REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION On the overall operation of official controls carried out in Member States (2022) to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products
Date: 2024-09-04
Institutions: Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission
Subjects: animal feedingstuffs, animal welfare, audit, designation of origin, food inspection, food safety, genetically modified organism, labelling, plant health control, veterinary inspection

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 4.9.2024  COM(2024) 388 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION On the overall operation of official controls carried out in Member States (2022) to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection products {SWD(2024) 208 final}  
 
 
Contents 

Executive summary ............................................................................................... 4 
Introduction ........................................................................................................... 5 

Part 1 
Official controls carried out by EU countries in 2022 ....................................... 7 

1.1 
General overview ................................................................................................... 8 

1.2 
EU country annual reports .................................................................................. 12 

1.3 
Organisation and performance of official control systems ............................ 13 

1.4 
Measures taken to ensure the effective operation of the MANCP ................. 15 

1.4.1 
Action taken to ensure business compliance .................................................... 16 

1.4.2 
Enforcement by national authorities ................................................................. 17 

1.4.3 
Action taken to ensure effective official control systems .............................. 19 

Part 2 
Commission controls carried out in EU countries in 2022 ............................... 21 

2.1 
Audits and controls ............................................................................................. 22 

2.2 
Recommendations ............................................................................................... 24 

2.3 
Highlights from the Commission controls carried out in 2022 ....................... 25 

2.4 
Systematic follow-up of audit recommendations ............................................ 28 

2. 4.1 

 
 
 
General follow-up audits .................................................................................... 29 

2.4.2 
Enforcement ......................................................................................................... 30 
Conclusions .......................................................................................................... 31 

2 

 
 
 
 
 
Disclaimer 

The European Commission is presenting this report in accordance with Article 114 of 
Regulation (EU) 2017/625 (1). This report aims to improve the public availability of information on 
official controls carried out by EU countries – and the Commission controls on them – in the areas of 
food and feed safety, animal and plant health, animal welfare, organic farming and quality schemes 
for agricultural products and foodstuffs. 

Only the Court of Justice of the European Union is competent to interpret EU law. 

Our goal is to keep this information up to date and accurate. If errors are brought to our attention, we 
will try to correct them. 

The material used for this report: 

● 

● 

● 

is information of a general nature and is not intended to address the specific circumstances of 
any particular individual or entity; 

is not necessarily comprehensive, complete, accurate or up to date; and 

is partly provided by national authorities in the EU countries, over which the Commission has no 
control and for which the Commission can take no responsibility. 

Some data or information in this report may have been created or structured in files or formats that 
are not error-free. 

(1)  Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 

2017 on official control and other official activities performed to ensure the application 
of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant 
protection products. 

3 

 
 
 
 
 
Executive summary 

This report covers the overall operation of EU countries’ official controls and the 
Commission’s control activities in 2022. The aim of these controls is to ensure a high 
level of health protection and trust in the food chain, from farm to fork. They are an 
important way to verify that businesses comply with their legal requirements so that 
EU consumers can be confident that the food they eat is safe. They are also key to 
enabling the smooth safe trade in food, animals, and plants, both within the EU and 
with non-EU countries. 

National authorities are responsible for carrying out official controls. If businesses 
along the food chain do not comply with the applicable legislation, the authorities are 
required to enforce the requirements and ensure that businesses meet their 
obligations. 

In 2022, there were 16.4 million businesses within the scope of official controls and 
national authorities carried out around 5 million official controls on them. These 
controls identified 1.2 million non-compliance issues, leading to the application of just 
over 475 000 administrative penalties and 12 000 legal actions. 

The Commission verifies how EU countries carry out the official controls and 
enforcement activities. 

The Commission’s controls show that, overall, national authorities have the systems 
in place needed to monitor and ensure that businesses are implementing EU 
requirements and to act where there are non-compliance issues. In some EU 
countries, the Commission identified shortcomings in official control systems, 
indicating that there was room for improvement. In these cases, the Commission 
issues recommendations to the national authorities. 

