It regulates SQNBA certification, sets out animal health and welfare requirements that are higher than EU and national standards for the certification of cattle and pigs farmed outdoors, and lays down marketing rules for certified animals and products.

Regulations governing the ‘National Quality System for Animal Welfare – SQNBA’ pursuant to Article 224 bis of Decree- Law No. 34 of 19 May 2020, and operational procedures for the management and approval of certification requirements (specifications) for fattening pigs...

The National Quality System for Animal Welfare (hereinafter SQNBA) is a certification scheme for livestock farms and the animal products derived from them, for animal welfare, established pursuant to Article 224-bis of Decree-Law No. 34 of 19 May 2020, introduced by Conversion Law No. 77 of 17 July 2020 (https://www.gazzettaufficiale.it/eli/id/2020/07/18/20A03914/sg)

The system is the result of the collaboration of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty and Forestry (MASAF), the Ministry of Heath and Accredia (the Italian Accreditation Authority) and aims to define a basic national production scheme, with the aim of improving the sustainability of production processes and transparency in relation to consumers.
The proposed technical regulation (Articles 1 to 11) sets out the procedure for defining the animal health and welfare requirements, that are higher than those laid down in EU and national law, for the qualification of the management of the breeding process intended for food production. Furthermore, it clarifies that participation in the SQNBA is voluntary and the right of access is guaranteed for all operators in the Member States of the European Union legitimately concerned. It also regulates the issuing of the certification of compliance with the SQNBA requirements, as well as the procedures and methods by which persons belonging to the production chain concerned may market animals from a certified herd or the product of animal origin. Meanwhile, Article 12 specifies that, upon a proposal from the Technical and Scientific Committee for Animal Welfare (CTSBA) as provided for in Article 10 of the decree, the certification requirements (specifications) relating to the bovine species and the porcine species for fattening that are farmed outdoors are defined, the texts of which are set out in Annex 3.
Finally, Article 13 of the proposal provides for the simultaneous repeal of the previous national legislation on the SQNBA