EFSA welcomes exchange of views with GMO stakeholders

Info Session on Applications - GMO - Technical meeting with applicants

EFSA held a meeting with stakeholders in the field of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) to discuss scientific issues regarding the preparation, submission and risk assessment of GMO applications. The information session was attended by around 20 specialists from industry, research bodies, the European Commission and the European Union Reference Laboratory for GM Food and Feed.

Elisabeth Waigmann, who leads EFSA’s GMO Unit, and Karine Lheureux, head of the Applications Desk Unit, welcomed delegates and outlined the scope of the all-day event. The meeting consisted of a mixture of short presentations - both by EFSA and industry representatives - followed by longer discussion sessions to give all parties the opportunity to debate and clarify issues of importance.

Topics covered by EFSA scientists included a summary of current matters relating to GMO applications – such as the need for raw data in applications and the requirements of Implementing Regulation EU 503/2013. Assessment principles of stacked events and the protocol for carrying out 90-day feeding trials were also covered by staff from the Authority’s GMO Unit.

Industry representatives EuropaBio delivered two presentations on a wide range of procedural and scientific issues. These included the forthcoming EU regulation on GMO applications, the assessment of stacked GM events and the quality assurance of studies. Specific issues related to toxicology and allergenicity tests were also discussed.

EFSA also provided feedback on the results of a recent survey in which stakeholders were invited to share their views on the future services they would like to see developed by the Authority.

In closing the meeting, EFSA thanked delegates for contributing to a stimulating and fruitful discussion, adding that the insight gained from stakeholder feedback was both interesting and useful for the Authority’s ongoing work.