Call for expression of interest for membership of the Scientific Panels of the European Food Safety Authority (Parma, Italy)
Date: 2016-05-18
Institutions: European Food Safety Authority
Subjects: Emilia-Romagna, European Food Safety Authority, Italy, competition (EU), food additive, food safety, job vacancy, scientific profession








C_2016176EN.01000501.xml










18.5.2016   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 176/5





Call for expression of interest for membership of the Scientific Panels of the European Food Safety Authority (Parma, Italy)
(2016/C 176/06)






‘Panel on food additives and nutrient sources added to food’ (ANS)


and


‘Panel on food contact materials, enzymes, flavourings and processing aids’ (CEF)


Ref.: EFSA/E/2016/001





This call is addressed to scientists wishing to be considered for membership of either the Scientific Panel on food additives and nutrient sources added to food (ANS) or the Scientific Panel on food contact materials, enzymes, flavourings and processing aids (CEF) of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
The current members of the ANS and CEF Scientific Panels are serving a three-year term of office which is due to expire on 30 June 2017. The scientists who will be successful in the present call will be appointed as members of one of the above Panels for a term of three years starting on 1 July 2017.
Please note that due to possible forthcoming legislative changes the mandate of the renewed ANS and CEF Panels starting on 1 July 2017 may expire on 30 June 2018.

The European Food Safety Authority

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) is an integral part of the EU’s food safety system. The Authority’s mission is to contribute to the safety of the EU food and feed chain and a high level of protection of human life and health, mainly by:






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providing EU risk managers with independent, up-to-date and fit-for-purpose scientific advice on questions related to food and feed safety, animal health and welfare, plant health, nutrition, and environmental issues specific to the above,










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communicating to the public on its outputs and the information on which they are based,










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cooperating with Member States, institutional partners and other interested parties/stakeholders in the EU to promote coherent advice and increase trust in the EU food safety system,










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delivering uniform methodologies and collecting and analysing data to allow the identification, characterisation and monitoring of emerging risks that have a direct or indirect impact on food and feed safety.




EFSA brings together Europe’s best available experts in risk assessment in the field of food and feed safety, animal health and welfare, plant health and environment, who act in an independent capacity for an autonomous, self-governed organisation to provide the European Institutions and the Member States with scientific advice of the highest standard.
EFSA key priorities over the next years are:






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prioritise public and stakeholder engagement in the process of scientific assessment,










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widen its evidence base and optimise access to its data,










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build the EU’s scientific assessment capacity and knowledge community,










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prepare for future risk assessment challenges,










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create an environment and culture that reflects EFSA’s values: excellence in science, independence, openness, innovation and cooperation (1).




Find out more about EFSA, visit us at http://www.efsa.europa.eu/

The role of EFSA’s Scientific Panels and Scientific Committee

The Scientific Panels and Scientific Committee are responsible for providing the scientific opinions of the Authority and other advice as appropriate, each within their own spheres of competence as laid down in EFSA’s Founding Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 (2). They produce scientific opinions and advice for risk managers. This helps to provide a sound foundation for the formulation of European policies and legislation and this supports risk managers in taking decisions.
The Scientific Panels are normally composed of twenty-one (21) independent scientific experts. The Scientific Committee is composed of the Chairs of each Scientific Panel and six (6) other scientific experts.
As a general rule, members of the Scientific Panels and of the Scientific Committee are appointed for a three-year term of office that may be renewed twice.
In view of the fact that the term of office of the experts applying to the present call is likely to expire by 30 June 2018, the EFSA Management Board decided (3) to exceptionally derogate from the provision (4) making candidates ineligible to serve a fourth consecutive term in the same Scientific Panel. This derogation is applicable only to the present call. Therefore, Panel members who have completed already three consecutive terms of office in the ANS or CEF Scientific Panels may apply for membership of the same Panel again.
Members are expected to attend and contribute actively to the meetings of the Scientific Panels where opinions, statements or guidance documents are adopted.
These scientific opinions, statements and guidance documents are published in the EFSA Journal, a monthly publication which is indexed in bibliographic databases (e.g. CAB Abstracts, Food Science and Technology Abstracts, ISI Web of Knowledge) relevant to EFSA’s work.

