The ICCF has released the second phase of its environmental risk assessment framework, refining how feed ingredients are evaluated for potential ecological impact.

The International Cooperation for Convergence of Technical Requirements for the Assessment of Feed Ingredients (ICCF) has endorsed and published its Phase 2 guidance document on environmental risk assessment. This second-phase release provides a more detailed, stepwise approach to evaluating the environmental safety of feed ingredients that are not exempt under the previous Phase 1 framework.

The document guides users through the refinement of Predicted Environmental Concentration (PEC) values and their comparison with Predicted Non-Effect Concentration (PNEC) levels across terrestrial and aquatic environments. If the resulting risk quotient for each constituent entity is below one, the ingredient is considered not to pose an environmental risk.

Developed by an Expert Working Group formed in January 2023, the guidance reflects contributions from regulatory and industry experts representing ICCF’s founding organizations, including CFIA, FDA, EFSA, FEFANA, ANAC, and IFIF. It draws upon existing international frameworks while tailoring its recommendations to the specific complexities of feed ingredients.

The full guidance, titled Feed Ingredients Environmental Risk Assessment (Phase 2), is available on the ICCF website.