The Commission systematically follows up on its recommendations and, where 
necessary, makes use of other enforcement tools. In addition, it supports EU countries 
by providing technical assistance and training through the Better Training for Safer 
Food initiative and technical meetings of expert networks. 

Since 2020, national authorities have reported the results of their controls using a 
harmonised electronic format. However, not all EU countries have yet been able to 
submit all their data in the format required. 

4 

 
 
 
 
Introduction 

The EU aims to achieve a high level of protection and trust in food and feed safety, 
animal and plant health, animal welfare, organic farming and in geographical origin 
schemes (protected designation of origin (PDO), protected geographical indication 
(PGI) and traditional specialties guaranteed (TSG)). People living in the EU rightly 
expect high standards in all these areas. 

The EU has a comprehensive legal framework to ensure that controls are consistent 
throughout the food and feed chain, from farm to fork, and properly monitored, while 
also ensuring an effective single market and trade with non-EU countries. For the 
purposes of this report, references to EU countries and the statistical data include the 
United Kingdom in respect of Northern Ireland (2). 

One of the pillars of the EU’s integrated food safety policy from farm to fork is that 
each EU country must have an effective official control system, based on the Official 
Controls Regulation (3). The purpose is to verify and, where necessary, enforce 
business compliance with EU standards throughout the food and feed chain. EU 
countries must draw up multiannual national control plans (MANCPs) that cover all 
areas governed by EU agri-food legislation. 

The Commission plays an important role in the overall control framework at EU 
level (4) and carries out controls, including audits, in EU countries to verify that the 
national authorities are meeting their obligations. 

(2) 

In accordance with the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great 
Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy 
Community, and in particular Article 5(4) of the Windsor Framework (see Joint 
Declaration No 1/2023 of the Union and the United Kingdom in the Joint Committee 
established by the Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain 
and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy 
Community of 24 March 2023, OJ L 102, 17.4.2023, p.87) in conjunction with Annex 2 to 
that Framework. 

(3)  Regulation (EU) 2017/625 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 

2017 on official control and other official activities performed to ensure the application 
of food and feed law, rules on animal health and welfare, plant health and plant 
protection products. 

(4)  Article 116 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

5 

 
 
 
 
EU countries must submit an annual report to the Commission (5) on implementation 
of their official controls in line with their MANCP. 

The Commission produces a report (6) on the operation of official controls in EU 
countries, taking account of: 

● 

the annual reports submitted by the national authorities on their control 
activities; and 

● 

the outcome of Commission controls carried out in EU countries. 

This report covers the year 2022. It consists of a review of: 

● 

● 

● 

EU countries’ annual reports covering 2022; 

Commission controls carried out in EU countries in 2022; and 

Commission follow-up, enforcement and support provided to national authorities. 

It includes a compilation of the data provided by the national authorities for 2022. 
These data will over time make it possible to identify trends in controls and non-
compliance issues. 

The graphics illustrating national official controls are based on the 2022 aggregated 
data from EU countries. 

As the reporting requirements have changed since 2020, not all EU countries were 
able to provide all data for 2022 in the detail required. This limits the extent to which 
the graphics can be compared because some EU countries may have provided 
combined data that has not been broken down into the required sub-categories. 

This report is accompanied by a staff working document (7) providing more detail on 
the controls and audits carried out by the national authorities and by the Commission 
in the sectors of the food chain that fall under the Official Controls Regulation. 

(5)  Article 113(1) of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

(6)  Article 114 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

(7)  Commission staff working document (SWD(2024) 208 final) accompanying the report 
from the Commission on the overall operation of official controls carried out in EU 
countries (2022) to ensure the application of food and feed law, rules on animal health 
and welfare, plant health and plant protection products. 

6 

 
 
 
 
Part 1 
Official controls 
carried out by EU 
countries in 2022 

7 

 
 
1.1 
General overview 

Food is produced and distributed from the farm to our forks following various chains 
that span a broad range of business sectors and activities (8). 

Table 1 provides an overview of the results of official controls carried out in the EU 
countries in 2022. 

