"Starting in 2027, farmers will only require a single notification for the use of antibiotics"

Annual antibiotic reporting for pig farmers is now reduced from twice a year to just once.

, and Administrator

2025 September 17 . 10:49 AM

2 min read

Starting in 2027, farmers will only receive a single antibiotic alert

"Starting in 2027, farmers will only require a single notification for the use of antibiotics"

The federal government of Germany has announced changes to the monitoring of antibiotic use in animal husbandry, effective from 2026. These changes are part of an ongoing effort to implement European law 1:1 and reduce bureaucracy.

In a statement, Federal Minister of Food and Agriculture Alois Rainer highlighted that the changes will provide relief to veterinarians, businesses, and authorities. The expanded monitoring will now include a wider range of animal species, such as sheep, goats, geese, ducks, certain fish species, horses, and rabbits.

One of the key benefits of these changes is the ability for the federal government to utilise existing administrative data more effectively, eliminating the need for many businesses to make separate reports. This is expected to result in an annual saving of around 800,000 euros.

Another significant development is the inclusion of horses in the monitoring of antibiotic consumption, which was not previously considered. From 2026, data for horses’ antibiotic application and dispensing will be mandatorily recorded.

The changes will also impact the reporting process, with the twice-yearly TAM report on antibiotic use in livestock farming reducing to an annual submission from 2027. This is expected to provide further cost savings.

In addition, changes have been made for dogs and cats. The obligation to record their consumption, initially planned for 2025, has been postponed to 2029.

The draft bills from the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) are currently undergoing parliamentary procedure. The federal government anticipates saving approximately 100 million euros in implementation costs between 2025 and 2028 due to these changes.

It is important to note that these changes do not affect dogs, cats, or any specific animal species mentioned earlier, except for horses. Furthermore, the changes to the agricultural statistics law are not related to antibiotic use in these animals.

The postponement of certain requirements is to give veterinary practices more time to adjust to the new requirements. The federal government remains committed to making progress in reducing bureaucracy and continuing to implement European law 1:1.