{"topic_id":"EFSA_FEEDAP_ethoxyquin_safety","category":"efsa","context":"---\ntopic_id: EFSA_FEEDAP_ethoxyquin_safety\ncategory: efsa\ntitle: \"EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)\"\nlang: en\nsource: \"EFSA FEEDAP scientific opinion, EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166 (DOI 10.2903/j.efsa.2022.7166)\"\nsource_file: pdf-raw/efsa_l/ethoxyquin.xml\nsource_type: journal_article\ndate_parsed: 2026-08-06\ntokens_estimated: 640\nverified: true\nverification:\n  method: paraphrase\n  claims: 5\n  passed: 5\n  date: 2026-08-06\nsource_document: \"EFSA Journal 20(3):7166 — EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)\"\ncitation:\n  authority: \"EFSA Panel on Additives and Products or Substances used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP)\"\n  title: \"EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)\"\n  url: \"https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2022.7166\"\n  retrieved: \"2026-08-06\"\n  ref: \"EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166\"\n  doc_type: \"EFSA scientific opinion (Europe PMC OA full-text XML)\"\n  needs_review: false\nauthority_tier: T1\nauthority_tier_basis: \"T1:eu-body\"\nauthority_tier_date: 2026-08-06\n---\n# EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety\n\nSource: EFSA FEEDAP scientific opinion, EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166 (DOI 10.2903/j.efsa.2022.7166), retrieved 2026-08-06 via Europe PMC OA full-text XML. Paraphrase of an EFSA opinion that the source XML tags CC-BY-ND; per project COPYRIGHT_POLICY only facts/numbers/proper-nouns are quoted verbatim, sentences rewritten.\n\n## Editorial context (read this before using the data point)\n\nThis is the **EFSA FEEDAP** jurisdiction on the controversial pet-food preservative **ethoxyquin (EQ)**. It is highly pet-relevant because the Panel explicitly **excludes cats** from the safe level and flags a mutagen-impurity caveat. Read with the `efsa` contaminant/antioxidant endpoints and the existing `EFSA_FEEDAP_pet_food_additives_dossiers` topic.\n\n## Key findings (paraphrase; numbers and proper nouns verbatim from source)\n\n- EQ is synthesised from **p-phenetidine**, a recognised possible mutagen that remains in the additive as an impurity. The applicant proposed a revised specification of **p-phenetidine < 2.5 mg/kg additive**, shown to be met in pilot batches.\n- From tolerance studies, **50 mg EQ/kg complete feed** was considered safe for chickens for fattening, laying hens, piglets, cattle for fattening and salmon; this was extrapolated to all animal species and categories **except cats**, for which the Panel could not conclude a safe level.\n- Because the additive contains p-phenetidine (possible mutagen), the Panel could not conclude on EQ safety at any level for **long-lived and reproductive animals**.\n- A maximum total concentration of **50 mg EQ/kg complete feed** for all species except dairy animals would not leave residues posing a consumer risk (assumption: 50 mg expressed as the sum of EQ, EQDM, EQI and DHEQ). No conclusion on consumer safety for milk-producing animals (no residue data in milk) or on p-phenetidine residues.\n- User/environment: inhalation exposure of unprotected users to p-phenetidine cannot be excluded; an aquatic-compartment risk cannot be excluded when the additive is used in terrestrial animals.\n\n## Pet-food relevance\n\nEthoxyquin is a common pet-food preservative. The **cat exclusion** and the **p-phenetidine (possible mutagen) impurity** caveat are the most decision-relevant points for cat-food formulators.\n\n## Scope note / honest gap\n\nParaphrase of an EFSA opinion; full quantitative risk detail (MRL tables, study statistics) is not reproduced. Source XML licence tag was CC-BY-ND, so this topic quotes only data points verbatim and rewrites prose.\n","sources":["OFT3 — EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166) (retrieved 2026-08-06)"],"source":{"authority":"OFT3","title":"EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)","url":"https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2022.7166","retrieved":"2026-08-06","ref":"","doc_type":"official PDF","source_document":"EFSA Journal 20(3):7166 — EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)","verification_file":"pdf-raw/efsa_l/ethoxyquin.xml"},"source_document":"EFSA Journal 20(3):7166 — EFSA FEEDAP — ethoxyquin (EQ) feed-additive safety: 50 mg/kg for most species, cats excluded, p-phenetidine impurity concern (EFSA Journal 2022;20(3):7166)","source_file":"pdf-raw/efsa_l/ethoxyquin.xml","trust":{"authority_tier":"T1","fidelity":"paraphrase","license":null,"display_grade":"C"},"tokens_estimated":360,"generated_at":null,"tip":"Use /api/v1/topics to discover more topics. /api/v1/nutrient for precise single-point queries. /api/v1/cross_compare for 2-3 standard comparisons."}