FAO is seeking suitable institutions that are interested in being designated as Reference Centres for Animal Nutrition and Feed to support FAO and its Member Countries in the implementation of its programme of work in these areas.

Adequate animal nutrition, and feed safety and quality are essential to animal health and welfare; they influence critical functions that enable animals to strengthen their defenses against pathogens and increase their resistance to diseases. This, in turn, contributes to reducing the need for antimicrobials and to containing antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Animal nutrition and safe feed are also a pre-requisit for food safety. Appropriate animal nutrition may reduce farm animals’ contribution to environmental pollution and climate change by providing only the necessary amounts of highly bio-available dietary nutrients.

Animal nutrition and feed play a key role in the sustainable and safe production of animal source food throughout the world. Under a wide range of farming conditions, feed, whether produced in industrial feed mills or in simpler on-farm mixers, is the largest and most important component of animal husbandry for the production of food, fiber, and other products, as well as for the provision of traction or transport. The importance, volume, and value of animal nutrition and global feed production continue to increase in response to growing demand for animal protein, especially poultry and pork meat, driven by population growth, urbanization, and increasing purchasing power in many emerging economies. Consequently, in many countries, there is a growing need for adequate animal nutrition and feed that is available in sufficient quantities and of adequate quality to meet the nutritional needs for maintenance, reproduction, and production, while ensuring its safety, and addressing the environmental, economic and social sustainability requirements.

FAO Reference Centres are institutions designated by the FAO Director-General to provide independent technical and scientific advice on issues related to FAO’s mandate and its programme.

The institution’s designation as an FAO Reference Centre should have demonstrated, through previous collaboration with one or more of FAO’s technical units, the following:

• engagement in fields of expertise relevant to the work of the Organization, and contribution to the implementation of its programme priorities and to capacity development in countries and regions;
• ability to carry out one or more of the following functions:

1. provision of knowledge, information, and advice of a scientific, technical, or policy nature;
2. contribution to capacity development, inter alia through the provision of training and e-learning;
3. development and/or standardization of technologies, technical or methodological innovations, and/or procedures;
4. provision of reference and laboratory services, such as feed safety and quality assurance;
5. data management, interpretation, and reporting
6. participation in applied and collaborative research of a scientific, technical or policy nature; and
7. provision of networks and coordination of activities carried out by other institutions.

The selected FAO Reference Centres for Animal Nutrition and Feed are expected to have a history of collaboration with one or more of FAO’s relevant technical units for at least two years (or less under special circumstances, to be justified and demonstrated by the relevant technical unit) and proven expertise on one of more of the following topics:

• animal nutrition
• diet and ration formulations
• feed security
• feed balances
• feed safety and quality
• feed safety and quality analysis
• feed and feed ingredients production and manufacture (including grains, pasture, forage, fodder and products of the circular economy (e.g. agro-industrial by-products, insects, food waste, former food products, etc.).
• feed additives
• animal feed impact on public health, and animal health and welfare
• feed  environmental, social and economic sustainability
• feed economics and market access requirements

The FAO Reference Centre status would be valid for a period of four years. Renewal of the status will be possible, depending on the activities undertaken and the quality of the collaboration.

Institutions designated as FAO Reference Centres will, as long as this designation remains valid, draw a number of advantages from their partnership with FAO. In particular, they will:

1. receive international and regional acknowledgement for their standing and the high quality of work in their field of specialization;
2. enjoy name recognition and association with a United Nations agency, including the possibility of using FAO’s name, emblem and other logos under set conditions (Annex 2 describes the conditions for the use of FAO’s name, emblem and other logos);
3. have privileged access to the Organization’s policy and technical information resources and benefit from FAO’s experience and knowledge at both global and country levels in the agreed areas of collaboration;
4. undertake with FAO joint activities aimed at the promotion and support of future research and related training activities;
5. conduct joint resource mobilization with FAO, where applicable; and
6. have access to FAO’s extensive scientific and technical networks, with the possibility of broadening partnerships through collaboration with other national, regional and international organizations, including other FAO Reference Centres.

How to apply

Institutions interested to the designation of FAO Reference Centre for Animal Nutrition and Feed, should submit an application using this template, together with a Declaration of Interest to [email protected] and acknowledge the information provided in the “Disclaimer and other legal provisions” (DG Bulletin 2006/32).

The application should provide the information described in the Guidelines for applicants for designations as FAO Reference Centres for AMR; sufficient details to demonstrate capabilities in the functions described in the Criteria for selection of FAO Reference; and confirm the institution’s abillty to use its own resources to implement collaborative activities with FAO, with the understanding that FAO is not a funding organization and has limited capacity to provide financial support.

Applicants need also to send a letter of support from their government – ideally from the Ministry of Agriculture or other national competent authority – confirming its support for the designation and endorsing the collaborative arrangement.

The letter should be addressed to: 

Thanawat Tiensin 

Assistant Director-General 

Director, Animal Production and Health Division 
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations 

Evaluation and designation process

Once the application results in a positive evaluation, based the Criteria for selection of FAO Reference; the designation will be governed by the Terms and Conditions of the Designation signed by FAO and the designated institution. Subsequesntly, the designation will reflect the mutually agreed terms of reference and the concrete areas for collaboration, as laid down in a mutually agreed work plan.