Letter from EOS and CEO: Continued ILSI activities of EFSA panel members

Earth Open Source and Corporate Europe Observatory have written to EFSA's executive director about undeclared current activities with ILSI by an EFSA panel member. EFSA has so far not acted on this case, which sheds doubts on the implementation of EFSA's new independence rules. Not declaring such activities was in contradiction to the former rules, too.

EFSA responded by the end of August 2012 to this letter, saying that Mr Franz' activities in an ILSI scientific commitee for a conference on food packaging, while he is still on the EFSA food packaging panel, are, according to the implementing rules, "compatible with Mr Franz' mandate in EFSA". EFSA is not taking action, even though Mr Franz did not declare this ILSI activity until our letter was sent to EFSA. Only then, his declaration of interest was finally updated.