Animal and Food AMR Surveillance
All Nordic countries participate in the EU’s harmonised system for monitoring AMR in animals and food, based on Directive 2003/99/EC and Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2020/1729.
EU Framework
- Countries must assess trends and sources of zoonotic diseases and AMR within their territory
- Annual reports submitted to the European Commission
- EFSA and ECDC jointly review reports and publish the EU Summary Report (EUSR)
- Reports integrate animal, food, and human data with interactive dashboards
Non-EU participation
Country-by-Country Overview
Denmark - DANMAP
- DTU Food analyses foodborne zoonotic and indicator bacteria from healthy animals and meat
- DK-Vet consortium handles clinical isolates from sick animals and pets
- DVFA hosts VetStat - one of the world’s most detailed veterinary drug databases
- Monitors E. coli and enterococci beyond EU mandatory requirements
Finland - FINRES-Vet
- Coordinated by Ruokavirasto
- Covers industrial food production, meat, fur industry, companion animals, horses
- Fimea provides veterinary sales data
Iceland - Icelandic AMR-AMU Report
- MAST is the main authority
- Regular MRSA screenings of pigs
- Tracks ESBL/AmpC-producing E. coli
- Heilsa veterinary database for cattle, horses, sheep
Norway - NORM-Vet
- Coordinated by NFSA, implemented by NVI
- Broader scope: food, feed, and wild animals
- Systematic MRSA screening - successfully eliminated livestock-associated MRSA from pigs
- VetReg - mandatory prescription reporting for food-producing animals and horses
Sweden - Svarm
- Managed by SVA
- Monitors commensal bacteria from slaughterhouses
- Routine diagnostic samples from diseased animals
- Sales data from Swedish eHealth Agency and SBA
Key Bacterial Groups Monitored
- Zoonotic bacteria - transmissible to humans (e.g., Salmonella, Campylobacter)
- Indicator bacteria - signal overall resistance trends (e.g., E. coli, enterococci)
- Animal pathogens - cause disease in animals
- MRSA - particularly in pig populations