A number of agricultural organisations – COCERAL, Copa-Cogeca, FEDIOL and FEFAC – have welcomed the publication by the European Commission on Tuesday 11 April of a comprehensive overview of protein crops used for animal feed purposes in the EU.
The EU protein balance sheet 2015-2016 is an overview of total EU production, consumption and trade of all marketable sources of proteins used in animal feed production. Next to well-known protein-rich materials, such as soybean meal, rapeseed meal and pulses, the balance sheet includes sources with lower protein content like cereals. It shows the total protein needs in the EU, with EU production of cereals and oilseeds (i.e. derived rapeseed and sunflower meal through domestic crushing) providing the bulk of raw protein requirements.
It also confirms the strong need to import protein-rich sources such as soybean meal and soybeans for EU crushing. COCERAL, Copa-Cogeca, FEDIOL and FEFAC say that the balance sheet will contribute to market transparency and help operators to better understand market developments. The Commission will publish a second EU protein balance sheet after the Summer of 2017. (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)