Acronym SAFEFOODERA
Category
Aquaculture
Title Food Safety - Forming a European platform for protecting consumers against health risks Programme FP6
Instrument (FP6)
Contact Type (FP7)
Strand (Interreg)
FP6 - Coordination Action
Theme (FP7)
Activity Area (FP6)
Regional Area (Interreg)
Action (COST)
Food Quality and Safety
Specific Programme (FP7)
NA
Funding source European Coordinator Oddur Mar Gunnarsson Coordinator email o.gunnarsson@nordicinnovation.net
Coordinator institution
NICe - Nordic Innovation Centre (Norway)
Institutions involved
DASTI - Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation (Denmark) ,
NA - Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Research Directorate (Spain) ,
NVWA - Dutch Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority (Netherlands) ,
FASFC - Federal Agency for the Safety of the Food Chain (Belgium) ,
BVL - Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (Germany) ,
TEKES - Finnish Funding Agency for Technology and Innovation (Finland) ,
FSA - Food Standards Agency (United Kingdom) ,
MRNT - French Ministry of Research and New Technologies (France) ,
RANNIS - Icelandic Centre for Research (Iceland) ,
RPF - Idryma Proothisis Erevnas (Cyprus) ,
IEP - Institute of Environmental Protection (Poland) ,
NA - Instytut Zywnosci I Zywienia (Poland) ,
ISS - Istituto Superiore di Sanità (Italy) ,
MIN LNV - Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (Netherlands) ,
NKTH - National Office for Research and Technology (Hungary) ,
NA - Nordic Council of Ministers (Norway) ,
FRCT - Regional Fund for Science and Technology of the Azores (Portugal) ,
NA - Republic of Slovenia; Ministry of Education, Science and Sport (Slovenia) ,
RCN - Research Council of Norway (Norway) ,
TUBITAK - Scientific and Technological Research Institution of Turkey (Turkey) ,
VINNOVA - Swedish Agency for Innovation Systems (Sweden) ,
Start year 2004 End year 2009 Funding (€) € 3,740,691 Website https://www.era-learn.eu/network-information/networks/safefoodera Summary Food safety is a key policy riority for Europe. Our food industry is economically important, but consumers are suspicious following recent incidences of contaminated food. Ongoing high-quality research is essential to ensure that mass-produced food is safe, and that people are properly informed about possible risks. The four-year ERA-NET project, SAFEFOODERA, brings together organisations managing the national food safety research programmes from 18 countries.
The project will establish a network of programme managers, look for opportunities for transnational research programmes to fill gaps in knowledge, and improve Europe-wide communication of new research and risks to stakeholders. safety first for European food “This will enable research programmes to cooperate across the borders, thereby safeguarding the safety and welfare of European citizens.”
Consumers, in particular, appreciate a government which can pre-empt a serious food scare by catching it early and taking preventative measures. Research to develop such measures and make them broadly applicable is likely to be a priority.
It is vital that when potential problems are found in one country – re-emerging diseases such as bird flu, for example, or high-risk substances like veterinary medicines detected in batches of food – the entire European Union is rapidly informed.
SAFEFOODERA is identifying a system to describe new and potential chemical and microbial risks as they emerge around Europe. The network will help disseminate results from national research programmes, through dialogue with consumer groups, industry and other stakeholders across Europe. It also hopes to establish common procedures for evaluating research projects, to improve the transferability of scientific evidence, and pave the way for transnational research programmes. In all, this collaboration between high-profile food safety authorities should reassure everyone in the food chain, from farmer to consumer, that every effort is being made to keep European food as safe as possible. Common themes Research programmes in many countries are working on how to trace products through the food chain, and new techniques are being tried out, such as the use of DNA sequences to detect meat species. The safety of new genetically modified foods is another common priority. Such research efforts are often embedded in environment or agriculture research
programmes and not well coordinated or communicated at European level. Researchers may be duplicating effort, and not learning from each other’s results because they do not know about them.
Some countries have developed specific expertise based on national experiences, such as the UK’s extensive research programme on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. SAFEFOODERA will make sure the rest of Europe knows who and where the experts are. The network is looking for opportunities to launch joint programmes to cover areas missing from national research programmes.
Keywords
Economy;
Human health;
Food safety;
Marine Region
25
Faroes Grounds (27.Vb)
13
Northern North Sea (27.IVa)
6
Central North Sea (27.IVb)
36
Iceland Grounds (27.Va)
62
Aegean Sea (GSA 22)
5
Southern North Sea (27.IVc)
6
Marine Region Map