Panel on Food Additives and Nutrient Sources added to food (ANS)

The ANS Panel provides scientific advice for risk managers on substances intentionally added to food or naturally present in food. The ANS Panel addresses questions related to safety in the use of:






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food additives,










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nutrient sources (e.g. sources of vitamins and minerals),










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other substances intentionally added to food (e.g. plants and herbal extracts), but excluding flavourings and enzymes.




The majority of the Panel’s work is and will in the coming years be the re-evaluation programme of food additives for substances that were permitted for use before 2009. To this end EFSA has and is gathering scientific data by public calls for data and literature search. In particular, the Panel is expected to focus on food additives other than colours and sweeteners (e.g. preservatives and emulsifiers, stabilisers and gelling agents). In addition, the Panel will evaluate new applications for authorisation (i.e. new food additives and nutrient sources) or changes in the existing authorisations (e.g. extension of use for these substances). These evaluation procedures are based on applications submitted by industry to the European Commission in the area of food additives and nutrient sources. The Panel might also develop scientific guidance documents to clarify the evaluation approach and to assist the industry for preparing new applications.
Further information can be found in the ANS section on the EFSA website: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/panels/ans.htm
Against this background, the present call is especially directed at scientists who have expertise in risk assessment of chemical substances and safety assessment of food additives, nutrient sources or substances of botanical origin in food.
More specifically, the Panel has a need for expertise in the following areas:






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toxicology, in the following areas: sub-chronic and chronic toxicity, genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, developmental and reproductive toxicity, allergenicity and immunotoxicity,










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toxicity testing in experimental animals and alternative toxicity tests (e.g. in vitro assays),










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toxicokinetics and metabolism, meaning absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of substances,










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chemistry (organic, inorganic, analytical and synthetic chemistry), especially for the chemical identification and specification of chemical substances,










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exposure assessment and consumption surveys,










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food technology (manufacturing processes and use of food additives),










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nutrition (human incl. infants),










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epidemiology.





Panel on Food Contact Materials, Flavourings, Enzymes and Processing Aids (CEF)

The CEF Panel provides scientific advice for risk managers on substances intentionally added to food (flavourings and enzymes) and materials in contact with food. The CEF Panel addresses questions related to the safety in the use of:






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materials in contact with food (substances used to manufacture food packaging, active and intelligent packaging and other food contact materials) and processes to recycle plastics intended for food contact,










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food enzymes,










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flavouring substances,










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processes and processing aids.




The Panel carries out the evaluation procedures following applications submitted by industry to the European Commission or Member States in the areas of food contact materials (as well as recycling processes), flavourings, processes and processing aids.
A significant increase in workload is anticipated in the area of food enzymes. In the coming years one of the main tasks will be the evaluation of food enzymes including those from genetically-modified microorganisms, with a view to establish an EU list. In total, 300 applications have been received for safety evaluation by the CEF Panel. Also work on monomers and additives to be used in plastic food contact materials is expected to increase and the evaluation of new flavouring substances not on the EU Register will continue. The Panel might also develop scientific guidance documents to clarify the evaluation approach and to assist the industry for preparing new applications
Further information can be found in the CEF section on the EFSA website: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/panels/cef.htm
Against this background, the present call is especially directed at scientists who have expertise in the risk assessment of chemical substances, with special emphasis on food enzymes, flavouring substances, chemicals used in the production of plastic or other food contact materials.
More specifically, the Panel has a need for expertise in the following areas:






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toxicology, in the following areas: sub-chronic and chronic toxicity, genotoxicity, carcinogenicity, developmental and reproductive toxicity, allergenicity and immunotoxicity,










—


toxicity testing in experimental animals and alternative toxicity tests (e.g. in vitro assays),










—


toxicokinetics and metabolism, meaning absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion (ADME) of substances,










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chemistry (organic, analytical and synthetic chemistry), especially for the chemical identification and specification of chemical substances and for migration testing of food contact materials,










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exposure assessment and consumption surveys,










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food technology (manufacturing processes and use of processing aids),










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food microbiology including enzyme biotechnology using genetically-modified microorganisms and efficacy evaluation of chemicals used in the decontamination of carcasses,










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environmental risk assessment of chemicals (e.g. used in the decontamination of carcasses),










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epidemiology.





