Appointment of a new member and reappointment of three existing members for the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs (ACAF)
Thursday 1 July 2010
Jeff Rooker, Chair of the Food Standards Agency, today announced on behalf of the Agency, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the devolved administrations the appointment of Professor Stephen Forsythe and the re-appointment of Dr Dozie Azubike, Professor Nigel Halford and Mr Richard Scales as members of the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs.
Professor Forsythe's term of office as the Committee’s microbiologist will run from 1 September 2010 and is initially for 3 years. Dr Azubike, Professor Halford and Mr Scales have had their terms extended until 30 June 2013.
Jeff Rooker said:
'The Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs is one of the advisory committees which plays a very important role in providing the Agency, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the devolved administrations with independent expert advice. The Committee is fortunate to have members with the enthusiasm and experience of Professor Forsythe, Professor Halford, Dr Azubike and Mr Scales, I wish them well in their work'.
Notes for Editors
Microbiologist
Professor Stephen Forsythe is a Professor of Microbiology at Nottingham Trent University. His main research area is primarily on foodborne infections. He has been an invited participant and speaker at three FAO/WHO risk assessments on the microbiological safety of powdered infant formula. Professor Forsythe has also been a member on the European Food Safety Authority: Additives and Food Contacts Materials panel and an ad hoc member on the Qualified Presumption of Safety and BioHaz Panels.
Lay person/consumer
Dr Dozie Azubike is a part-time inspector with the Health and Safety Executive. He has a wide range of experience in the voluntary sector and is a member of the Board of the Thames Valley Charitable Housing Association and a lay Magistrate. He is also a member of the General Optical Council Fitness to Practice Committee and an adjudicator for the Solicitors Regulatory Authority.
Novel technology
Professor Nigel Halford is a Research Leader at Rothamsted Research, the UK’s largest crop and agricultural research institute. He is the author of more than 100 refereed scientific papers, many relating to plant biotechnology, and has written and edited books and numerous articles on GM crops.
Local authority enforcement
Richard Scales is principal trading standards officer at Hampshire County Council. He currently specialises in agricultural aspects of enforcement and is a member of the Agriculture Focus Group of the Local Authorities Co-ordinators of Regulatory Services (LACORS). Mr Scales also chairs the Trading Standards South East Authorities Feeds Sub-Group.
ACAF is a UK-wide advisory committee made up of independent experts from wide-ranging backgrounds including consumer affairs, farming, science and the feed industry. Members are appointed for their individual expertise and experience and are not representative of any sector or organisation. The Chairman is not salaried but is entitled to claim a preparation fee of £50 and an attendance fee of £155. Its members are not salaried but are entitled to claim a preparation fee of £50 and an attendance fee of £110. Details of current membership can be found on ACAF's website. See link below.
ACAF's terms of reference are:
'To advise the Food Standards Agency, the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Ministers of the Scottish Government, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly on the safety and use of animal feeds and feeding practices, with particular emphasis on protecting human health and with reference to new technical developments. In carrying out its functions, the Advisory Committee on Animal Feedingstuffs will liaise with other relevant advisory committees as appropriate.'
Further information, copies of most Committee papers, including minutes of meetings, are available on request from the ACAF Secretariat or on the ACAF website.
ACAF Secretariat
Room 3c Aviation House,
125 Kingsway, London WC2B 6NH
telephone: 020 7276 8083
fax: 020 7276 8910
email: acaf@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk
Room 245 Aviation House,
125 Kingsway,
London WC2B 6NH
Telephone: 020 7276 8888
Out of hours duty pager: 07623 978344
Fax: 020 7276 8833
Email: press.mailbox@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk