VYZKUMNY USTAV VETERINARNIHO LEKARSTVI

Their core work

The Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) in Brno is a Czech public research institute focused on animal health, food safety, and veterinary science. Their core work spans microbiology, parasitology, and epidemiology of foodborne zoonoses, with growing activity in natural bioactive compounds for animal treatment and sustainable protein sources for animal feed. They contribute laboratory expertise and applied research to large European consortia tackling One Health challenges — where animal health, food safety, and human health intersect.

What they specialise in

How they've shifted over time

VRI's H2020 trajectory shows a clear shift from surveillance-oriented veterinary epidemiology toward applied bioactive solutions. Their earliest project (One Health EJP, 2018) centred on disease monitoring, foodborne pathogen tracking, and health policy — classical veterinary public health. By 2020-2021, their newer projects (ALEHOOP, NeoGiANT) moved into tangible product development: sustainable feed ingredients and natural antimicrobial compounds from plant extracts. This signals a pivot from observing problems to developing practical interventions.

VRI is moving toward applied, product-oriented research in antibiotic alternatives and sustainable feed, making them increasingly relevant for agri-food companies seeking green veterinary solutions.

How they like to work

VRI operates exclusively as a participant, never coordinating — they bring specialist veterinary and laboratory expertise into consortia led by others. With 81 unique partners across 23 countries from just 3 projects, they work in very large consortia (especially the One Health EJP network). This means they are well-connected and accustomed to multi-partner coordination, but potential collaborators should expect them as a contributing expert rather than a project driver.

Despite only 3 H2020 projects, VRI has built an unusually broad network of 81 partners across 23 countries, largely thanks to the One Health EJP mega-consortium. Their reach spans most of Europe with no narrow geographic bias.

What sets them apart

VRI sits at a distinctive intersection: they combine deep veterinary microbiology and parasitology expertise with emerging capabilities in natural bioactive compounds and sustainable feed science. For consortium builders, this means a single partner that can address both the disease surveillance side and the applied product development side of One Health and food safety projects. Their position as a dedicated veterinary research institute (not a university department) gives them focused infrastructure and institutional continuity in this niche.

Highlights from their portfolio

• NeoGiANT
  Their largest H2020 contribution (EUR 518,938), exploring grape polyphenols as antibiotic replacements in animal health — a commercially relevant topic with growing regulatory demand.
• One Health EJP
  A massive European Joint Programme connecting veterinary, food safety, and public health institutes across dozens of countries — gave VRI access to the continent's One Health network.
• ALEHOOP
  Bridges VRI's veterinary expertise into sustainable protein and circular bioeconomy territory, showing their ability to contribute beyond traditional animal health research.