Live animals and animal products

Importing veterinary products from outside the EU is subject to strict requirements. Examples of veterinary products include:

  • live animals
  • meat and meat products
  • eggs
  • fish and fish products
  • milk and milk products

These standards do not only concern the health and well-being of animals, but also the health of people, since people can become seriously ill from eating contaminated meat or eggs. However, Dutch livestock can also be contaminated if it comes into contact with contaminated animals from countries outside the EU. That is why the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (Nederlandse Voedsel- en Warenautoriteit - NVWA) strictly monitors the health standards that livestock and animal products have to meet.

Customs fulfils an important task within this veterinary inspection process: it notifies the NVWA of any irregularities it encounters when goods enter the country.

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