Study Group on Future Trends in Veterinary Public Health (VPH) met in Teramo, Italy, from 1 to 5 March 1999. The meeting was opened by Dr F.-X. Meslin, Coordinator, Animal and Food-related Public Health Risks, World Health Organization (WHO), who pointed out the increasing importance of VPH for both developing and developed countries, as well as its role in helping to achieve the Health for all in the twenty-first century strategy adopted by the World Health Assembly in resolution WHA51.5 in 1998 (1).