The signing of the Food Safety Modernization Act of 2010 signed into law by President Obama Jan. 4, 2011 means widespread changes for the food and feed industry, Quality Liquid Feeds, Inc. (QLF) officials say our feed manufacturing processes will, for the most part, remain unaffected.

That’s because all QLF manufacturing plants have already been going above and beyond government regulations by participating in the voluntary Safe Feed/Safe Food Certification Program administered by the American Feed Industry Association (AFIA).

"QLF is prepared for this new legislation because we’ve taken a proactive approach in all our manufacturing plants,” says Cory Berg, QLF President & CEO. “We don’t expect this new act to change the way we do business because our participation in the AFIA Safe Feed/Safe Food Certification Program has already put us in compliance.”

The new Food Safety Act was first introduced in Congress in 2009, partly in response to public outcry over a rash of recalls of basic kitchen staples such as eggs, spinach and peanut butter. The legislation aims to improve overall food safety by giving the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) new powers to better monitor and help prevent food-borne disease outbreaks, trace problems to the source, and hold those parties responsible.

AFIA — the world’s largest organization devoted exclusively to representing the business, legislative, and regulatory interests of the U.S. animal feed industry and its suppliers — played a very active role in this legislation over the last two years, mainly working to create a “firewall” between food and feed provisions. In several places, AFIA managed to convince Congress that in rulemaking the FDA should differentiate between food for humans and feed for animals.

“AFIA was very active in providing input in the drafting of this legislation,” says AFIA president and CEO Joel G. Newman. “AFIA believes it was able to reach a reasonable consensus and compromise on the major provisions of the bill that will affect the feed industry.”

The centerpiece of this new act is the requirement for all food, feed, ingredient, and pet food facilities to identify food/feed safety hazards and develop written guidelines to control them — procedures QLF currently has in place as part of Safe Feed/Safe Food’s stringent stipulations. Compliance in the program is determined bi-annually by a third-party company that performs an external audit on QLF’s procedures.

“In many cases, our guidelines in areas like record-keeping, employee training, ingredient-purchasing, feed-manufacturing, traceability and facility management exceed federal regulations,” says Berg. “By complying with Safe Feed/Safe Food, we know we are going the extra mile to ensure the safety of our product.”

QLF Customer Valley Vu Dairy in Cumberland, WI is featured in Dairy Today.  Check out the link below to find out how Valley Vu Dairy turned a bad market for bull calves into a positive business investment!

Dairy Today Article

Medicated Additives in Liquid Feed Supplements, Medicated Blocks, and Free Choice Feeds

The inclusion of additives in liquid feed supplements, medicated blocks and free choice feeds
offers unique opportunities to add value and deliver benefits to livestock producers. When liquid
feeds are included in mixed rations, they contribute to improved mixing of the diet, and reduced
physical separation and animal sorting at the bunk. This translates into better distribution and more
consistent intake of additives, and potentially greater animal response. In grazing situations, freechoice
liquids and medicated feeds offer a practical means to deliver these management tools. In
both scenarios, incorporating additives into the supplement eliminates the need for inventory,
measurement and mixing of these relatively expensive, low-inclusion and dated ingredients.

However, it is critical that these products -- especially those regulated as medicated additives -
- only be delivered in appropriate products, to approved classes of animals, within the
parameters outlined by the approval process and required by federal law.

Medicated Additives

The Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act defines a “drug” as any compound intended to cure,
treat, prevent or mitigate a disease or condition or a product that is intended to alter the structure or
function of the body (unless it is a food that does that itself). If the compound is an animal drug by
this definition, then federal law requires the compound to be approved by FDA through a thorough
review of the safety of the product in animals and human food, and a review of its efficacy.

