European Food Safety Authority

Headquarters in Parma
Authority overview
Formed21 February 2002 (2002-02-21)
JurisdictionEuropean Union
HeadquartersParma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy
MottoCommitted to ensuring that Europe's food is safe
Authority executive
  • Bernhard Url, Executive Director
Key document
Websitewww.efsa.europa.eu
Map
European Food Safety Authority is located in European Union
Parma
Parma
European Food Safety Authority (European Union)

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is the agency of the European Union (EU) that provides independent scientific advice and communicates on existing and emerging risks associated with the food chain.[1][2] EFSA was established in February 2002, is based in Parma, Italy, and for 2021 it has a budget of €118.6 million, and a total staff of 542.[3]

The work of EFSA covers all matters with a direct or indirect impact on food and feed safety, including animal health and welfare, plant protection and plant health and nutrition. EFSA supports the European Commission, the European Parliament and EU member states in taking effective and timely risk management decisions that ensure the protection of the health of European consumers and the safety of the food and feed chain. EFSA also communicates to the public in an open and transparent way on all matters within its remit.

Structure

Based on a regulation of 2002,[2] the EFSA is composed of four bodies:

  • Management Board[4]
  • Executive Director
  • Advisory Forum
  • Scientific Committee and Scientific Panels

The Management Board sets the budget, approves work programmes, and is responsible for ensuring that EFSA co-operates successfully with partner organisations across the EU and beyond. It is composed of fourteen members appointed by the Council of the European Union in consultation with the European Parliament from a list drawn up by the European Commission, plus one representative of the European Commission.

The Executive Director is EFSA's legal representative and is responsible for day-to-day administration, drafting and implementing work programmes, and implementing other decisions adopted by the Management Board. They are appointed by the Management Board.

The Advisory Forum advises the Executive Director, in particular in drafting a proposal for the EFSA's work programmes. It is composed of representatives of national bodies responsible for risk assessment in the Member States, with observers from Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and the European Commission.

The Scientific Committee and its Scientific Panels provide scientific opinions and advice, each within their own sphere of competence, and are composed of independent scientific experts. The number and names of the Scientific Panels are adapted in the light of technical and scientific development by the European Commission at EFSA's request. The independent scientific experts are appointed by the Management Board upon a proposal from the Executive Director for three-year terms.

Focal Point network

The EFSA cooperates with the national food safety authorities of the 27 EU member states, Iceland and Norway, as well as observers from Switzerland and EU candidate countries, through its Focal Points, who also communicate with research institutes and other stakeholders. They "assist in the exchange of scientific information and experts, advise on cooperation activities and scientific projects, promote training in risk assessment and raise EFSA's scientific visibility and outreach in Member States."[5]

Members

The following countries' national food safety authorities are members of the EFSA Focal Point network:[6]

Country Food safety authority
 Austria Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES)
 Belgium Federal Public Service (FPS) Health Food Chain Safety and Environment
 Bulgaria Risk Assessment Center on Food Chain – Bulgarian Food Safety Agency
 Croatia Croatian Food Agency (HAH)
 Cyprus Ministry of Health – The State General Laboratory
 Czech Republic Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (SZPI, CAFIA)
 Denmark National Food Institute
 Estonia Ministry of Agriculture – Food Safety Department
 Finland Finnish Food Authority (Ruokavirasto)
 France French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES)
 Germany Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR)
 Greece Hellenic Food Authority (ΕΦΕΤ, EFET)
 Hungary National Food Chain Safety Office (Nébih/NFCSO)
 Iceland The Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority (MAST)
 Ireland Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI)
 Italy Istituto Superiore di Sanità (ISS)
 Latvia Institute of Food Safety, Animal Health and Environment "BIOR"
 Lithuania State Food and Veterinary Service
 Luxembourg Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Health
 Malta Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority
 Netherlands Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (NVWA)
 Norway Norwegian Scientific Committee for Food and Environment (VKM)
 Poland State Sanitary Inspection (PIS) – primary focal point;
Veterinary Inspection (IW) – accessory focal point
 Portugal Economic and Food Safety Authority (ASAE)
 Romania National Sanitary Veterinary and Food Safety Authority
 Slovakia Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
 Slovenia Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food
 Spain Spanish Agency for Food Safety and Nutrition (AESAN)
 Sweden Swedish National Food Agency

Observers

The following countries' national food safety authorities are observers of the EFSA Focal Point network:[6]

Country Food safety authority
 Albania National Food Authority
 Bosnia and Herzegovina Food Safety Agency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
 Kosovo Food and Veterinary Agency
 Montenegro Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
 North Macedonia Food and Veterinary Agency
 Serbia Ministry of Agriculture and Environmental Protection
  Switzerland Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) – Risk assessment division
 Turkey Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry

