The United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has designated Utrecht University and Wageningen Bioveterinary Research (WBVR) as an "FAO Reference Centre for Antimicrobial Resistance". Utrecht University announced the recognition on 8 October 2026.

What the centre is

Antimicrobial resistance is the ability of bacteria and other microbes to survive the medicines meant to kill them. Animals receive antibiotics too, so resistance in livestock and in the food chain is one part of the wider problem.

According to the university, the new centre combines the Department of Infectious Diseases and Immunology at Utrecht's Faculty of Veterinary Medicine with WBVR, whose laboratory is in Lelystad. It is led by Professor Jaap Wagenaar of Utrecht and Dr Kees Veldman of WBVR.

What it will do

Over the next five years, the university says, the centre will contribute to three things:

- global surveillance of antimicrobial resistance in animals and along the food chain; - the development of guidelines and training programmes; - capacity building in low- and middle-income countries.

The FAO describes reference centres on its own website as institutions it designates after assessing their expertise and their collaboration with the organisation. Their work can include standardising methods, taking part in joint research, training, and providing scientific and policy advice. The FAO states that a designation lasts five years, which matches the university's timeframe.

Building on existing roles

The recognition adds to roles the Utrecht department already holds. The university says it is a Collaborating Centre of both the World Health Organization and the World Organisation for Animal Health. WBVR's laboratory is already the designated National Reference Laboratory for antimicrobial resistance in livestock in the Netherlands.

This recognition makes us part of a global network of experts.Jaap Wagenaar

Wagenaar said, in the university's announcement, that the status allows a sustained contribution to responsible antibiotic use in animals. Veldman described the joint recognition as an important step and a milestone in the collaboration between the two institutions.

What to keep in mind

The announcement describes the centre's planned contributions rather than results; no outcomes or funding figures were given in the university's article, and the FAO designation is a recognition of expertise and collaboration. Its practical value will show in the guidelines, training and surveillance work that follow. The centre combines Utrecht's veterinary faculty with WBVR's laboratory in Lelystad.