EFSA / communication and common ground key to working together
A team from the FAO Food Safety and Quality Unit together with representatives from the Codex Secretariat and the FAO Nutrition Department travelled to Parma, Italy today to meet with the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA). The meeting was an opportunity to find common ground and share insights on a range of issues including scientific opinions, risk communication and possibilities for cooperation on major campaigns such as World Food Safety Day and the International Year of Plant Health.
Bernhard Url, Executive Director of EFSA opened the session welcoming the collaboration between EFSA and FAO in these areas.
Markus Lipp, Head of the FAO Food Safety and Quality Unit said: “I believe it's absolutely critical to have these communications or conversations” establishing personal contact and building the relationships that make it easy to collaborate.
FAO and EFSA meeting an opportunity to find common ground
“There's an impetus to talk and the visit allowed for an extremely positive exchange of views”, said Codex Secretary Tom Heilandt. It's good to hear what is happening in big agencies and to understand the EFSA approach because there are issues that it is not possible for one agency to face alone.
Marta Hugas, Chief Scientist, EFSA said how important it was for EFSA to be aligned with FAO and to try to address issues in a global way. “I hope we will keep working together for the public good, which is something that we are all committed to”, she said.
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