The role of the members of EFSA’s Scientific Panels

Members of the Scientific Panels are scientists specialised in the remit of a Scientific Panel, selected and appointed in their personal capacity in accordance with EFSA’s Founding Regulation and EFSA’s rules.
Members of the Scientific Panels will be asked to perform the following tasks:






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contributing to the preparation, the discussion and the adoption of scientific opinions, guidance documents and statements of the Scientific Panel and the activities of their working groups,










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contributing to scientific advice on matters falling within the remit of the Scientific Panel,










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provision of advice on conducting and organising the scientific activities of the Scientific Panel.




Members of the Scientific Panels may be chosen as Chair, vice-chairs or rapporteurs of the Scientific Panels and of their working groups.





For more information on the establishment and operations of Scientific Panels and their Working Groups, please refer to the Decision of the Management Board of the European Food Safety Authority concerning the establishment and operations of the Scientific Committee, Scientific Panels and of their Working Groups.
http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/efsa_rep/blobserver_assets/paneloperation.pdf





General conditions

Members of a Scientific Panel will be requested to attend two- to three-day meetings usually held in Parma, Italy. These meetings will take place around six times per year.
In addition, Members of Scientific Panels are expected to participate in some working groups that are established by the Scientific Panels.
Attendance at the meetings of the Scientific Panels or of the working groups requires preparatory work, including prior reading and drafting of documents. Meetings and most documents are in English.
In order to complement their experience, members will be offered different training modules as well as follow-up information tutorials, on EFSA risk assessment methodologies and guidance documents. Members are strongly recommended to attend these sessions.
As part of EFSA’s commitment to openness and transparency, some plenary meetings of the Scientific Panels may be open to observers.
Applicants are required to express their commitment that, if appointed, they will actively participate in the activities of the Scientific Panels.
EFSA will, in accordance with its financial rules, bear the travel costs, daily and accommodation allowance of the members. A special indemnity will be paid for each full day of meeting attendance (5).

Selection Procedure

Applicants are required to indicate in the application form the Scientific Panel they wish to apply for, which best matches their areas of expertise.
Applicants may indicate both Panels (in order of preference) should their areas of expertise cover the remit of both Panels.
Applicants must satisfy the following requirements on the closing date for submission of the application:
A.   Eligibility criteria

Each application will be screened against the following eligibility requirements:






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citizenship of a Member State of the European Union (EU), or of a country of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) or of EU Candidate countries. Experts from third countries may also apply, and will be considered for membership of the Scientific Panels, if the required level of expertise cannot be found among nationals of EU, EFTA or EU Candidate countries,










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thorough knowledge of the English language (6),










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commitment to attend meetings and to actively contribute to the work of the Scientific Panels and their Working Groups,










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a level of education which corresponds to completed university studies of at least four (4) years attested by a diploma in one of the following fields: agriculture, biochemistry, bioinformatics, biology, biometrics, biotechnology, chemistry, dietary exposure, environmental sciences, epidemiology, food science, food technology, genetics, health and food safety, human medicine, life sciences, mathematics, microbiology, molecular biology, natural sciences, nutrition, pharmacy, public health, statistics, toxicology, veterinary medicine or related areas (7),










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at least ten (10) years of professional experience relevant to the remit of the Panel(s) gained after obtaining the requested diploma.




B.   Selection criteria

Applications meeting the eligibility requirements will be admitted to a comparative evaluation carried out by EFSA on the basis of the selection criteria indicated below.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to fill in the application form in all sections with the necessary information and evidence, as this will form the basis for their evaluation.
The evaluation of all applications considered eligible will be carried out by means of a scoring range from zero (0) through to five (5) for each of the selection criteria indicated below. In order to reflect the relative importance of the different selection criteria, a weighting coefficient will be attributed. Each application will obtain a score ranging between zero (0) and one hundred (100).
Each eligible application will be evaluated against the following selection criteria:






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experience in carrying out scientific risk assessment and/or providing scientific advice in fields related to food safety in the areas of competence and expertise of the Scientific Panel(s) preferred (weighting coefficient: 6, maximum 30 points out of 100),










