Best practice standards added for aquafeed mills

This addition expands BAP certification to span the full aquaculture production chain, from hatchery through processing plant.

 

Feed manufacturers can now contact BAP Certification Management, formerly the Aquaculture Certification Council (ACC), to achieve BAP certification.

 

"In developing these new standards, GAA has not only addressed best practices for food safety within manufacturing plants, but also the sustainability of fishmeal supplies," said GAA President George Chamberlain.

 

For the BAP programme, feed mills must develop plans to avoid unsustainable sources of raw materials and shift to fishmeal and fish oil originating from responsibly managed fisheries.

 

By 2015, at least 50% of the fishmeal and fish oil generated from reduction fisheries and fishery by-products must be from approved certified sources.

 

For all aquaculture feeds, BAP-certified feed mills will have to indicate a feed fish inclusion factor (FFIF) on product labels, packaging or other documentation that quantifies marine ingredient content.

 

This will enable farms to determine fish in-fish out ratios easily by multiplying the inclusion factors by their feed-conversion ratios.

 

The BAP standards and guidelines for feed mills address food safety and environmental and social responsibility. They share many points with the BAP standards for aquaculture farms and processing plants.

 

Mills must apply management practices that protect workers and workers’ rights, and process controls that adequately deal with ingredients and finished products to avoid potential environmental, health and food safety problems.