Scientific cooperation key to food safety - Commissioner Byrne
Collaboration, cooperation and trust are the three keys to ensuring that all scientific research into food safety works under the new European food authority, said David Byrne, Commissioner for Consumer protection and food safety in his opening address to the interim scientific advisory forum on 7 May. 'It is high time we started to pool scientific and technical information to avoid needless duplication of effort and set up a integrated scientific network between European and national authorities,' he said. To address this issue, the food authority's advisory forum will get all of the top national scientists 'around one table'. The opening of the interim scientific advisory forum is the forerunner of the fully-fledged advisory forum that will operate as one of the four elements of the new agency, The other three will be the scientific panels, the management board and the executive director and his/her staff. The agency will cover all scientific matters which relate either directly or indirectly to food safety. The range will include assessing the safety of animal feeds, pesticides and GMOs (genetically modified organisms). 'I would like to stress that our commitment to addressing food safety matters from farm to fork. Let us be clear, scientific risk assessments must not be piece meal,' said the Commissioner.