The International Feed Industry Federation, American Feed Industry Association and European Compound Feed Manufacturers' Federation are pleased to announce the official release of the Global Feed Life Cycle Assessment guidelines developed by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization-led Livestock Environmental Assessment and Performance Partnership. IFIF, AFIA and FEFAC are founding members of LEAP, which aims to improve how the environmental impacts of the livestock industry are measured and assessed. These groundbreaking global LCA Guidelines are an essential step to help reduce the impact of livestock products on the environment.

"The guidelines provide practical and science-based recommendations to assess the environmental performance of feed supply chains. They carry an international scientific consensus based on the input of twenty international experts in the drafting process and a thorough international public review which took place ahead of this official release" said Professor Frank Mitloehner, from the University California Davis and former chairman of LEAP.

"These guidelines represent a significant milestone for the global feed industry," said Mario Cutait, IFIF's chairman. "Sustainability is one of the key priorities for IFIF and these global guidelines will enable consistent and credible environmental assessments with a view to reduce the environmental footprint of livestock products. Mr. Cutait added "we can now work with our partners on the agri-feed chain to develop practical tools for feed and livestock producers to assist them in further reducing the environmental footprint of their activities" he added.

"LEAP is an international and a multi-stakeholder process", said AFIA's President and CEO Joel G. Newman. "It means that the LEAP/FAO Feed LCA Guidelines reflect a common vision among partners, including the FAO, national governments, private sector organizations as well as NGOs. This adds value to these globally harmonized metrics and will help meet our customers' expectations".  

"We took into account the main recommendations of the Product Environmental Footprint Guide published by the European Commission Common during the development of the FAO/LEAP Guidelines" said FEFAC President Ruud Tijssens. "From a European perspective, the FAO/LEAP guidelines are therefore the logical and relevant starting point to develop a standard aligned with the recommendations of the European Commission."

The guidelines can be accessed on the LEAP website: www.fao.org/partnerships/leap/en.