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New EURL Guidance Document on Stability Studies

Over the past few years, the EURLs active in the field of veterinary medicinal product residues (VMPR) analysis in cooperation with the NRLs have published several EURL Guidance Documents supporting the implementation of Commission Implementing Regulation 2021/808. The Guidance Documents represent the EURL interpretation of CIR 2021/808 and are meant as a support for all laboratories, furthering the harmonised implementation of CIR 2021/808. However, the Guidance Documents are not seen as mandatory to follow, and other approaches are possible if comparable results are achieved.

During the discussions for the preparation of a database of stability information for VMPR analysis, it has become clear that the laboratory network would benefit from information on the performance of stability assessments supplementing the prescriptions given in CIR 2021/808. The stability database working group with representatives from the NRLs Belgium, Ireland, Slovenia, and the three EURLs has therefore compiled a final EURL Guidance Document on Stability Studies.

Now, the EURL Guidance Document on Stability Studies has been finalised and is available as of today. This document spans all aspects of stability studies including their design, the selection of samples to be studied, study evaluation, examples, as well as the applicability of data from external sources to the conditions in another laboratory.

Newsletter December 2025 – EURL Growth Promoters

The December 2025 Newsletter of the EURL Growth Promoters includes information on:

  • the EURL Annual Workshop 2026 (27–29 October 2026, Wageningen),
  • planned training activities in 2026,
  • the Proficiency Test (PT) programme for 2026,
  • the launch of the newly redesigned EURL Growth Promoters website and the new EURL webshop for reference materials.

The newsletter can be downloaded here:

20251214_final_Newletter_dec2025_EURL Growthpromoters_WFSRDownload

Webinar on the progress in implementation of CIR (EU) 2021/808

The School for Advanced Residue Analysis in Food (SARAF) is once again organising a webinar on the implementation of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/808. This webinar is the fourth instalment in the series and is entitled: “Progress update 5 years after the publishing of the official texts – testimonies of a competent authority, VMPR EURLs and reference labs in Europe” .

The webinar takes place on 17 December – 09:00-12:00 CET and is free of charge.

Registration can be done using the following link : https://app.livestorm.co/inrae/cir-eu-2021808-of-22-march-2021-part-iv/live?s=69205c13-b7ae-4059-aba7-dd2da5b3309f

EURL Residue Prioritisation

The updated residue prioritisation for substance groups within the responsibility of the EURL Berlin is now available from the FIS-VL.

Background:

The EURL Berlin groups veterinary drug residues into minimum required, recommended, optional, and other residues, taking into account factors such as production and prescription volumes, suspected illicit application and frequency of residue detection in official control samples. Based on this classification the EURL Berlin evaluates the Member States’ National Residue Control Plans (NRCP) to highlight adequate aspects or point out areas where improvements might be required. In order to further promote the analysis of the most relevant residues and thereby harmonise residue analysis within its network, the EURL Berlin includes all minimum required and recommended residues in the proficiency assessment of its proficiency tests. The EURL Berlin regularly assesses the adequacy of the classification taking into account new developments; substances may therefore be reassigned to a different priority group.

NSAI1025: Registration now possible

We are pleased to invite you to participate in our forthcoming EURL proficiency test NSAI1025 on the determination of NSAIDs in bovine milk and chicken egg. Participation in the module for NSAIDs in chicken egg is optional and the results for chicken egg will not be considered for the proficiency assessment. If your laboratory does not have an analytical method for NSAIDs in chicken egg, please consider your participation using your method for bovine milk instead.

Participation for eligible laboratories is free of charge. However, all matters pertaining to import and customs will need to be arranged by your organisation. The EURL Berlin reserves the right to limit the number of participants from Third Countries. Please find more details on the proficiency test, as well as the proposed time schedule in the official invitation and contact the EURL Berlin should you have any questions.

Tolerance Limits for Coccidiostats

Many coccidiostats are authorised as feed additives and maximum levels (MLs) for the unavoidable carry-over into food have been established along maximum residue limits (MRLs). Since the authorisation as feed additive is limited to a certain time period, the applicability of MLs frequently changes. Furthermore, MLs are usually provided for a large variety of species and may also differentiate within a species (e.g. differentiation between chicken for laying and chicken for fattening). The EURL Berlin would like to support the laboratory network in the implementation of the legislation by providing an overview of the tolerance limits for all relevant coccidostats. The document is regularly updated. The current version is 1.5 and can be downloaded from the sub-page ‘Guidance Documents’.

Dates of 2025 EURL-Workshops

As every year, we will organise EURL-Workshops for the representatives of the NRLs. We look forward to welcoming you at our premises again and to deepening our collaboration with you.

The dates of the annual EURL-Workshops of the three EURLs for Residues in 2025 are scheduled as follows:

  • The 2025 Workshop of the EURL ANSES will take place in Fougères, France, from 25 to 26 June. Invitations have been sent in mid-April.
  • The 2025 Workshop of the EURL BVL will take place in Berlin, Germany, from 23 to 25 September.
  • The 2025 Workshop of the EURL WFSR will take place in Wageningen, the Netherlands, from 28 to 30 October.

Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/1229 on carry-over

With regard to the topic of carry-over, we would like to draw you attention to COMMISSION DELEGATED REGULATION (EU) 2024/1229 of 20 February 2024 supplementing Regulation (EU) 2019/4 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing specific maximum levels of cross-contamination of antimicrobial active substances in non-target feed and methods of analysis for these substances in feed.