Control in differentiated quality products

AINIA, the first accredited laboratory for medicine residue testing for the control of organic production

The accreditation of a laboratory’s different analytical techniques constitutes the best guarantee of the quality and reliability of its services. ENAC’s recognition of AINIA as the first laboratory in the accreditation programme “Testing of medicine residues for the control of organic production” provides the organic meat sector with an effective control tool for one of the most highly valued characteristics of this type of product.

The production and consumption of organic meat in our country are still very limited compared with conventionally produced meat, but they are growing steadily year after year. If the control of prohibited substances or substances with residue limits is important in any type of meat, in organic meat this control becomes even more relevant, since the rules governing the use of veterinary substances on farms of this type of livestock are much more restrictive than in conventional production. Regulation 848/2018 has applied since 1 January 2021.

In other words, the requirements in this field go beyond legal compliance. These are therefore products for which the market is willing to pay a higher price because of the differential quality they provide, and it must therefore be ensured that these differentiating characteristics are real and can be verified in the final product.

Accreditation programmes

The accreditation of an analytical technique for a given product or matrix represents the endorsement of an accreditation body (ENAC in the case of Spain) of the technical competence required to perform that type of analytical test. It is therefore the highest recognition of a laboratory’s quality and reliability, and it applies individually to each analytical technique for each matrix (product or type of product), rather than to the full set of analyses the laboratory performs on any product or matrix.

Since 2017, ENAC has offered the possibility of accreditation under a series of programmes in order to provide clear information to the market and, where appropriate, to the competent authorities, on the laboratories that are accredited for all the tests required to respond to the full needs of a sector. Accreditation programmes therefore guarantee that the information laboratories provide about their accreditations is not partial or self-serving, but instead follows homogeneous and rigorous criteria.

Medicine residues in meat

In the specific field of residues of medicines and other substances for veterinary use, at AINIA we have completed the accreditation of analyses for the substances included in group A “hormones and prohibited substances” of the National Residue Monitoring Plan (PNIR), in addition to substance groups B2C (carbamates and pyrethroids), B2F (anti-inflammatories), B3C (chemical elements) and B3D (mycotoxins).

Thanks to the inclusion within the accreditation of part of these substances, we have been recognised as the first accredited laboratory in “Testing of medicine residues for the control of organic production”.

Other accreditations

In terms of accreditation programmes, in addition to the recognition we have just received, at AINIA we also hold the following:

• “Testing for nutritional information”. Testing for mandatory nutritional information in food in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 1169/2011.
• “Food microbiological testing”. Testing for compliance with microbiological criteria in food.
• “Testing for the control of organic production”. Testing of metal residues for the control of organic production.

The commitment of AINIA’s laboratories in 2021 to accreditation has been particularly ambitious and extends to different food as well as non-food subsectors. In future articles, we will gradually present these new accreditation developments so that they can be addressed in sufficient detail.