Safety and efficacy of dicopper oxide as feed additive for all animal species

• Main Author: EFSA Panel on Additives and Products or Substances used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Wiley 2016-06-01
• Series: EFSA Journal
• Subjects: nutritional additive; compounds of trace elements; copper; dicopper oxide (Cu2O); safety; efficacy
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.2903/j.efsa.2016.4509

Abstract The compound under assessment, dicopper oxide, contains ≥ 86% copper (Cu). Dicopper oxide is a safe source of copper for chickens for fattening. This conclusion is extended to all animal species/categories provided the maximum authorised copper content in feed is respected. There is no indication that the toxicity of dicopper oxide is essentially different from that described for divalent copper. As dicopper oxide is used as a substitute for other copper‐containing additives and its bioavailability is in the range of copper sulphate, the standard copper‐containing additive, no influence of the use of dicopper oxide in animal nutrition on the copper content of food of animal origin is expected. The EFSA Panel on Additives and Products or Substances used in Animal Feed (FEEDAP Panel) concludes that the use of dicopper oxide in animal nutrition is of no concern for consumer safety. Dicopper oxide is not an irritant to skin but a moderate irritant to the eye. Owing to the nickel content in the additive, it should be considered as a dermal and respiratory sensitiser. Dicopper oxide poses a risk to users upon inhalation exposure. There was no available evidence suggesting that dicopper oxide would pose additional risks to the environment than the other sources of copper already authorised. The substitutive use of dicopper oxide for other copper compounds would therefore not change the previous conclusion of the Panel concerning safety from the environment. Based on the results of a tolerance study in chickens for fattening and a short‐term bioavailability study, the FEEDAP Panel concluded that dicopper oxide is an effective source of copper for all animal species.