A new pathway for bringing animal feed ingredients to the US market

Since October 2025, a streamlined Scientific Review of Ingredient Submissions (SRIS) program has been accepting applications for new animal food ingredient definitions and modifications to existing definitions. The program was developed by the Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) in partnership with Kansas State University’s Olathe Innovation Campus (K-State Olathe).

Expediting the process

Without SRIS, the US animal food industry would face barriers to innovation and the standardization of feed ingredients, according to the developers.

It is a faster process for evaluating the safety and intended use of proposed new ingredient definitions, which form a key part of the AAFCO Official Publication that standardizes ingredient terminology, providing consistency in interstate commerce.

SRIS halves the time involved in assessing new animal food ingredients, while still ensuring safety and accuracy. Besides improving responsiveness, transparency, fairness and openness for ingredient innovators, this accelerated process will help pet food businesses to act quickly on the international stage.

Complementary to FAP and GRAS

SRIS is intended to complement the current Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) program by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), providing the animal food industry with an additional option for introducing new and innovative products to the market. In fact, the SRIS pathway is the only regulatory process that provides a formal review of animal food ingredient definitions that neither the FDA’s Food Additive Petition (FAP) nor the GRAS pathways fulfill.

Saving valuable time

The modernized regulatory pathway allows for ingredient reviews to be done in half the time it currently takes the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. Despite this, the process ensures safety and accuracy by upholding rigorous scientific standards and transparency.

Through SRIS, prospective ingredients undergo scientific evaluation by independent consultants and subject matter experts (SMEs) from universities across the US. Because the leading experts are the individuals involved in the review, safety standards and scientific integrity remain intact.

Scientific expertise

The SMEs who conduct expert panel reviews within the SRIS framework are selected based on their areas of expertise, screened for potential conflicts of interest and trained to review new and innovative ingredients that would benefit the US animal food industry in a manner that preserves scientific rigor.

The SRIS Program Manager is Dr. Garret Ashabranner. He previously served as an animal scientist at the FDA, where he reviewed animal food ingredients and advised on monogastric nutrition and environmental claims. He brings nearly a decade of experience in poultry production, regulatory science and agricultural education to the SRIS.

Stop-the-clock flexibility

Thanks to the hard work of the collaborative steering committee that was set up at the start, the AAFCO and K-State Olathe teams developed the novel SRIS process within the space of a year. This has resulted in the process flow, conflict of interest requirements, timelines, submission guidance and training material for the SMEs.

The process flow includes the flexibility for submitters to ‘stop the clock’ for 60 to 90 days within the review process. This allows them to address any questions from reviewers or to gather additional data that may be needed to support a safety conclusion.

Unlike in the FDA’s processes, the stop-the-clock period can start or halt when dialogue or answers are needed without resetting the review timeframe back to zero.

A boost to innovation

With strong leadership on board, an expansive network of some of the most qualified animal nutritionists in the world and its unique flexibility, the SRIS process is poised to be a successful regulatory pathway for US animal food manufacturers.

Innovators in the ingredient space can expect responsiveness, transparency, a fair evaluation of ingredients and open dialogue.

Meanwhile, pet food manufacturers can expect to gain access to innovative ingredients that will allow them to remain competitive in the global market.