In Rovaniemi, Finland, the FVE General Assembly unanimously adopted the position paper Empowered Livestock Veterinarians Lead on Farm Biosecurity Advice Across Europe. To address increasing disease pressure and protect European animal health, welfare, public health, and food system resilience, FVE calls on European decision makers and national competent authorities to support veterinarians in delivering their legal prevention mandate. FVE urges systematic, harmonised implementation of animal health visits under the Animal Health Law, enhanced continuous training for both veterinarians and farmers, and access to scalable, evidence-led assessment tools. Ultimately, FVE advocates for a coordinated, value chain-wide approach that recognises biosecurity as a shared responsibility, emphasising that governments should financially support proactive, preventive compliance rather than focusing resources solely on compensation after disease outbreaks.
With growing livestock density and increasing frequency and severity of infectious disease
outbreaks across Europe, robust farm-level biosecurity measures became more critical than
ever as a cornerstone of animal health and welfare, public health, and sustainable livestock
production. This position paper sets out the position of the Federation of Veterinarians of
Europe (FVE) on the importance of veterinary advice on biosecurity – focusing on actionable
goals, at farm level and foster implementation in all environments where animals are kept, to
achieve the objectives of the Animal Health Law (AHL, Regulation (EU) 2016/429). FVE and its members call on European decision makers and national competent authorities to ensure that
veterinarians can deliver on their existing mandate effectively through the following three
recommendations:
- FVE RECOMMENDS
- To ensure harmonised and systematic implementation of animal health visits as the legal
basis to leverage biosecurity advice based on structured risk-based assessment, clear written
recommendations, and follow-up on corrective measures. - To foster both initial and continous education and funded training opportunities on farm
biosecurity for veterinarians and farmers. The training should focus on practical skills in
biosecurity planning, including communication, prioritisation of corrective measures, and
documentation in line with the objectives set out in the Animal Health Law. - To facilitate the access and implementation of scalable, evidence-led tools derived from
farm-specific herd/flock health management data, strengthening veterinarians’ role as
formally empowered biosecurity advisors on farms
Read the full statement HERE.
