General News 2 0 PET TRADE WORLD DECEMBER 2009www. pettradeworld. com Labelling of pet food - legislation fi nally updated after 30 years PFMA welcomes the publication on 1 September of the new Regulation on the Marketing and Use of Feed ( Regulation ( EC) No 767/ 2009). The new Regulation will harmonise labelling of pet food in all the 27 EU member states even further than under current legislation, which dates back as far as 1979. Feed business will have until 1 September 2010 to adjust their labels in line with the requirements of the new Regulation. The PFMA Chief Executive, Michael Bellingham, said " We recognised the need for an overhaul in the existing legislation and have worked hard for the last 5 years to ensure that there were in place new rules refl ecting the needs not only of industry, but also the requirements of our customers. For that reason, we commissioned independent market research into consumer attitudes to labelling which we shared openly with the European Commission, and which infl uenced their thinking. Meanwhile our members were fully engaged in the process, through our committee structure and internal communications, as were other stakeholders. These new rules will have an impact on how cat and dog, plus from now on other small animal food, is manufactured and marketed. This is not only with regard to the legal requirements but, perhaps more importantly, in respect to clarity in making and substantiating claims." What will change for the consumer? In principle the new Regulation includes the same provisions as current legislation. There will still be the need for a product name and the statutory declaration, which has to be clearly legible and in an indelible manner. However, the way the ingredients will be declared has been updated. The new Regulation sees the introduction of headings such as, ' Composition', ' Additives' and ' Analytical Constituents' which should improve readability for the consumer. In addition labelling terms that have lead to confusion in the past ( ash) can now be replaced by other terms. The consumer will also fi nd additional information on the additives that have been used in the pet food product. The new regulation provides that there should be easy ways for consumer to get in contact with manufacturers ( for example, telephone number, websites, email addresses, etc). What will change for the manufacturer? Manufacturers will be required to change the labels by 1 September 2010. This will not only mean changes to the wording on the products, but consideration about the presentation of vital information ( e. g. analytical constituents) on the packaging. Mr Bellingham states " Frankly a year is not nearly enough time to make these important changes. All of our members will be severely affected, having to dispose of any out dated labels and then re- originating all their labels within that very short time scale. Pressure on the limited number of European printers will be immense, compounded by the fact that new rules for food labelling are being agreed at the same time. We estimate that the additional cost to the SMEs alone in the UK would be £ 10.5m in the fi rst year." Guidelines The new Regulation provides for feed manufacturers to develop a Community code of good labelling practice and we are in the process, in conjunction with our European sister organisation FEDIAF, of fi nalising a Guide to Good Practice for Communication on Pet Food. This will go much further than the basic requirements of the regulation. This requires broad stakeholder consultation and, ultimately, approval by the EU, and will be made publically available. ¦ CIRCULATING OVER 12,000 COPIES A MONTH To retailers, manufacturers, vets, kennels and catteries, garden centres, equine and aquatic related outlets and pet related organisations throughout the UK and the rest of the world Pet Trade World really does Lead the Way!

General News www. pettradeworld. comPET TRADE WORLD DECEMBER 2009 21 Calendar Girls? Royal Canin's diary promotion proved so popular last Christmas that it's back again this year - a beautifully produced, full colour diary for 2010 featuring gorgeous cat and dog photos is available free with every purchase of a 1.5kg or larger bag of Royal Canin dog or cat food. Geraldine Jacquier, retail marketing manager, says: " Everyone needs a diary, and pet lovers especially enjoy one with dogs and cats. We see it as a reward for customer and retailer loyalty throughout the year - and it helps drive trial too." The diary is available while stocks last - for more information, contact your Royal Canin Business Manager, call the Royal Canin hotline on 0845 300 5011 or visit www. royalcanin. co. uk. ¦ Alpha Feeds Support Greyhound Fundraiser PERFORMANCE dog food experts, Alpha Feeds were delighted to support a fundraising event for Retired Greyhound Re- homing. The sponsored walk was organised by Barley Kennels on behalf of Walthamstow Owners and Welfare Association. The walk raised more than £ 2,000 and Alpha Feeds provided bags of dog food and raffl e prizes. Each year the fundraising team organise a number of initiatives to raise the funds required to continue to re- home retired greyhounds. The Walthamstow Owners and Welfare Association is an independent group that has re- homed an incredible 1100 greyhounds over the last eight years. This year's event - The Golden Mile Greyhound Walk through Epping Forrest - saw each owner raising sponsorship for their dogs, along with resident kennel dogs being sponsored by the public. Fiona White of Deutsche Bank along with Ryan, who's sponsorship raised £ 240, plus a further £ 180 matched by her employer. ¦ Greyhoundfundraiser