Press Release: Safety first in feed additive authorisations

On 9 November 2004 the Community Reference Laboratory (CRL) for the authorisation of feed additives was inaugurated in Geel, Belgium. Feed additives are used in animal feed to improve the productivity or health of the animals. Before being authorised, all feed additives must undergo a safety assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the CRL evaluates the analytical methods proposed to detect the presence of feed additives. The European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) was nominated as the CRL for Feed Additives, which is established at the Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) in Geel.