Table 1: Official controls in 2022 – in figures 

All businesses 
in the food 
chain 

Official controls 
carried out 

Non-compliance 
issues 
identified 

Administrative 
penalties 
applied 

Legal action 
taken 

16 414 273 

5 010 943 

1 205 443 

476 160 

12 182 

Figure 1 provides a breakdown of these official controls carried out by EU countries 
along the food chain, from farm to fork (9). It shows the number of operators, official 
controls carried out, non-compliance issues identified, and administrative penalties 
applied, with a breakdown by category of activity in the food chain (10). 

Table 2 shows the top five sectors of the food chain with absolute figures for the 
number of entities, official controls carried out, non-compliance issues identified and 
administrative penalties applied. The staff working document accompanying this 
report provides a further breakdown of these figures across all areas of the food 
chain. 

(8)  See Eurostat – key figures of the European food chain – 2022 for a selection of data for 

the EU’s agriculture and fisheries sectors, and for the wider farm to fork chain. 

(9)  This figure does not include controls related to plant health (i.e. issuing plant passports 
and applying the ISPM15 mark to wood packaging to show that it has been treated to 
prevent the spread of insects, seeds and fungi), the marketing of plant protection 
products and the sustainable use of pesticides outside agriculture. 

(10)  National authorities do not have to report the number of entities active in animal 
transport. The data requested for official controls and non-compliance issues for 
slaughterhouses and game-handling establishments can be given as the number of 
carcasses or the weight, therefore a total cannot be used. 

8 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 1: Official controls carried out by EU countries in 2022 

9 

 
 
 
 
 
Farming – plants 

# 

Number of operators 

Farming – animals 

Number of official controls 

Farming – mixed 

Aquaculture 

Fishing 

Hunting 

Animal feed 

Transport of animals 

Slaughterhouses and game 
handling 

Food production 

Animal by-products processing 

Food distribution 

Wholesale and retail 

Food service 

Food contact materials 
producers 

Number of non-compliance 
issues 

Number of administrative 
penalties 

10 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Table 2: Official controls in 2022 – top five sectors 

Entities 

Official 
controls 

Non-
compliance 
issues 

Administrative 
penalties 

Farming 

7 660 600 

Food 
wholesale 

Food 
service 

Food 
production 

Food 
distribution 

Food 
service  

Food 
wholesale 

Animal 
transport 

Food 
production 

4 307 282 

2 904 890 

665 651 

453 116 

1 245 090 

1 096 415 

855 274 

842 194 

Farming 

587 219 

Food service  360 134 

Animal 
transport 

Food 
wholesale 

Food 
production 

342 640 

223 622 

153 608 

Farming 

81 719 

Food service  176 541 

Food 
wholesale 

Food 
production 

125 518 

93 152 

Farming 

50 492 

Food 
distribution 

11 911 

11 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
1.2 
EU country annual reports 

The national authorities used the new reporting format only for the third time. Some 
still had problems in compiling the data in the format required. This means that 
comparisons between the data submitted for 2020, 2021 and 2022 may not be 
reliable. The change to the new format also makes it difficult to compare pre-2020 
data with post-2020 data. It is therefore still too early to compare the data at EU 
level year on year. 

EU countries are invited to provide assessments of the overall level of compliance 
and effectiveness of the control system. However, the national authorities provided 
less information for 2022 than had been envisaged in the guidance document (11). 

As regards animal welfare on farms and during transport, the Official Controls 
Regulation states that the annual reports must include an analysis of the most 
serious incidents of non-compliance. This analysis should be the basis for a national 
action plan to prevent or decrease their occurrence in the coming years (12). In 
general, and as was also the case for 2020 and 2021, the national authorities did not 
provide either this analysis or the action plans. This makes it impossible for the 
Commission to provide the required summary on animal welfare. 

The national authorities also provided only very limited information on controls 
targeting fraudulent and deceptive practices. 

