IFEEDER Newsletter: Volume 9, Issue 7
July 17, 2024
Learn Something New About Sustainability
When I try to understand a new topic, it is best if I start by looking at why it is important and see an example. At the Institute for Feed Education and Research, we have applied this same approach to an upcoming resource for the Animal Food Industry Sustainability Toolkit.
Debuting next week, the new resource describes 16 different “material issue” areas that could be a part of a company’s sustainability efforts, exploring why each could be important to an animal food industry member.
With the help from some Iowa State University students and your peers, we gathered real-world examples of actions that various segments of the animal food industry have undertaken relative to those items - including what value they place on those actions and the benefits received.
While greenhouse gas emissions reduction and climate change often get the media limelight, it is likely that employee health and wellness, helping communities, energy use and other components of environmental stewardship also play a critical role for businesses operating within the animal food industry today. You can use the new resource to explore which areas may be important to you, what internal and external stakeholders may value in that discussion and why efforts you may already have underway could be a part of sharing your sustainability story.
Be on the lookout, the new resource will arrive in your inbox next week.
Project Updates
This month, IFEEDER kicked off its
research project to update the 2020 pet food report and the 2021 feed ingredient consumption report. We’re working to transparently provide data and information so that stakeholders, including you, can be supported in buying decisions about feed and pet food.
With the new reports anticipated to roll out in January 2025, donors contributing to their development will receive recognition in the final news release, in the IFEEDER newsletter and on the project webpage. And, working through a project advisory group, project investors will have the opportunity to provide input into the project and review results in advance of the reports’ release.
Have You Invested in IFEEDER Lately? Now Would Be a Great Time to Make a Difference.
No other public charity is investing in this valuable research to support the animal food industry. As a key stakeholder benefiting from this work, will your organization invest in IFEEDER so we can invest in you?
If you are interested in supporting this important work, contact Lara Moody, IFEEDER’s executive director, or contribute directly here.
In the Media
Feed & Grain Podcast
Moody shares updates on IFEEDER's current projects and initiatives, including the sustainability roadmap, ingredient consumption datasets and the importance of communication in the feed industry.
Cereal Grains Café Podcast
With all the buzz around sustainability, Moody explores how the animal food industry, and IFEEDER's work, contribute to the broader agricultural industry's sustainability efforts.
What We're Reading
Inaugural Report: The Positive Momentum of Sustainable U.S. Soy
Driven by a need to address the questions coming from global customers, the U.S. Soy Sustainability Assurance Protocol (SSAP) was initiated in 2013 by the U.S. soybean organizations to document and verify the sustainable production of soy in the U.S. A recent life cycle assessment shows that the carbon footprint of U.S. soy is the lowest in the world when factoring in cultivation impact and land use change versus other soy, plant proteins and vegetable oils. Since its inception, over 44 million metric tons of U.S. soy have been verified and shipped with SSAP to Europe, the Americas, Asia and Africa; in 2023, 70% of U.S. soy exports were shipped with an SSAP certificate. With animal feed as an essential element of their supply chain, the SSAP created the “Fed with Sustainable U.S. Soy” package label to promote products such as poultry, pork and shrimp where the feed must contain at least 60% sustainable U.S. soy.
IFEEDER Fodder
Click the links below to read the latest posts on the IFEEDER Fodder blog.
New IFEEDER Resource Showcases Industry Sustainability Stories
By: Lara Moody
Sure, greenhouse gas emission reductions often get the limelight when it comes to corporate sustainability programs, but sustainability goes much broader than climate change. Considering the issues that matter most to them is a key step in deciding where the company should focus its sustainability efforts to make an impact.
Updating Our Feed and Pet Food Consumption Data 
By: Taylor Lekin
This year, IFEEDER initiated work on a project to update its pet food and feed ingredient consumption reports. The goal is to provide transparent data, quantifying the numerous ingredients used to feed livestock, poultry, fish and pets in the United States.
Where You'll Find IFEEDER Next
Sept. 10-12 | Salt Lake City, Utah
Blonk Event: The Need for Harmonized Footprint Data for the U.S. Food Industry
Sept. 30 | Hybrid Event
North American Renderers Association Annual Convention
Oct. 22-25 | Santa Barbara, Calif.