Hemp in Animal Feed in the USA? This may seem unusual at first glance. Why? Because we are used to encountering or using hemp-based (or CBD) products for humans. For example, CBD.FR offers a wide range of CBD food products for humans. Following this trend, the United States could incorporate hemp into animal nutrition. More details on this topic below. Table of Contents Hemp in Animal Feed: Focus on the Context in the USAThe Intricacies of the Process The Forms of Hemp Chosen and Their Safety The Underlying Challenges
What’s Next?
- Hemp in Animal Feed: Focus on the Context in the USA
- Indeed, before delving into the initiative to incorporate hemp as animal feed in the USA, it is important to focus on the context. In fact, at the time of writing, this plant is already legal in 16 states in the United States. On this subject, to learn more about the relevant regulations, you can read our content on
- cannabis legislation in the USA.
- Although cannabis is legal in some parts of the country, feeding hemp-based animal feed remains illegal. Similarly, American citizens cannot legally consume meat or eggs from animals that have eaten hemp.
This is what prompted the Hemp Feed Coalition (HFC) to take action. This non-profit organization, based in Fort Collins, Colorado, is seeking federal approval for hemp and its byproducts as a source of commercial animal feed and nutrition. For this reason, it has submitted an application to the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) and the Center for Veterinary Medicine of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This application is currently under review. The Intricacies of the ProcessIndeed, submitting an application for hemp approval as animal feed in the USA was not easy. In fact, HFC had to work hard to ensure it had all the necessary elements in its favor. This submission is the culmination of a two-year effort. This effort included an investigation into the ingredients of hemp meal and hemp meal, as well as a clinical trial to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of hemp as feed for laying hens. In this regard, Hunter Buffington, Executive Director of HFC, stated the following at the 2021 World Agricultural Show: “One of the great opportunities for us as an industry, and one of the best ways to support our farmers in these ancillary markets, as well as our livestock farmers, is to transform these highly nutritious and valuable by-products from hemp production and processing into commodities.”
The chosen forms of hemp and their safety
In fact, talking about hemp as animal feed in the US is one thing. Requesting its legalization from institutions is quite another. Why? Because the benefit of this choice should be tangible. Likewise, the chosen forms of hemp must be safe for animals. Therefore, to address this other aspect of the issue, the HFC provided further arguments.
On the one hand, regarding the forms, the organization favors hemp seed flour and seed meal. It believes that there are tons of unused material in farmers’ warehouses as a by-product of the human food segment; which stimulates the production of hemp seeds to be ground for oil. On the other hand, to meet the FDA-CVM’s rigorous safety and efficacy standards, hemp industry members across the United States have submitted certificates of analysis for their crops. This demonstrates that hemp meal and flour can be consistently grown and processed. Buffington commented on this:
“It’s really going to require a concerted effort not only to understand the ingredient profile and answer all the questions the FDA-CVM has about the ingredient itself, but we also need to conduct clinical food trials to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of these products as well.”
Further on, she added…
“To add to that, we have an additional challenge: only hemp grown and processed in the United States, fed to animals in US research facilities, can be used to present our case for FDA-CVM approval, so you can see why we really needed a coalition of people to meet this challenge.” The Underlying Challenges
Indeed, aside from the safety aspect mentioned above, there are underlying challenges. One is ensuring that hemp will be on the same page as the products currently used for animal feed in the US. These include, among others, corn and soy. In this regard, it might be worth asking: That said, will hemp in US animal feed have the same nutritional value as these other feeds? Similarly, is it possible to bring the prices down to those of competing products? Regarding this last point, Scott Propheter, farmer and CBD director in North Carolina, speaks out.
“If you want (hemp) products to compete globally with these products, they must be sold at competitive prices.”
On the other hand, it will also be a matter of ensuring that the new market that will be created thrives. Not in the short term, but in the long term. Indeed, this could open up a new financial niche. Along these lines, according to projections by Grand View Research, a market research and consulting firm based in San Francisco, the animal feed market is expected to exceed $415 billion by 2023, compared to $336 billion in 2017. Similarly, the industrial hemp seed and grain segment is expected to grow by nearly 20% by 2027, and the animal care segment of the industry is expected to grow by nearly 10%, according to the HFC. Furthermore, 190 million tons of animal feed are produced in the United States each year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. What’s next?
Naturally, the next step in this process is to wait for the relevant agencies to approve the application. In fact, the approval process for animal feed ingredients typically takes up to four years. Although the AAFCO and FDA-CVM authorities have promised to expedite it, potentially reducing the wait to 18 to 24 months, Mosher told the Hemp Industry Daily.
Meanwhile, some farmers aren’t waiting for federal regulatory approval to sell hemp-fed chicken eggs. For example, Kreider Farms, an egg and dairy producer in central Pennsylvania, reportedly added a cage-free hemp egg line to its Chicks Creek brand last December. While awaiting feedback from regulators, the HFC is turning its attention to research on other hemp by-products, including oil, sediments, hulls, pulp, and sieves. The aim is to examine their potential as food ingredients. Furthermore, the group plans to bring together researchers, members of the hemp and animal feed industries, and coalition advisors to explore additional applications.
References: https://hempindustrydaily.com/hemp-in-animal-feed-is-closer-to-becoming-reality/?mc_cid=17255e3ec8&mc_eid=35711c3bd8
