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Information systems and databases

TRACES

TRAdeControl and Expert System

TRACES is the IT-system of the European Commission to document and certify intra-EU trade as well as the trade (importation and exportation) of certain groups of goods between the EU and third countries.

While the use of the initial or classic TRACES had been mandatory since 1 January 2005 for transportations of animals and animal products, the system has been successively extended to other groups of goods (exotic wood, organic products, plants, plant products, food and feed of non-animal origin and fish) with the implementation of TRACES-NT (NT – New Technology).

The objective of TRACES is to enhance the control and traceability of all shipments. It ensures standardised methods of documentation, certification and control for all intra-EU trade. Furthermore, TRACES is an important decision tool for border inspection points in the case of importations of goods from third countries into the EU. Since TRACES is a web-based application, it provides the competent veterinary authorities with quick and up-to-date information and will enable electronic certification in future.

With regard to TRACES-NT, the Friedrich-Loeffler-Institute is the national contact point for questions relating to

  • live animals
  • animal products (food and feed, animal by-products)
  • food and feed of non-animal origin

More detailed information on TRACES/TRACES-NT is available on https://traces.fli.de.