensify over the decades to come.

Better animal nutrition

The global feed industry has a longstanding commitment to improve feed efficiency by reducing the feed conversion rates for all major livestock and farmed fish species. The industry continues to develop better animal nutrition to avoid carbon or nitrogen losses into the atmosphere or water, through better use of forages, feed additives and diversifying protein sources such as canola meal and sunflower meal in feed rations, or legumes in pastures for ruminants. Crucially, the feed industry also gives value to the rising volume of food industry coproducts, further increasing the sustainability of livestock production. To support sustainability efforts at international level, IFIF is a founding member of the Global Feed LCA Institute (GFLI), which will use the FAO supported LEAP methodology to develop a golden global standard for assessing and benchmarking feed industry impact and improvement in LCA calculation at regional level, in order to support the reduction of the environmental footprint of livestock products.

Specialty Feed Ingredients Sustainability Project

IFIF has also together with the EU Association of Specialty Feed Ingredients and their Mixtures (FEFANA) and a consortium of international companies and associations, launched the Specialty Feed Ingredients Sustainability Project (SFIS), which measured and established the positive role of specialty feed ingredients (SFIs) on the environmental impact of livestock production. Moreover, IFIF provides expert input to multi-stakeholder FAO-led sustainability initiatives, including the Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock and the Partnership on Livestock Environmental Assessment and Performance (LEAP).