In response to many inquiries received as a result of the November 12 call to State officials and the CVM Update, entitled “Material from CWD-Positive Animals Should Not Be Used for Animal Feed”, FDA is clarifying its current position regarding the use in animal feed of material from free range deer and elk from areas declared by State officials to be endemic for Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) and/or to be CWD eradication zones.
1) Material from CWD-positive animals may not be used in any animal feed or feed ingredients. Animal feed and feed ingredients containing material from a CWD-positive animal would be considered adulterated. We believe that any such adulterated feed or feed ingredients should be recalled or otherwise removed from the marketplace.
2) FDA strongly advises that materials from untested or CWD-test-negative free ranging deer and elk in areas declared by States to be endemic for CWD or a CWD eradication zone no longer be entered into the animal feed system. Under present circumstances, FDA does not believe that feed previously made from such materials needs to be recalled.
3) FDA continues to consider materials from free range deer and elk in areas not declared by States to be endemic for CWD or a CWD eradication zone (NON-ENDEMIC areas) to be acceptable for use in non-ruminant animal feeds in accordance with current Agency regulations Title 21, Part 589.2000 of the Code of Federal Regulations . Under present circumstances, FDA does not believe that non-ruminant feed made from free range deer and elk in NON-ENDEMIC areas would need to be recalled if a State later declares the area from which the deer or elk came to be endemic for CWD or a CWD eradication zone.
FDA is developing a CWD Question and Answer document as well as a CWD Compliance Policy Guide. These items will be available at a later time. Comments from the public on these issues may be sent any time to the following address:
CWD Feed Comments FDA/CVM/Communications Staff 7519 Standish Place, HFV-12 Rockville, MD20855