Animal breeding, registration and identification

Animal breeding

The objective of animal breeding activities is either to improve the genetic quality of production animals or to conserve genetic resources. The purpose animal breeding provisions is to remove trade barriers and promote trade in which the genetic value of animals, their gametes and embryos has been verified. This can be achieved by using uniform methods to evaluate the genetic quality of animals and uniform documentation demonstrating the quality.

Animal breeding activities are controlled by the Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira.

Animal identification

The objective of animal identification is to protect the health of animals, humans and the environment, to improve the welfare of animals and to ensure the safety of food by requiring systematic information on animal holdings, operators responsible for animals and animals themselves. The information enables the origin of animals and their movements between holdings to be traced. With the data included in registers, different risks can be addressed rapidly and efficiently, preventing, for example, animal diseases from spreading or diseases that can be shared between animals and humans (zoonoses) from being transmitted to the food chain.

The animal identification system is controlled by the Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira.

Related links

Finnish Food Authority: Animal welfare