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proven scientific excellence in one or several fields linked to the area covered by the Scientific Panel(s) preferred (weighting coefficient: 5, maximum 25 points out of 100),










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experience in peer reviewing scientific work and publications, in fields related to the area covered by the Scientific Panel(s) preferred (weighting coefficient: 3, maximum 15 points out of 100),










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experience in analysing complex information and dossiers, often from a wide range of scientific disciplines and sources and to prepare draft scientific opinions and reports (weighting coefficient: 2, maximum 10 points out of 100),










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experience in project management related to scientific matters (weighting coefficient: 2, maximum 10 points out of 100),










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experience in communication, based on teaching experience, public presentations, active participation in meetings (weighting coefficient: 2, maximum 10 points out of 100).




Applicants are only further considered for membership if their application obtains a score that is above a cut-off score of 66 points (out of 100).
EFSA reserves the right to consult third parties on the professional experience of applicants in the context of their application.





For more information regarding the selection of Members of the Scientific Panels please refer to the Decision of the Executive Director concerning the selection of members of the Scientific Committee the Scientific Panels, and the selection of external experts to assist EFSA with its scientific work.

http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/corporate_publications/files/expertselection.pdf




C.   Declaration of Interest

All eligible applicants having scored above the threshold will be asked to submit the completed Annual Declaration of Interests, which will be screened by EFSA in accordance with the Policy on Independence and Scientific Decision-Making Processes of the European Food Safety Authority and with its rules on Declarations of Interest (8), in force at the time when the screening takes place. The extent of any potential conflict of interest will be taken into account in deciding whether a candidate will be further considered for membership.
Please note that failure to submit the completed Annual Declaration of Interests, will result in the rejection of the candidate and the application will not be processed further. Applicants may be contacted for further clarification on their Annual Declaration of Interests.

Reserve list and Appointment

Scientists who are found to meet the requirements for membership (i.e. eligible applicants having scored above the threshold and with an Annual Declaration of Interests compatible with EFSA’s Independence policy and rules) may be appointed as members of the ANS or CEF Scientific Panels, on the basis of a decision by the EFSA Management Board following a proposal by the EFSA Executive Director. The EFSA proposal on appointment will consider factors such as the expertise required for the relevant Scientific Panel as specified in the present call for expressions of interest — this relates in particular to the candidate’s specific scientific expertise and experience and the overall mix of competences available to the Scientific Panel to cover its foreseen needs — as well as nationality and gender balance.
Before appointment, EFSA reserves the right to check the application of candidates considered for membership against documents and certificates in order to confirm the accuracy and eligibility of the application.
Scientists who are found to meet the requirements for membership, but who are not selected for membership in a Scientific Panel, will be included in the reserve list. Scientists should note that inclusion on the reserve list does not guarantee appointment as a member in a Scientific Panel.
Scientists placed on the reserve list resulting from this call may with their prior consent be appointed as members of a Scientific Panel and/or the Scientific Committee even if they did not specifically apply for membership of that Scientific Panel and/or the Scientific Committee.

Independence and declarations of commitment and interest

The members of the Scientific Panels are appointed in a personal capacity. Applicants are required to include a declaration that they will undertake to act independently of any outside influence as well as a declaration of interests which may be deemed to be prejudicial to their independence (see Declaration of Interest Section). Applicants are responsible for the content of the declaration submitted which will be assessed by EFSA according to the Decision of the Executive Director on Declarations of Interest (9) implementing EFSA’s Policy on Independence and Scientific Decision-Making Processes.
See below two examples of what is considered a Conflict of Interest. These are by no means exhaustive and are only representatives of the situations outlined there:






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The Membership of Scientific Panels is not allowed for candidates who, at the moment of submitting their DoI, are employed by any legal or natural person carrying out any of the activities on which EFSA’s scientific outputs impact directly or indirectly, such as food production, processing and distribution, agriculture or animal husbandry. This includes any form of regular occupation or business, part-time or full-time, paid or unpaid, including self-employment (e.g. consultancy) to the benefit of the persons above.










