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The EU feed additives register: how to check an additive number on a pet food label

What zootechnical additives and gut flora stabilisers are, what a number like 4b1841 means, and how to look it up in the EU Register of Feed Additives.

Updated: 29 September 2026

Status

Editorial draft, not yet reviewed by a veterinarian.

You can check an additive number from a pet food label (for example "4b1841") in two places: the public European Union Register of Feed Additives, and the Commission implementing regulation that authorised that additive.14 The authorising regulation tells you the most: its category and functional group, the animal species it is authorised for, and the date the authorisation expires.13 Below we explain where these numbers come from and how to read them step by step.

What is a feed additive under EU law?

Regulation (EC) No 1831/2003 defines feed additives as substances, micro-organisms or preparations, other than feed material and premixtures, which are intentionally added to feed or water to perform one or more specified functions.1 The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) puts it more simply: they are products used in animal nutrition to achieve an effect on the feed itself, on the animals, on food obtained from them or on the environment, and they are used both in feed for food-producing animals and in pet food.6

The key rule: a feed additive may be placed on the market, processed or used only if it is covered by an authorisation granted under the Regulation and the conditions of use and labelling are met.1 Authorisation follows a scientific evaluation by EFSA.61

What categories of feed additives are there?

Article 6(1) of Regulation 1831/2003 sets out five categories:1

  1. technological additives — any substance added to feed for a technological purpose;
  2. sensory additives — substances that improve or change the organoleptic properties of feed;
  3. nutritional additives — including vitamins, compounds of trace elements and amino acids;
  4. zootechnical additives — any additive used to affect favourably the performance of animals in good health or used to affect favourably the environment;
  5. coccidiostats and histomonostats.

Within each category, additives are allocated to functional groups listed in Annex I according to their main function.1

What are gut flora stabilisers?

For the "zootechnical additives" category, Annex I lists these functional groups:1

  • (a) digestibility enhancers — substances which increase the digestibility of the diet through action on target feed materials;
  • (b) gut flora stabilisers — micro-organisms or other chemically defined substances which, when fed to animals, have a positive effect on the gut flora;
  • (c) substances which favourably affect the environment;
  • (d) other zootechnical additives;
  • (e) physiological condition stabilisers — substances or micro-organisms which, when fed to animals in good health, favourably affect their physiological status.

The bacterial strains people casually call "probiotics" sit in the "gut flora stabilisers" group. In feed law, though, they are not "probiotics" in a marketing sense; they are zootechnical additives, each with a specific strain name, an identification number and an authorisation limited to particular animal species.13

One more rule is worth knowing: zootechnical additives and coccidiostats are authorised to a named holder. No one other than that holder, their legal successor or a person acting under their written authority may first place such a product on the market.1

Where does an additive's identification number come from?

A regulation granting an authorisation must include, among other things, the additive's designation and classification, its conditions of use including the target species and categories of animals, and an identification number.1 For zootechnical additives it also names the authorisation holder.1

Take the number "4b1841". In Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1315, the additive with that number is described as "Category of zootechnical additives. Functional group: gut flora stabilisers".3 As this example shows, the first characters of the number mirror the numbering of Annex I to Regulation 1831/2003: point 4 is the zootechnical additives category and letter b is the gut flora stabilisers group.13 The rest of the number identifies the specific additive and carries no information you could read without checking the source.

How long does an additive authorisation last?

An authorisation is valid throughout the EU for 10 years and is renewable; the authorised additive is entered in the Register, and each entry states the date of authorisation.1 An application for renewal must be sent at the latest one year before the expiry date.1 EFSA explains that after ten years the applicant must show that the additive remains safe under the conditions of the authorisation.6

An authorisation can also be modified, suspended or revoked, so the current status is always best checked in the Register rather than in old material.1

What is the EU Register of Feed Additives?

Article 17 of Regulation 1831/2003 requires the Commission to establish and keep up to date a Register of Feed Additives, made available to the public.1 The European Commission states that the Register is regularly updated and refers and links to the relevant authorisation regulations; since 5 April 2023 the PDF version has been replaced by an online version.5 Today the Register is available in the Commission's Food and Feed Information Portal (FIP).4

How do you check an additive, step by step?

  1. Find the additive on the label. In dog and cat food, zootechnical additives must be listed under the heading "additives" with their name or identification number, the amount added and the name of the functional group or category.2
  2. Open the Register search. The FIP feed additives search lets you filter by category or functional group, authorisation status and expiry date.4
  3. Search for the number or name. Type the identification number (e.g. "4b1841") or the name of the substance or strain into the search field.4
  4. Go to the authorising regulation. The Register refers to the legal act that granted the authorisation.5 The fullest information is in the table in that regulation's annex.3
  5. Check the "Species or category of animal" column. This is the most important step: the authorisation covers only the species and categories listed.13
  6. Check the expiry date and any other provisions, such as conditions of use.3

Why does the species in the authorisation matter so much?

Back to 4b1841. Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1315 concerns the authorisation of a preparation of Enterococcus faecium DSM 7134 as a feed additive in water for drinking for sows.3 The species column in its annex reads "Sows", and the end of the authorisation period is 25 August 2029.3 That act therefore authorises use in sows; dogs, cats and horses are not listed in it.3

Regulation 1831/2003 provides for separate applications not only to authorise a new additive but also to authorise a new use of an additive that is already authorised.1 That is why the number or strain name alone is not enough: you need to check whether the authorisation covers the species the feed is intended for. Regulation 767/2009 also requires the additive particulars on a pet food label to be given in accordance with the act authorising that additive.2

In the opinion on which that authorisation was based, EFSA assessed the additive under specific conditions of use and for a specific target species.3 Conclusions from such an assessment do not automatically carry over to other animals.

What won't the Register tell you?

The Register and the authorising regulation confirm that an additive has been assessed and authorised for the listed species under set conditions.13 They do not tell you whether a particular food suits a particular animal. Nor are they health information: a feed additive is not a veterinary medicinal product. Any questions about an animal's health and diet are best discussed with a veterinarian, with the food label in hand.

FAQ

What is a zootechnical additive?

It is one of the five categories of feed additives in Regulation (EC) No 1831/2003: any additive used to affect favourably the performance of animals in good health or used to affect favourably the environment.1

What are gut flora stabilisers?

A functional group within zootechnical additives: micro-organisms or other chemically defined substances which, when fed to animals, have a positive effect on the gut flora. Each one needs an EU authorisation.1

How long does a feed additive authorisation last?

Ten years, renewable for further 10-year periods. The expiry date is given in the authorising regulation.13

Can an additive authorised for one species be used for another?

The authorisation specifies the species or categories of animals for which the additive is authorised. That is why you always need to check the species column in the authorising regulation, not just the additive number.13

Sources

1. Regulation (EC) No 1831/2003 on additives for use in animal nutrition (consolidated), Arts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 14, 17 and Annex I — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:02003R1831-20210327 2. Regulation (EC) No 767/2009 on the placing on the market and use of feed (consolidated), Art. 15 and Annex VII — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:02009R0767-20181226 3. Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2019/1315 (Enterococcus faecium DSM 7134, sows) — https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=CELEX:32019R1315 4. Food and Feed Information Portal — EU Register of Feed Additives search — https://ec.europa.eu/food/food-feed-portal/screen/feed-additives/search 5. European Commission — Feed additives — https://food.ec.europa.eu/food-safety/animal-feed/feed-additives_en 6. EFSA — Feed additives — https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/feed-additives