(11)  Commission Notice on a guidance document on how to fill in the standard model form 

(12)  Articles 151, 152, 154, 156, 157 and 158 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

12 

 
 
 
 
 
1.3 
Organisation and performance 
of official control systems 

The EU countries have set up official control systems to verify that all businesses 
along the food chain apply the legal framework.  

The national authorities’ MANCPs describe how their control systems are set up and 
describe their strategic objectives. 

The Commission’s guidance for completing the annual reports invites the national 
authorities to: 

● 

● 

● 

describe any update on how official control systems are organised; 

include a table with the results of performance indicators used to measure the 
strategic objectives; and 

include a statement on the general level of compliance and the effectiveness of 
the official control systems, based on the analysis and synthesis of the results of 
the control systems, their objectives and their performance indicators. 

Some EU countries repeat the description of their control systems in the annual 
report, information that is already available in their MANCP. 

The statements on the general level of compliance and effectiveness are mostly very 
limited. The descriptions range from satisfactory to providing a percentage of the 
businesses subject to controls with (or without) cases of non-compliance. 

Ten EU countries included information on objectives and results. Eight of these 
countries provided this information in the form of an overview of the results of their 
indicators. The indicators are sometimes limited to the number of official controls 
carried out and samples taken. 

Some EU country reports do not contain information from all the authorities involved 
in the official controls along the food chain. 

Some good practices to note: 

- 

the Latvian authorities included an indicator on the performance of officials; 

13 

 
 
 
- 

- 

the Belgian authorities define barometers based on the results obtained from 
the official controls; 
the Danish authorities use the number of cases of foodborne disease caused 
by Salmonella and the number of recalls. 

Several EU countries stated that the number of controls carried out increased again 
compared to previous years following a gradual lifting of measures to contain the 
COVID-19 pandemic. Others still report negative effects from the pandemic measures 
on their ability to completely carry out the controls they had planned. 

Other factors that had a negative impact on the inspection programmes reported by 
the national authorities included insufficient resources (staff, financial and 
equipment), ongoing animal health issues (e.g. African swine fever and avian 
influenza) and plant health issues, Brexit and the war in Ukraine. 

14 

 
 
1.4 
Measures taken to ensure the 
effective operation of the 
MANCP 

The objective of MANCPs is to ensure that official controls are carried out in a manner 
that is risk-based and efficient across the entire agri-food chain, and in compliance 
with the Official Controls Regulation. 

When official controls identify a case of non-compliance, national authorities are 
required to take action to ensure that the non-compliant business rectifies the issue 
to prevent any further occurrence (13). 

National authorities are also required to verify that the official control system is 
effective and to take the action needed to rectify any shortcomings identified (14). 

(13)  Article 138 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

(14)  Article 12(2) and (3) of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

15 

 
 
 
 
 
1.4.1 
Action taken to ensure business compliance 

A majority of EU countries (18) reported on measures taken to ensure compliance by 
businesses. For six of these countries, the information is limited to the classic options 
to enforce the rules such as warnings, penalties and legal action. 

The other reports include information on measures such as information campaigns, 
guidance and training to businesses to help them comply with food safety rules. 

Some good examples: 

● 

● 

● 

the Danish authorities use digital tools and solutions, such as a risk management 
tool for food businesses and a tool to check for correct storage temperature; 

the Hungarian authorities report on the first positive impact of the more advisory 
approach taken, in addition to enforcement action; 

in Belgium, businesses certified under the national validated self-checking guides 
are eligible for lower fees and a lower frequency of official controls. 

16 

 
 
 
1.4.2 
Enforcement by national authorities 

National authorities must put in place effective, proportionate and dissuasive 
penalties (15). 

National authorities use a range of enforcement methods, from issuing verbal and 
written warnings to seizing and destroying goods and (temporarily) removing or 
restricting approvals of businesses. Administrative fines are used as a deterrent. 
Formal legal proceedings remain a last resort. 

Chart 1 shows the number of administrative penalties applied across the different 
sectors working in the food chain. Chart 2 provides a breakdown by category and 
Chart 3 shows the number of legal actions taken in each category. 