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The Membership of Scientific Panels is not allowed for candidates who, at the moment of submitting their DoI, are involved in ad hoc or occasional consultancy to bodies such as a European Association of producers of products that the relevant Panel assesses, regarding a range of topics so broad that this activity would regularly be in conflict with items on the agenda of the relevant Scientific Panel.





Equal opportunities

EFSA takes great care to apply the principles of non-discrimination in its procedures.

Submission of applications

Applications must be submitted no later than 30 June 2016 at midnight (Local time, GMT +1).
Applicants are requested to submit their application online available on EFSA web site: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/
Applications will be deemed admissible only if a duly completed online application form is submitted within the deadline. No other forms of application will be accepted.
Applicants are kindly invited to fill in their application form in English in order to facilitate the selection procedure.
All applicants will be informed by e-mail about the outcome of the selection process.
Applicants are strongly advised not to wait until the last few days before the deadline since heavy internet traffic or problems with internet connection could lead to not being able to submit the application on time.
The personal information EFSA requests from applicants will be processed in line with Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the EU institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data (10).
The purpose of the data processing is to manage applications for membership of the EFSA Scientific Panels.
All questions related to this call shall be addressed to: call.experts@efsa.europa.eu
Candidates may bring an action against any decision affecting their legal situation at the conditions set out in Article 263 of the Treaty of the Functioning of the European Union. This must be done within two months of the receipt or notification of the contested decision. The action must be brought against EFSA before the General Court of the European Union:





General Court of the European Union




Rue du Fort Niedergrünewald




2925 Luxembourg




LUXEMBOURG










Tel.


+352 4303-1




Fax


+352 4303-2100




E-mail:


GeneralCourt.Registry@curia.europa.eu




Internet:


www.curia.europa.eu








As an alternative, candidates may bring a complaint about alleged maladministration in the institutions and bodies of the European Union to the attention of the European Ombudsman. Amongst other requirements, complaint must be made within two years of the date upon which the facts on which the complaint is based became known. Additionally, complainants must have already contacted EFSA regarding this complaint before contacting the European Ombudsman.





The European Ombudsman




1 Avenue du President Robert Schuman




CS 30403




67001 Strasbourg Cedex




FRANCE










Tel.


+33 388172313




Fax


+33 388179062




Internet:


www.ombudsman.europa.eu










NOTE



In the event of inconsistency or discrepancy between the English version and any of the other linguistic versions of this publication, the English language version shall prevail.



(1)  EFSA Strategy 2020 Trusted science for safe food: (http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/corporate/pub/strategy2020)

(2)  Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 28 January 2002 laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority and laying down procedures in matters of food safety (OJ L 31, 1.2.2002, p. 1).

(3)  The EFSA Management Board decision to exceptionally derogate to the abovementioned rules was taken on 16 March 2016. The decision of the Management Board is recorded in the minutes of the 68th meeting: (http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/events/event/160316a).

(4)  Article 1(3) and 1(4) of the Decision of the Management Board of the European Food Safety Authority concerning the establishment and operations of the Scientific Committee, Scientific Panels and their Working Groups.

(5)  For more information refer to: http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/Experts_compensation_guide.pdf

(6)  ‘Thorough knowledge’ shall be intended as corresponding to level B2 or higher (i.e. levels C1 and C2) as specified in the Council of Europe reference document for the European Language Portfolio (Common European Framework of Reference: Learning, Teaching and Assessment). For more information please refer to: https://www.coe.int/t/dg4/linguistic/Source/Framework_EN.pdf

(7)  Only qualifications issued by EU Member State authorities and qualifications recognised as equivalent by the relevant EU Member State authorities will be accepted. In instances where diplomas are obtained from a non-EU Member State, EFSA may request the candidate to provide a relevant document of comparability issued by a recognised authority.

(8)  For more information see EFSA’s website at http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/efsa_rep/blobserver_assets/independencepolicy.pdf and http://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/howwework/doi

(9)  EFSA/LRA/DEC/02/2014 – Decision of the Executive Director of the European Food Safety Authority on Declarations of Interest (http://www.efsa.europa.eu/sites/default/files/corporate_publications/files/independencerules2014.pdf).

(10)  OJ L 8, 12.1.2001, p. 1.