Senator Pat Roberts (R-KS) is urging the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to quickly approved waivers to allowing blending of corn with aflatoxin to increase the feed supply for livestock producers hard hit by ongoing drought.

In a letter sent to FDA’s Department of Health and Human Services last week, Roberts noted that aflatoxin is impacting the quality of the corn that would normally be used for livestock feed in many drought stricken areas. “At certain levels, aflatoxin can cause fatalities when fed to livestock and poultry, but in trace amounts, it is not harmful to use in feed. However, the Food and Drug Administration does not permit elevators and grain handlers to blend loads of corn to ensure that aflatoxin levels are safe for feeding purposes,” said Roberts.

“Given the shortage of feed available this year and the extreme hardship this shortage is causing in the livestock and poultry sectors, I strongly urge the Food and Drug Administration to quickly review any corn blending waiver requests received for livestock and poultry sectors,” he added. “I understand that acceptable aflatoxin levels for the dairy industry are significantly different than for other livestock and poultry sectors, and I also urge you to consider this difference in providing waivers.”

Senator Roberts is ranking member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry.