Registration and accreditation with the NVWA

Do you work with food, feed, plant or animal material, live animals, or plant protection products? You may need to register or apply for accreditation or a permit from the NVWA.

Apply for accreditation, registration, or a permit with the NVWA

You may need to apply for accreditation, registration, or a permit from the NVWA (in Dutch) if your company works with:

• foodstuffs of animal origin (meat, fish, dairy, eggs)
• animal feeds
• animal by-products, such as animal carcasses, manure, and blood
• germinal products, such as semen, ova, and embryos
• live animals (cattle, sheep, goats, pigs)
• sprouts 

Are the products you work with not listed in these examples? You may still need accreditation, registration, or a permit. Check the full list (in Dutch).

To apply for accreditation, registration, or a permit, you must be properly registered with the Netherlands Chamber of Commerce (KVK). Read how to prepare your application (in Dutch). 

Register your food business with the NVWA

Do you make, process, or transport food? Or do you store foodstuffs? You must register all of your branches in the Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority’s (NVWA) register. 

European hygiene legislation dictates that food businesses, including food suppliers, must register with the NVWA.

Did you register your food business before 10 March 2026? Then you must register it again via MijnNVWA (in Dutch). You must confirm your registration every year. 

You need eHerkenning to log in to MijnNVWA. Sole traders can also use DigiD.

If you run a food business, you must comply with the structural, technical, and hygiene requirements that apply to your activities. You must also have a food safety plan based on HACCP or use an approved hygiene code.

Veterinary laboratory

If you operate a veterinary laboratory in the Netherlands, check whether you need recognition from the NVWA for the tests and test methods you use (in Dutch).

If your laboratory needs recognition, the requirements include:

• Your laboratory must be accredited by the Dutch Accreditation Council (Raad voor Accreditatie, RvA).
• You participate in periodic monitoring by the National Reference Laboratory for your type of research.
• You report the tests carried out in your laboratory and their results quarterly to the NVWA.