Journal

The scientific output of the European Food Safety Authority is published in the EFSA Journal, an open-access, online scientific journal. This concerns risk assessment in relation to food and feed and includes nutrition, animal health and welfare, plant health and plant protection.[7]

Criticism

The EFSA has been criticised for its alleged "overregulation".[8]

Conflicts of interests

The EFSA has been criticised, including by the European Court of Auditors in 2012,[9] for "frequent conflicts of interests",[10][11][12][13][14][15] some of them undeclared.[16][17] A number of undisclosed conflicts of interest involved the International Life Sciences Institute.[16]

According to Corporate Europe Observatory, in 2013, 58% of the experts of the agency were in situation of conflict of interests.[18] In 2017, they were still 46% in situation of conflict of interests.[18]

Controversy

EFSA has also been criticised by the NGO CHEM Trust for misrepresenting the results of their expert committee's report on bisphenol A (BPA) in January 2015. EFSA claimed in the abstract, press release and briefing that bisphenol A 'posed no risk' to health, when the expert report actually stated the risk was 'low' when considering aggregate exposure (beyond just food).[19] EFSA later modified the abstract to correct this error,[20] though the press release remains unchanged.[21] EFSA have argued that use of 'no health concern' in their press release and bisphenol A briefing is to ensure these materials are accessible, though this rationale is disputed by CHEM Trust.[22]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "How the European Union works" Archived 2006-06-20 at the Wayback Machine, booklet made by the European Commission
  2. 1 2 Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety
  3. ↑ Single Programming Document 2021–2023, Adopted 17 December 2020
  4. ↑ "Management Board members". EFSE. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
  5. ↑ "Focal points: EU food safety interfaces". EFSA website. European Food Safety Authority. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Focal Point members and observers". EFSA website. European Food Safety Authority. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  7. ↑ "EFSA Journal". EFSA. Retrieved 6 October 2014.
  8. ↑ Peterson, M.J.; White, Paul A. (June 2010). "Case Study: The EU-US Dispute over Regulation of Genetically Modified Organisms, Plants, Feeds, and Foods". International Dimensions of Ethics Education in Science and Engineering (9).
  9. ↑ European Court of Auditors, 2012, Management of conflict of interest in selected EU Agencies ; Special Report no 15 2012 Archived 2012-11-12 at the Wayback Machine ; ISBN 978-92-9237-876-9 ; doi:10.2865/21104, PDF, 106 pp
  10. ↑ "Food safety agency's reliability faces fresh criticism". EurActiv. 15 February 2012.
  11. ↑ "Unhappy meal. The European Food Safety Authority's independence problem", Corporate Europe Observatory
  12. ↑ Oppong, Marvin (15 November 2011). "Le gendarme des aliments trop laxiste - VoxEurop (Français)".
  13. ↑ Title:"Europe : le lobby OGM infiltré à la tête de la sécurité alimentaire" Archived 2013-06-17 at the Wayback Machine, Libération, 29 septembre 2010
  14. ↑ Massiot, Aude (September 15, 2017). "Glyphosate : l'autorité européenne de sécurité des aliments sous influence de Monsanto ?". Libération.fr.
  15. ↑ "Glyphosate : Quand l'UE base ses décisions sur un copié-collé de… Monsanto". 2017-09-15.
  16. 1 2 "Exposed: conflicts of interest among EFSA's experts on food additives" (PDF). corporateeurope.org. 15 June 2011. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 March 2013. Retrieved 2020-09-17.
  17. ↑ « L’EFSA perd un peu plus de crédibilité » Archived 2012-03-13 at the Wayback Machine, presseurop.eu, juin 2011
  18. 1 2 Stéphane Horel (2018). Lobbytomie : comment les lobbies empoisonnent nos vies et la démocratie [Lobbying: how lobbies poison our lives and democracy] (in French). La Découverte. p. 270. ISBN 9782707194121.
  19. ↑ CHEM Trust (21 January 2015). "Bisphenol A – new EFSA assessment cuts safe exposure level, calls for more research (updated)". CHEM Trust. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  20. ↑ CHEM Trust (2 April 2015). "EFSA corrects its risk assessment of bisphenol A to acknowledge that experts didn't say 'no health concern'". CHEM Trust. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  21. ↑ CHEM Trust (2 April 2015). "We write to EFSA: Why did you misrepresent the results of the Risk Assessment of Bisphenol A?". CHEM Trust. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
  22. ↑ CHEM Trust (22 April 2015). "EU Food Authority responds to letter on misleading communication on Bisphenol A risks, claims 'simplification' for 'accessibility'". CHEM Trust. Retrieved 23 April 2015.
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