The approval for use of an animal drug in liquid feed and blocks and for free-choice feeding
requires feeding trials, manufacturing tests, safety data, chemical and other information required by
FDA regulations. Animal drugs approved for use in liquid feed and blocks and for free-choice feeding
require more tests and data than those animal drugs approved for use in dry feed. This has to do
with the unique nature of these feeds, the pH, settling, exposure to heat/cold and the elements,
among other things. The FDA approves animal drugs based on the data submitted by the drug
sponsor and reviewed by FDA, and the approval is specific for the animal species, class of animal,
type of product (e.g., dry or liquid feed, free-choice and/or block), conditions of use, any
manufacturing requirements (agitation, pH or temperature), and any limitations and/or warning
statements or conditions. The approval process takes many months, and firms pursuing this
approach expend considerable resources obtaining the final approval. The approval can only be
changed by FDA through a similar review process, and the approval is granted specifically to a firm.
Other firms wanting the same approval must file data and go through the same process.

When used as approved, FDA has deemed the approved animal drugs to be safe and
efficacious for their labeled use. If any withdrawal times are followed, the drugs will not result in a
violative tissue residue in meat, milk, eggs or fish.

Serious Business

Approved animal drugs can ONLY be used in feed, handled and positioned as outlined by the
FDA. It is a violation of federal law to knowingly distribute an unapproved animal drug or to use it in
an unapproved manner. No company, nutritionist or veterinarian may change the type of feed, animal species, animal class, use level or indications for use of these approved animal drugs.

The feed and livestock industry has a huge stake in preventing misuse of these products. It is
irresponsible and, in fact, illegal, to do any of the following:

• Add a Type A medicated article (the ingredient (premix) form of an additive) to liquid feed
• outside of a licensed manufacturing facility (e.g., local dosing by distributors);
• Include a medicated additive in a free-choice liquid feed that does not follow the approved
• formula;
• Ignore recirculation requirements or expiration dates;
• Add an additive or form of an additive that has dry feed but not liquid feed/supplement
• approval to a liquid feed;
• Feed a medicated feed to an unapproved class of animals;
• Formulate dosage rates that fall outside approved ranges;
• Add multiple drug additives to the same feed that do not have a specific combination
• approval;
• Position a medicated supplement for a use that is not specifically approved (e.g., free-choice
• vs. hand fed; open top tank vs. covered lick wheel feeder); or
• Ignore any of the warnings, limitations or other use directions on the approved label of a
• medicated feed, premix or supplement.

Such violations may result in illegal drug residues in meat, milk, eggs or fish and may result in
serious reactions in humans eating these products.

These violations, if prosecuted by FDA, may result in criminal sanctions, such as fines and/or jail
sentences or civil sanctions, such as forfeiture of profits, fines and other civil penalties.

Manufacturers and distributors of liquid feeds, blocks and free choice feeds have a responsibility
to adhere to all medicated additive regulations. Besides being against the law, the actions cited
above can lead to:

• Reduced, or even no, response to the additive;
• Safety concerns;
• Potential for residues in meat and milk, or environmental contamination;
• Discovery by anti-animal agriculture activists, and subsequent negative publicity, additional
• regulation, and potentially even loss of additive availability for the industry; and/or
• In the case of antibiotics, add fuel to the campaign to take these management tools away
• from livestock producers.

Approved Medicated Additives for Liquid Feeds, Medicated Blocks and Free Choice Feeds

Ionophores. These include monensin, lasalocid and laidlomycin. Specific regulations include class
of animal, indications for use, directions for use, approved additive level in the supplement, expiration
date (where applicable), agitation requirements, and formulation limitations. Lasalocid is the only
ionophore cleared for use in free-choice liquid feed, and that inclusion is strictly limited to approved
formulas.

Antibiotics. A form of tylosin is approved for use in liquid supplements that are part of a mixed
ration. The lack of clearances for other commonly used feed antibiotics can be at least partially
attributed to the fact that the currently available form of these compounds will not remain stable in
the liquid feed environment.

Growth promotion/feed efficiency. Bambermycin is approved for liquid feeds and free-choice
feeds, but the latter requires use of the formula in the federal regulation for this drug. Ractopamin, a
beta-agonist is approved for liquid feed as well as for these types of claims.

