FEFAC Warn Of Feed Price Rises

The President of European feed manufacturers organisation Fefac, Pedro Correa de Barros, has warned livestock farmers that feed prices may increase significantly at very short notice due to the EU zero-tolerance policy for the presence of trace levels of not yet EU approved GM plants in imported feeds.

Referring to the potential total loss of important soy imports from the US following the positive testing by German authorities of traces of not yet EU-approved GM maize in US soybeans.

Of concern to the EU livestock industry is that it needs to source soybeans and soybean meal from the US at least until the next South American harvest in spring 2010, he said.

Soy prices could rise by at least EUR20/tonne due to additional “risk premiums” for US origin and even significantly higher if the EU could no longer import from the US, due to the lack of alternative supplies from South America, he warned.