Council Recommendation on stepping up EU actions to combat antimicrobial resistance in a One Health approach.

This Recommendation encourages the Member States: (I) to develop and regularly update and implement the National Action Plans on combatting antimicrobial resistance (AMR), based on the One Health approach which encompasses human health, animal health, plant health, food, wastewater and the environment; and (II) to take all necessary measures for strengthening the surveillance and monitoring of AMR and antimicrobial consumption to efficiently and rapidly detect emerging resistant infections and outbreaks, in particular as regards soil and water bodies, to determine the presence of AMR genes and antimicrobials, the trends and their toxicity.
The Commission will assess animal diseases caused by bacteria resistant to antimicrobials, on the basis of opinions of the European Food Safety Authority. The Member States will take infection prevention and control measures in human health and continuously monitor to contribute to limiting the spread of antimicrobial resistant pathogens and take measures to improve the health and welfare of food-producing animals in order to decrease the occurrence and spread of infectious diseases in farming and subsequently reduce the need for antimicrobial use. Furthermore, the Member States will conduct programmes for the collection and safe disposal of unused, expired and leftover antimicrobials from the community, hospitals and long-term care facilities, farms, veterinary medicine providers, veterinary premises and manufacturing facilities of antimicrobials, and the awareness among the public and health professionals working in human health and veterinary sectors will be raised on these programmes.
The Member States will take appropriate measures to contribute to the achievement of the Farm to Fork Strategy and Zero Pollution Action Plan target of 50 % reduction of the overall EU sales of antimicrobials used for farmed animals and in aquaculture by 2030. Trainings will be conducted on AMR, on infection prevention and control, on environmental risks, on biosecurity and on antimicrobial stewardship, including prudent use of antimicrobials.
The Member States will support research and development and incentives for innovation and access to antimicrobials and other AMR medical countermeasures for the detection, prevention and treatment of infections in humans caused by antimicrobial resistant pathogens. They will report data on AMR and on antimicrobial consumption to the Global Antimicrobial Resistance and Use Surveillance System.
The cooperation on AMR will be enhanced between EFSA, EMA, ECDC, EEA and ECHA and the One Health approach on AMR will be reinforced through an interagency AMR working group. Tackling AMR requires a high level of collaboration across sectors and between countries, including at global level. Therefore, the EU will advocate for the development, and the implementation by third countries, of standards by the International Standard Setting Bodies, in particular: (i) for more ambitious WOAH standards and guidelines on the responsible and prudent use of antimicrobials agents in veterinary medicine, (ii) for the development of guidance on the prudent use of antimicrobial agents for phytosanitary purposes by the International Plant Protection Convention, and (iii) for the implementation of the Codex Alimentarius standards, Code of Practice to Minimize and Contain Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance, the Guidelines on Integrated Monitoring and Surveillance of Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance and the Guidelines for Risk Analysis of Foodborne Antimicrobial Resistance.