“Biological safety” round table organized by VGNKI

On invitation by VGNKI (The Russian State Center for Animal Feed and Drug Standardization and Quality), Jean Perchet of the Regional Representation in Moscow attended the summit “Agricultural policy in Russia” in the framework of the summit “Meat & Poultry Industry Russia” exhibition on the 17th of May 2021 in Krasnogorsk (Moscow region).

One session of the summit was organized by VGNKI and ARRIAH (“Federal center for animal health”) – the two Russian OIE Collaborating Centers in the Russian Federation, – and titled “Biological safety in agriculture and in the veterinary field”. The session was moderated by Dr Vasilina Gritsyuk, deputy head of VGNKI.

On invitation by Dr Gritsyuk, Jean Perchet spoke about the importance of fighting AMR for the OIE, and of the value of events like the present round table in bringing essential messages to stakeholders. Jean Perchet spoke about the international framework created around AMR, and the role of the Tripartite Alliance of WHO, FAO, and OIE in implementing the “one health” approach, and the urgency and importance of reducing the use of antimicrobials.

After VGNKI and an OIE representative provided a few opening words, presentations were made on the following subjects:

• The new Russian Federal Law on biosecurity, built-in coherence with the “one health approach” of links between humans, animals, and plant health; its renewed interdiction of the use of antibiotics as growth factors, the surveillance of the development of resistance to antimicrobials, including disinfectants, the definition of precise rules for the use of veterinary medicines, definitions of what is a veterinary medicine, avoiding the fortuitous presence of antibiotics in food, systematic identification of the class of antibiotics necessary for treatment, and a map of antimicrobial resistant strains still available online.
• The surveillance of AMR inside Russia, with the repartition of resistant strains in different genera of bacteria for the main classes of antibiotics of interest; the national and international standards in the prevention of chemical contamination.
• Pharmacovigilance and the way it is organized inside Russia, with objectives in improving the coverage of adverse events.
• The epizootic situation inside Russia, with the evolution and predictions for the main diseases.

The presentations made by participants went towards a common goal of improving biosafety while fighting against AMR, and more events of this type will be welcome in the future to continue communication with stakeholders.

More information and recommendations are available here:

• Additional information on AMR and the tripartite
• Information on the regional tripartite mechanism
• The Russian online database “AMR Map”