This document specifies the general requirements for the in vitro amplification of nucleic acid sequences (DNA or RNA). This document is applicable to the testing for microorganisms and viruses from the food chain using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR). This document, or parts of it, is applicable to other fields of PCR diagnostics based on a case-by-case evaluation. The minimum requirements laid down in this document are intended to ensure that comparable and reproducible results are obtained in different laboratories. This document has been established for microorganisms from the food chain and is applicable to: — products intended for human consumption; — products for feeding animals; — environmental samples in the area of food and feed production and handling; — samples from the primary production stage.