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ANSES’s services

To carry out its research and reference missions, ANSES relies on a network of nine laboratories on 16 sites across the country, in close contact with France’s agricultural and food production centres.

These laboratories undertake work in three major areas, covering animal health and welfare, chemical and microbiological food safety, and plant health. They have achieved international recognition in their various fields of expertise, including epidemiology, microbiology, antimicrobial resistance and physico-chemical contaminants and toxins.

The laboratories play a vital role in qualifying health hazards through their expert appraisals, epidemiological surveillance, alerts and technical and scientific support, and by coordinating networks of laboratories conducting field analyses, through which they collect data. In particular, the 600 scientists and technicians from ANSES laboratories are engaged in research to identify major pathogens in animal health and plant health and to develop approaches for identifying biological, physical and chemical contaminants in food and water.

These reference and research activities position ANSES at the heart of institutional networks focused on animal health and welfare, plant health and food safety. The Agency entertains direct links with the field, which are essential for carrying out surveillance and issuing alerts, enabling it to respond more rapidly during the resurgence or emergence of new pathogens and contaminants in France.

>> See ANSES’s scientific priorities for 2019–2022 to guide its research and reference activities (PDF, in French)

Laboratory news

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Grippe du porc : comment un nouveau virus a pris le dessus sur les autres lignées en France
07/05/2025 —
Research

Swine flu: how a new virus has taken over other genotypes in France

In 2020, a new genotype of swine influenza virus, responsible for swine flu, emerged in France and quickly replaced certain previous strains. Scientists at ANSES’s Ploufragan-Plouzané-Niort Laboratory conducted a study to understand how this rapid change could have occurred. The emergence of a new genotype poses a risk to the health of pigs and humans alike.
Fièvre aphteuse : un pas de plus vers la compréhension de la persistance du virus chez les ruminants
28/04/2025 —
News

Foot-and-mouth disease: a step closer to understanding the persistence of the virus in ruminants

Foot-and-mouth disease is one of the most contagious viral animal diseases. It affects more than 70 domestic and wild species, in particular cattle, pigs, sheep and goats. Disease-free countries are not exempt, as has been shown by recent cases since January 2025 in Germany, Hungary and Slovakia. The disease has a major socio-economic impact on livestock sectors, both in areas where it is endemic and in the event of an incursion into a previously disease-free area. For more than 50 years, a complex question has been asked: in areas where the virus circulates, why is it able to persist in up to 50% of infected ruminants after their apparent recovery? ANSES's Laboratory for Animal Health sought to answer this question through FMDV_PersIstOmics, an international research project. This project revealed that one of the virus's proteins plays a key role in this persistence.
La température des réfrigérateurs des Européens étudiée pour mieux protéger les consommateurs
18/04/2025 —
Research

Domestic fridge temperatures studied in Europe to better protect consumers

Scientists at ANSES’s Laboratory for Food Safety have reviewed the reference temperature used to calculate the use-by dates of ready-to-eat refrigerated foods. This temperature takes account of those actually observed in domestic refrigerators in 16 European countries. It was defined to prevent foodborne infections caused by pathogenic bacteria such as Listeria monocytogenes .
Nouveaux cas de fièvre aphteuse en Europe : l’Anses impliquée pour limiter la propagation
14/04/2025 —
Research

ANSES’s role in limiting the spread of new cases of foot-and-mouth disease in Europe

Since early 2025, outbreaks of foot-and-mouth disease have been reported in Germany, and more recently in Hungary and Slovakia. We provide an update on this highly contagious disease and ANSES's role as the European Union Reference Laboratory, a mandate it shares with the Sciensano Institute in Belgium.
Bordure d'un champs de tournesol
05/03/2025 —
Research

Agricultural biodiversity and climate change: vegetation in the margins of fields has changed in just 10 years

Scientists from INRAE and ANSES have been studying changes in field margin vegetation on 500 agricultural plots in mainland France, to understand how climate change and farming practices are affecting these plants. Their results, published in Ecology Letters, show that in 10 years the average temperature in these plots has risen by 1.2°C and soil moisture has fallen by 14%. The work shows that the plant communities in field margins have changed as a result, with more species tolerant to heat and aridity to the detriment of ruderal species (i.e. those able to withstand the disruption associated with farming practices). Climate change mitigation practices, such as plant cover and agroforestry, or reducing the use of agricultural inputs, would help preserve the ability of this biodiversity to adapt.
portraits de femmes de sciences
11/02/2025 —
Portrait

ANSES portraits: women in science 2025

In honour of the International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we take a closer look at the backgrounds and careers of five women who contribute to science at ANSES.
21/01/2025 —
Portrait

Two ANSES doctoral students recognised for presentations of their research work

The "ANSES Scientific and Doctoral Days" are an opportunity for the Agency's scientists to get together and discuss their work. They also enable ANSES doctoral students to present their thesis results, through 180-second oral presentations in English for third-year PhD students, and posters in English for second-year students. At the most recent event, held on 2 and 3 October 2024, the presentations given by Kevyn Beissat and Cassandre Jeannot were named "best oral presentation" and "best poster" respectively.
Laboratoire hydrologie Nancy
18/12/2024 —
Inside ANSES

Laboratory for Hydrology: 200 years of safeguarding public health

ANSES's Nancy Laboratory for Hydrology celebrates its 200th anniversary this year. The safety of water is embedded in its DNA. Under the impact of climate change and new lifestyle patterns, this issue has become a major concern for society. Sophie Lardy-Fontan, its director, presents the laboratory.