Russia Updates Veterinary Pharmacy Regulations

Russia's cabinet has introduced new regulations for veterinary pharmacies, manufacturers, and wholesale suppliers of veterinary medicinal products. These updates are part of a broader reform initiative designed to reduce bureaucratic procedures and improve the oversight of veterinary drugs.

The revised regulations establish unified licensing requirements for all entities involved in the production, wholesale, and retail sale of veterinary preparations. For manufacturers, this includes having staff with at least one year of relevant veterinary education and experience, appropriate production facilities with essential safety systems, separate storage areas, and equipment for sterilization and waste disinfection. Refrigeration units maintaining specific temperatures are also mandatory for vaccine storage.

Wholesale distributors must meet minimum facility size requirements of 20 square meters. They also need refrigeration equipment, air conditioning, pallets, and devices to monitor temperature and humidity. Maintaining logs of storage conditions is also required.

Veterinary pharmacies selling products directly to consumers must employ staff with higher or secondary professional veterinary education. The minimum size for a pharmacy is set at 10 square meters. Essential equipment includes a refrigerator for vaccines, a display case, air conditioning, and temperature/humidity control devices. A separate customer service area is also mandated.

Furthermore, the new rules prohibit the co-storage and sale of veterinary drugs alongside non-veterinary chemical or biological substances. These regulations are set to take effect ten days after their publication.