Heat suppression. Melegesterol acetate is approved for inclusion in force-fed liquids for
suppression of estrus (heat) in heifers fed for slaughter, both alone and in combination with specific
ionophores.

Pesticides. Decoquinate is approved for use in force-fed liquids for the prevention of coccidiosis.
Fenbendazole may be delivered to acclimated beef and dairy cattle in a specified liquid feed formula,
via lick wheel feeders, as an anthelmintic. This product has closely defined regulations regarding
dosage and feeding protocols. S-Methoprene is available in a liquid form for addition to liquid feeds
to aid in the control of horn flies. This particular product is classed as a pesticide rather than feed
additive and is regulated by the EPA rather than FDA if added to a non-medicated feed. If added to a
medicated feed, then FDA will regulate it. The dry premix may not be substituted for the liquid
ingredient. Tetrachlorvinphos may be added to liquids going into mixed rations for control of specific
insect pests. Users of all pesticides should be aware of appropriate feeding directions and expiration
dates.

Bloat control. Poloxalene may be fed as part of a specified formula offered in covered lick wheel
feeders.

Information Sources

Complete information on approvals and regulations may be obtained from your liquid feed,
medicated block, or free choice feed company or from the drug sponsor on the product label or from
the drug sponsor’s online information. FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine also maintains an
approval list online via www.fda.gov/cvm, but it is a complex listing that includes all approved animal
drugs, including injectables.

The information in this document is no substitute for the regulatory and label requirements for
approved medicated additives for liquid feed, medicated block or free choice feed. Firm and
producers must follow labeled directions.

For more information, contact your liquid feed, medicated block, or free choice feed supplier
or the American Feed Industry Association at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or (703) 524-0810.

American Feed Industry Association
Arlington, Virginia
www.afia.org
October 2010

Dodgeville, WI - Quality Liquid Feeds, Inc.(QLF) announces the addition of suspension capabilities to our Wellsville, Ohio, Liquid Supplement Feed Manufacturing Plant. With this major investment, QLF has increased the ability to serve our growing dealer and producer customers. The facility additions were started in November 2009 and complete in March 2010.

QLF made the initial investment and commitment to the area in 1999. We have continued by adding products and resources. Dr. Stephen Emanuele joined our team in 2009 as a Dairy Business Development Manager mainly focusing on the Northeast.

There are now separate buildings to isolate suspension products for feedlot and dairy liquid feed products. Three manufacturing systems are dedicated to separate product lines. The following are the dedicated lines:

1. Ionophores, calcium suspension, macro and micro minerals and other ingredients.

2. Ionophore free for specialized horse feed, suprcoats, millcoats and non-medicated.

3. Total mixed ration and conventional pasture products.

Flexibility and efficiency are focuses for this facility located in the Port of Columbiana County. A combination unloading facility with the ability to unload by truck, rail and barge, give a great deal of flexibility for receiving a wide assortment of ingredients. Efficiency is highlighted in the ability to unload a barge in less than 14 hours compared to previously taking three to seven days. The plant has 22 finished feed load out tanks and 26 ingredient tanks. For the convenience of the drivers coming in and out, the plant has two truck scales. Last year there were 131 different products made at this facility.

From this location, QLF services primarily the states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia and Virginia. This manufacturing plant follows FDA guidelines and is FCI certified and Safe Feed/Safe Food certified through AFIA (American Feed Industry Association). With these certifications, third party agents inspect the plant and specific procedures are in place.

As a nationwide innovative leader in the developing and manufacturing of liquid feed supplements for dairy and beef, QLF prides itself by being the largest user of domestic cane molasses, being a family owned company and having a reputation for making products based on quality, consistency and service. Our plants in Dunlap, IA, LaSalle, IL, Wellsville, OH and Menomonie, WI are specifically equipped to produce high-quality calcium-suspension feeds. Please visit our www.qlf.com website for more information.