The Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) is responsible for the regulation of animal food (which includes pet food, animal feed, raw materials, and ingredients) in accordance with the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act). The FD&C Act, and the regulations issued under its authority, govern the manufacture, distribution, and some uses of food.
The FD&C Act defines food, in part, as “articles used for food or drink for man or other animals…”. Any article that is intended to be used as an animal food ingredient, become part of an ingredient or food, or added to an animal’s drinking water is considered a “food” and subject to regulation. The agency’s assessment of the Dietary Supplement and Health Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994 is that this law does not apply to animal food, including pet food. This assessment was published in the Federal Register on April 22, 1996 (61 FR 17706). Thus, there is no “dietary supplement” regulatory classification for animal food substances and products. Therefore, products that some people characterize as “dietary supplements intended for animals” are either “food” or “new animal drugs” depending on their intended use.
The FD&C Act also describes when foods are adulterated or misbranded in sections 402 and 403. A food may be adulterated for different reasons, including if it: is manufactured, packaged, or held under insanitary conditions that may have contaminated it with filth or may have rendered it harmful to health; contains ingredients that are filthy or decomposed; contains unsafe poisonous or deleterious substances; or contains additives or drugs that are unsafe because they have not gone through a required approval process. A food may be misbranded if its labeling is false or misleading in any way or fails to include required information.
Pets need safe food to live long, healthy lives. Food-producing animals need food that is safe for the animals and so that foods of animal origin, such as meat, milk, and eggs, are safe for consumption. To help maintain a safe animal food supply that ensures the health of both animals and people, CVM’s responsibilities include:
reviewing pre-market animal food ingredient submissions, including approving safe food additives for animal food use, evaluating generally recognized as safe (GRAS) notices, providing consultations on animal food ingredients, providing consultations on animal foods from biotech plants,
reviewing animal food labels and pet foods with certain claims (such as claims regarding hairballs and urinary tract health; see the pet food claims page for additional information),
managing the FDA’s oversight of animal foods that are in the US market, using a comprehensive inspectional and risk-based compliance program, which includes: preventive controls in animal foods, medicated feeds, bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), veterinary feed directive (VFD), low acid canned food (LACF) in animal foods, and the animal food import program,
overseeing FDA’s animal food sampling programs monitoring for contaminants including animal food contaminants,
working closely with state regulatory partners who conduct a significant number of animal food inspections and sample collections,
coordinating complaint and emergency responses, as well as recalls related to animal food, and
providing training, education, and outreach to various audiences to help ensure effective implementation of regulatory programs.
Although FDA is the federal agency responsible for regulating the manufacturing, distribution, and use of animal food products, the ultimate responsibility for producing safe and effective animal food products lies with the manufacturers and distributors of the products.