Amendments of the standards and specifications of Feed Additives  
 
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF)  
(1) will designate Manganese methionine hydroxy analogue chelate and Copper methionine hydroxy 
analogue chelate as feed additives and establish their standards and of specifications; and 
(2) will remove the maximum content limits of Astaxanthin, β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid ethylester and 
Canthaxanthin in semi-manufactured products for feed, and add standards for labelling on them 
which contain Astaxanthin, β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid ethylester and Canthaxanthin more than the 
maximum content limit in final feed products. 
 
Outline of the amendments of standards and specifications is as follows. 
 
 
(1) Designation of Manganese methionine hydroxy analogue chelate and Copper 
methionine hydroxy analogue chelate as feed additives 
 
Manganese methionine hydroxy analogue chelate 
 
A. Specifications for feed additives 
a. Active Substance 
Compositional specifications 
Content 
hydroxy methionine analogue ((2-hydroxy-4-methylthio)butanoic acid, HMTBa) 76.0~82.0 %  
Mn 13.0~19.0 % 
Physical and chemical properties 
It comes in gray to brown powder and has characteristic odor. 
Purity 
(1) Lead ≤ 30 µg/g 
(2) Arsenic ≤ 20 µg/g 
Standard for method of storage 
The products must be stored in airtight containers. 
 
b. Product 
Compositional specifications 
Same as specifications for Active Substance. 
Standard for method of storage 
Same as standard for methods of storage for Active Substance. 
 B. Standard for labeling on feed in general 
 
Copper methionine hydroxy analogue chelate 
 
A. Specifications for feed additives 
a. Active Substance 
Compositional specifications 
Content 
hydroxy methionine analogue ((2-hydroxy-4-methylthio)butanoic acid, HMTBa) 78.0~83.0 % 
Cu 15.0~20.0 % 
Physical and chemical properties 
It comes in gray to green powder and has characteristic odor. 
Purity 
(1) Lead ≤ 30 µg/g 
(2) Arsenic ≤ 10 µg/g 
Standard for method of storage 
The products must be stored in airtight containers. 
 
b. Product 
Compositional specifications 
Same as specifications for Active Substance. 
Standard for method of storage 
Same as standard for methods of storage for Active Substance. 
 
B. Standard for labeling on feed in general 
 
(2) Removal of the maximum content limits of Astaxanthin, β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid 
ethylester and Canthaxanthin in semi-manufactured products for feed, and adding 
standards for labelling 
 
Astaxanthin 
 
A. Compositional specifications in general 
Maximum content of Astaxanthin in feed, except for ingredients and semi-manufactured products 
Feed for fishes ≤ 100 g/ton feed 
Feed for shellfishes ≤ 200 g/ton feed 
(Words underlined are additions.) 
 B. Standard for labelling on feed in general 
Amount of contained Astaxanthin is needed to be labelled on ingredients and semi-manufactured 
products containing more than the maximum content described above.  
 
β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid ethylester 
A. Compositional specifications in general 
Maximum content of β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid in feed, except for ingredients and semi-
manufactured products 
Feed for broilers and layers ≤ 80 g/ton feed 
 (Words underlined are additions.) 
 
B. Standard for labelling in general 
Amount of contained β-Apo-8’-carotenic acid ethylester is needed to be labelled on ingredients and 
semi-manufactured products containing more than the maximum content described above. 
 
Canthaxanthin 
A. Compositional specifications in general 
Maximum content of Canthaxanthin in feed, except for ingredients and semi-manufactured products 
Feed for broilers and layers ≤ 8 g/ton feed 
Feed for salmons and shellfishes ≤ 80 g/ton feed 
(Words underlined are additions.) 
 
B. Standard for labelling on feed in general 
Amount of contained Canthaxanthin is needed to be labelled on ingredients and semi-manufactured 
products containing more than the maximum content described above.