The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has undertaken a significant amount of hard work to maintain performance following the relocation of the independent agency to Armidale.
Ben Stapley, Executive Director of Animal Medicines Australia, said operational and administrative reforms at the APVMA have paid off giving animal health industries greater certainty with respect to their applications.
“Animal Medicines Australia welcomes the latest APVMA performance statistics” said Mr Stapley.
“While there is more work to be done, Animal Medicines Australia looks forward to continuing to work with the APVMA to protect the rigour of its scientific, risk-based assessments. This is essential to protect users of animal health products, consumers, animal health and welfare and the environment.
“It is critical that we lock the current gains in.”
Animal Medicines Australia has previously been critical of APVMA performance, noting low timeframe approval rates in some application classes. However, the APVMA has worked hard to address these issues and it is pleasing to see their dedication reflected in the performance statistics.
“Ensuring applications are completed in a timely manner helps to ensure animal health products are available to treat health concerns in the livestock, equine and companion animal sectors.”
The APVMA has published the latest performance report for the December quarter with 99% of veterinary medicine applications completed within statutory timeframes.
Mr Stapley said that importantly the timeframe performance for major applications, involving a more complex assessment, had improved to 93% for veterinary medicines.
“We are now seeing the welcome results of a return to stability and certainty at the APVMA.”