Residues of veterinary drugs and other substances found in animals and animal-derived food continue to decline in the EU and compliance levels are on the rise, the latest data from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) reveals.
EFSA’s annual report for 2021 on veterinary chemical residues and other substances in animals and animal products includes data from EU Member States, Iceland, and Norway. The report covers hormones, antibiotics, environmental contaminants, prohibited substances, and other veterinary drugs. The number of tested samples slightly increased compared to 2020.
In 2021, the percentage of non-compliant samples was 0.17 percent, which is the lowest figure registered in the past 12 years, when non-compliance ranged from 0.19–0.37 percent The rate of non-compliance in 2020 was 0.19 percent.
EFSA has created an interactive data visualization tool to easily browse the results in depth.
