Integrated Animal Health Control: A Key Pillar of Food Safety in Romania

Integrated animal health control is a critical link in ensuring food safety. The National Sanitary Veterinary and Food Safety Authority (ANSVSA), through its network of County Sanitary Veterinary Directorates (DSVSA), continuously monitors the health status of livestock, the evolution of transmissible diseases, compliance with animal welfare standards, and the implementation of vaccination programs. In the first half of 2025, over 2.5 million animals were inspected under official sanitary-veterinary surveillance programs.

To guarantee the safety of food of animal origin—meat, milk, eggs, or fish—ANSVSA inspects every stage of the food chain, from farm to shelf. These controls include assessments of hygiene conditions on farms, verification of treatments administered, animal traceability, and inspections at slaughterhouses, processing units, retail outlets, and restaurants. In the previous year, more than 90,000 official inspections were carried out, resulting in approximately 3,000 sanctions—7% of which directly addressed animal health irregularities or the absence of traceability.

In 2025, ANSVSA is accelerating the rollout of new measures, with a focus on digitalization and extended traceability. These include the expansion of SNIIA – the National System for Animal Identification and Registration – with digital modules for monitoring animal movements and related events, the integration of veterinary and food safety databases, and the launch of a unified reporting platform for operators in the food industry. Co-financed through the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR), these initiatives aim to reduce bureaucracy and enable faster responses to veterinary or food-related crises.

ANSVSA also works in close partnership with European institutions such as EFSA and ECDC, as well as with national authorities in public health, agriculture, and the environment. Awareness campaigns are targeting farmers and consumers alike, focusing on the responsible use of antibiotics, the safety of traditional slaughter practices, and preventing contamination in household settings.

By strengthening control mechanisms, investing in digital infrastructure, and maintaining active communication with all players in the agri-food chain, ANSVSA reaffirms its role in 2025 as Romania’s guardian of animal health and food safety.