Pet Food Testing Services

Over the past years, the humanization of pets by their owners has made them more sensible about the way they are feeding them.

Mérieux NutriSciences supports various pet Food manufacturers

Pet food is the primary choice for consumers when it comes to feeding their pets. It consists of all the pre-packaged and processed industrial foods specifically designed to fulfil their nutritional needs. Product recalls associated with pet food have sparked requests for intensified safety controls by industry stakeholders, regulators, but also consumers.

At Mérieux Nutrisciences, we understand the importance of producing safe, quality pet food. Made out of various ingredients, pet food can take multiple forms. Our capabilities allow for laboratory testing of matrices such as:

• Dry pet food (kibbles),
• Wet pet food (pouch, trays, etc.),
• Semi-moist pet food(semi-moist kibbles),
• Raw pet food,
• Pet Supplements
• Pet treats

We can also help you ensuring the safety, the quality and the claims for:

• Organic,
• Vegan,
• Gluten-free,
• GMO-free,
• Nutritional values

Regulation also evolved over the past years and the requirements tend to differ from one market destination to another in terms of nutritional testing.

Pet food testing – safety and quality are highly regulated by the law

Safety and Quality of the products

According to the RASFF data monitored and analysed with Mérieux NutriSciences’ solution: Safety HUD, Salmonella spp. is the first cause of recalls of pet food products in Europe and represents around 50% of the recalls in 2020.

Pet food safety – A highly regulated sector

European Feed and Pet Food market became highly regulated and requires a lot of attention from manufacturers on:

• Additives – Regulation (EC) No 1831/2003
• Undesirable substances and residues – Directive 2002/32/EC
• Pesticides – Regulation (EC) No 396/2005
• Salmonella – Commission Regulation (EU) No 142/2011 (zero tolerance)
• Labelling – Regulation (EC) No 767/2009
• Feed hygiene, traceability and arrangements for registration and approval of establishments – Regulation (EC) No 183/2005
• Official Controls in Europe – Regulation (EU) 2017/625

Additionally, the European association of reference for pet food, the FEDIAF (European Pet Food Industry Federation), has issued nutritional guidelines that identify specific nutrients and reference values, based on the latest scientific knowledge.

Furthermore, the new trends in organic, grain-free, sustainable, GMO-free or unprocessed pet food impose even higher standards of control.

Mérieux NutriSciences can support you with customized services along your manufacturing process

Producers must rely on adequate safety and quality controls to keep up with market needs in terms of:

• supply chain traceability,
• nutritional quality,
• health safety,
• selection of raw materials,
• standardization of best practices,
• new formulations,
• presentation of product (packaging, advertising).

Mérieux NutriSciences’ capabilities allows us to support your along your entire process using. Moreover, thanks to our expertise, we can adapt our services so they fit your unique processes.