Chart 1: Administrative penalties in 2022 by business sector 

(15)  Articles 137, 138 and 139 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

17 

FoodcontactmaterialsAquacultureHuntingFishingAnimalby-productsFeedAnimaltransportFooddistributionFarmingFoodproductionFoodwholesaleretailFoodservicesAdministrative sanctions356474600698164070687710119115049293152125518176541020000400006000080000100000120000140000160000180000200000 
 
 
 
 
 
Chart 2: Administrative penalties in 2022 by category 

Chart 3: Legal action taken in 2022 

18 

Deliberate releaseinto theenvironment ofGMOsfor thepurposeof foodand feedproductionProtectivemeasuresagainstpests ofplantsAnimalby-products:Prevention andminimisation ofrisks tohumanandanimalhealthPlantprotectionproducts -sustainable use ofpesticidesFeed andfeedsafetyAnimalhealthAnimalwelfareUse andlabellingofPDO/PGI/TSGFood andfoodsafety(includingfarming,huntingandfishing)Administrative sanctions53292832741263614247241813162954706496 1480100000200000300000400000500000600000Deliberaterelease intotheenvironment of GMOsfor thepurpose offood andfeedproductionAnimal by-products:Preventionandminimisation of risks tohuman andanimalhealthProtectivemeasuresagainstpests ofplantsUse andlabelling ofPDO/PGI/TSGAnimalhealthFeed andfeed safetyPlantprotectionproducts -sustainableuse ofpesticidesAnimalwelfareFood andfood safety(includingfarming,hunting andfishing)Judicial action07260340252622897164182980100020003000400050006000700080009000 
 
 
 
 
1.4.3 
Action taken to ensure effective official control systems 

National authorities must have procedures and/or arrangements in place to ensure 
the effectiveness and appropriateness of official controls. To achieve this, they must 
have or have access to: 

● 

● 

● 

a sufficient number of suitably qualified and experienced staff; 

appropriate and properly maintained facilities and equipment; and 

sufficient laboratory capacity for analysis, testing and diagnosis. 

National authorities must carry out audits on their own control systems (or have 
audits carried out on themselves) and must put in place control verification 
procedures (16) to ensure compliance and that the control systems are effective. This 
includes audits on any entity or person to whom the national authority might have 
delegated tasks. 

Information on one or more of these aspects is included in 22 annual reports. 

The information is rather limited on the training courses provided to or followed by 
staff, and on audits and other verification methods used to assess the effectiveness 
of the official control systems. 

On resources: 

● 

● 

● 

Czechia reported a lack of funding for laboratory diagnostics towards the end of 
the year, resulting in limited sampling and testing; 

Bulgaria mentioned a downward trend in the number of officials, combined with 
a rise in the number of established businesses; 

Estonia stated that the lack of experts and the resulting length of evaluation 
times for plant protection active substances and plant protection products 
remain a challenge. 

Eight EU countries reported changes to their current MANCP. The reasons given for 
these changes were: 

(16)  Articles 6 and 12 of Regulation (EU) 2017/625. 

19 

 
 
 
 
● 

● 

● 

significant changes to the structure, management or operation of the competent 
authorities; 

new legislation; 

yearly update of objectives. 

20 

 
 
 
Part 2 
Commission controls 
carried out in EU 
countries in 2022 

21 

 
 
 
 
2.1 
Audits and controls 

 The 2022 audit and analysis programme (17) was the second under 

the 2021-2025 multiannual plan. In 2022, we started tackling several of the priorities 
set in the multiannual plan. These include: 

● 

● 

● 

animal welfare of calves in control posts during intra-EU transport; 

animal welfare of animals in livestock vessels; 

plant passports used during the movement of plants, plant products and other 
objects within the EU. 

We carried out 120 controls on the official control systems of EU countries in 2022. 
Table 3 provides a breakdown of the type of controls and the methodology used. 

Table 3 – types of control and methodology, 2022 

Type of audit 

Fully remote 

Partially remote 

On site 

Audit 

Desk analysis 

Fact-finding study 

General follow-up 

7 

27 

4 

4 

60 

1 

3 

3 

9 

2 

Figure 2 shows the geographical coverage of these controls. Chart 4 shows the 
number of audits carried out by category of control. 

(17)  The work programmes are published on the Commission website 

22 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Figure 2: Coverage of Commission controls in 2022 

Chart 4: Controls carried out by category, 2022 

23 

 
 
 
 
 
 
2.2 
Recommendations 

The controls carried out in 2022 resulted in a total of 363 recommendations to EU 
countries. Chart 3 provides an overview of these by sector. The accompanying staff 
working document provides a further breakdown of the figures by area audited. 

Chart 5: Recommendations made in 2022 by sector 

24 

 
 
 
 
2.3 
Highlights from the Commission 
controls carried out in 2022 

Food 

The audits in the fisheries sector found problems in the registration of small fishing 
vessels, controls of landing sites and related operations and a lack of controls of 
vessels that land in other EU countries. The use of alternative histamine test methods 
might undermine the reliability and/or validity of test results. 

We extended the scope of our audits in the meat sector, starting off with cattle, to 
pigs, sheep and poultry slaughterhouses. Weaknesses were found in the training and 
supervision of official veterinarians and the effectiveness of controls in low-
throughput slaughterhouses. 

Common shortcomings in the dairy sector were found in the enforcement of operator 
procedures on testing raw milk and verifying heat treatment. 

The audits on food of non-animal origin showed the need to improve the 
registration of primary producers in implementing risk-based official controls. 

GMOs 

We carried out two fact-finding studies to gather information on the implementation 
of controls and provisions on organisms and products, including food and feed 
containing such products, obtained through new genomic techniques (18). The aim was 
also to identify good practices and common obstacles or difficulties encountered in 
implementing these controls. 

Feed 

Our audits revealed areas for improvement in the assessment of operators’ hazard 
analysis and critical control point systems, the implementation of appropriate 
sampling protocols and official controls on labelling. 

(18)  EU  legislation  on  GMOs  was  adopted  in  2001  and  2003.  New  genomic  techniques  are 

techniques that have emerged or have been developed since 2001. 

25 

 
 
 
 
Animal health 

Our controls on the measures taken to contain the spread of African swine fever 
indicated challenges regarding early detection of the disease, biosecurity and 
movement controls from restricted zones. 

Regarding the measures taken on highly pathogenic avian influenza, there was 
scope to strengthen contingency planning and preparedness in the areas of 
epidemiological enquiries and depopulation arrangements. 

The results from our controls to assess the effective implementation of rabies 
eradication programmes indicated that, overall, programme implementation is 
progressing according to objectives. 

Animal by-products 

The areas identified for improvement include checks on animal by-products 
generated in the food sector, the assessment of operator hazard analysis and critical 
control point systems, and verifications of validation of processing plants. 

Animal welfare 

The outcome of a project looking into quality management systems for animal 
welfare and the use of indicators was summarised in an overview report. The project 
concluded that there is a need for universally used indicators to measure the state of 
or changes to animal welfare at farm level. 

Regarding animal welfare during transport, we started new projects on the 
transport of weaned calves over long journeys and the transport of animals to non-
EU countries by sea vessels. 

Plant health 

Our audits on the measures taken to contain spread of Xylella fastidiosa identified 
the obstacles that delay implementation of eradication measures required, especially 
in early stages of outbreak controls. 

A new audit series supported national authorities by helping them to adapt their 
control systems to meet the new requirements on plant passports. 

Plant protection products 

Our audits and training series focused on official controls on the marketing and use 
of plant protection products, the sustainable use of pesticides, integrated pest 
management and pesticide application equipment. 

26 

 
 
Organic production and labelling of organic products 

As the new EU organic legislation has been in force only since the beginning of 2022 
and considering the time needed to transition to the new requirements, no audits 
were carried out in EU countries in 2022.  

Protected designation of origin, protected geographical indications and 
traditional specialities guaranteed 

An audit on the evaluation of the official control system in place for PDOs and PGIs in 
the wine sector revealed gaps in checking compliance with all the aspects covered by 
the product specifications when carrying out controls at the producers. 

Fraudulent and deceptive practices 

The project on the arrangements put in place by EU countries to fight fraud in the 
agri-food chain was concluded and its outcome published in an overview report. In 
addition, the Commission published a technical report to support Member States in 
meeting EU legal requirements in this area. 

Entry of animals and goods into the EU 

The results of the audits confirmed that, overall, EU countries continue to improve 
their systems and implement controls in this area. 

Residues of veterinary medicinal products and environmental contaminants 
in animals and products of animal origin 

The results of the assessments of the national residue-monitoring plans and the eight 
audits carried out showed compliance with the rules. 

One health 

The results of the assessments of the national plans on antimicrobial resistance were 
summarised in an overview report. The findings of this project should help EU 
countries identify and develop synergies in the context of the One Health dimension. 
It should also help them identify any gaps and strengthen their existing plans. 

27 

 
 
2.4 
Systematic follow-up of audit 
recommendations 

28 

 
 
2. 4.1 
General follow-up audits 

Based on the three-year audit cycle, we carried out nine general follow-up audits in 
2022. 

Table 4: General follow-up audits in 2022 

General follow-up audits: 

The systematic review of actions taken by Member States to address audit 
recommendations continued to be effective in dealing with most of the issues 
identified. The results of the general follow-up audits have been published in the 
country profiles. 

At the end of December 2022, national authorities had taken corrective action or 
provided satisfactory commitments to address most of the identified shortcomings 
within acceptable timelines. Based on a three-year rolling indicator, commitments to 
corrective actions had been made for 93% of the recommendations resulting from 
the audits carried out over the three-year period 2018-2020.  

We continue to monitor all open recommendations by carrying out general follow-up 
audits. 

29 

 
 
 
 
 
2.4.2 
Enforcement 

In 2022, the Commission launched infringement proceedings against 

the United Kingdom for not complying with significant parts of the Windsor 
Framework. The aim of these infringement proceedings is to restore the United 
Kingdom’s compliance with the Framework in a number of key areas, with the 
ultimate goal of protecting the health and safety of EU citizens (19). 

In 2022, the Commission did not refer any cases to the Court of 
Justice of the EU in the areas subject to official controls covered by this report. 

(19)  Press release 15 June 2022 

30 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Conclusions 

National authorities continued in 2022 to fulfil their role of monitoring and verifying 
that businesses along the food chain comply with the applicable EU requirements and 
took enforcement measures when this was not the case. 

Restrictions imposed due to the COVID-19 pandemic (although gradually returning to 
normal in 2022), staffing levels and resource constraints were cited as reasons why 
national authorities could not completely implement their planned programmes. 

National authorities need to complete the work to adapt their internal data systems 
to handle complete and consistent data in the required format. The Commission has 
issued guidance on completing the annual report; following the guidance should 
improve the comparability of the data provided for 2023 and subsequent years. 

The annual reports would also improve when national authorities include statements 
on the overall level of compliance, the overall effectiveness of their official control 
systems and their suitability to achieve the objectives of the Official Controls 
Regulation (20). 

Regarding official controls on animal welfare, future annual reports must provide a 
better analysis of the main incidents of non-compliance and the national action plans 
to prevent any recurrence of such incidents. 

The results of official controls carried out by EU countries and of the controls carried 
out by the Commission on the national authorities show that control systems are in 
place and that they provide levels of compliance that are compatible with food and 
feed safety requirements and a healthy internal EU market. Nevertheless, the 
Commission's controls identified weaknesses and further room for improvement. 

The Commission’s systematic follow-up of audit recommendations shows that 
national authorities are generally taking the corrective measures needed to remedy 
the shortcomings identified.  

Working in partnership with the national authorities, the Commission continues to 
support the continuous improvement of official control systems through networks of 
national experts and the Better Training for Safer Food initiative. 

(20)  Regulation (EU) 2017/625 

31