Safety and efficacy of Levucell® SB (Saccharomyces cerevisiae CNCM I-1079) as a feed additive for chickens for fattening and minor poultry species

Levucell SB® is a feed additive consisting of viable cells of a strain of Saccharomyces cerevisiae currently authorised as a zootechnical additive for piglets and sows. The applicant is now seeking authorisation as a zootechnical additive (other zootechnical additive) for use with chickens for fattening and minor poultry species. The EFSA FEEDAP Panel in a previous opinion concluded that the additive fulfilled the requirements for the qualified presumption of safety (QPS) approach to safety assessment and thus could be presumed safe for the target species, consumers and the environment. Since the additive which is the subject of the present application has the same formulations as that considered previously, following the QPS approach, the same conclusions on target animal consumer and environmental safety apply when used with poultry. The use of the additive with diets for the new target species is considered unlikely to introduce hazards for users of the product not already considered in the previous assessment. When used with poultry feed, the additive is intended to aid the reduction of carcass contamination with enteropathogens and so improve the quality of poultry products. Five studies were submitted with chickens fed diets with or without the additive and then (in four studies) artificially challenged with Salmonella. The fifth study relied on the natural incidence of Salmonella. The prevalence of Salmonella contamination was estimated by examining the carcass directly and/or by detection in caecal, cloacal or faecal samples. Considering overall the results of the five studies, there is evidence that the addition of Levucell SB® to diets at a dose of 2 x 1010 CFU/kg feed can aid the reduction of carcass contamination with Salmonella spp.. This conclusion can be extrapolated to minor avian species for fattening when used at the same dose, but not to minor poultry species for laying.