The Council of Ministers has approved, at the proposal of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, a royal decree that establishes the bases for the development of the European Union (EU) regulations on animal health, in relation to the surveillance obligations of the holders of livestock farms and the integral health plan of these, and that modifies several management regulations in this area.
The new royal decree establishes the role of the farm veterinarian, sets out the minimum content of the integrated health plan for livestock farms, and establishes the minimum frequency of animal health visits.
This rule applies to all livestock farms used for food production, commercial use of livestock products, or agricultural purposes. Exempted from its application are farms for own consumption, as well as certain farms considered to be a low sanitary risk according to their size, and other establishments such as livestock shows, slaughterhouses, bull rings, non-permanent animal assemblies, and control posts.
According to the Royal Decree, the farm veterinarian will carry out a sanitary and animal welfare supervision of the livestock farm in person and on a regular basis. In addition, the frequency of animal health visits will be based on the risk presented by the farm and will include the supervision of the aspects included in the Integral Health Plan.
During these visits, the veterinarian will make the pertinent recommendations to correct the deficiencies observed, including those aimed at achieving a sustainable use of antibiotics. Similarly, the veterinarian will advise the farmer on biosecurity, traceability, feeding, early detection and rapid response to diseases, and on the significance of antimicrobial resistance.
Given that animal health and welfare are closely related, and that the assessment of an animal's welfare can only be carried out with adequate knowledge of its sanitary situation, the farm veterinarian will also be in charge of designing the Animal Welfare Plan and supervising its compliance, the content of which can be found in its specific regulations.