European Food Information Council

The European Food Information Council (EUFIC) describes itself as

a non-profit organisation which provides science-based information on food safety & quality and health & nutrition to the media, health and nutrition professionals, educators and opinion leaders, in a way that consumers can understand. In response to the public's increasing need for credible, science-based information on the nutritional quality and safety of foods, EUFIC's mission is to enhance the public's understanding of such issues and to raise consumers' awareness of the active role they play in safe food handling and choosing a well-balanced and healthy diet...."

EUFIC works with the EU Platform for Action on Diet, Physical Activity & Health.

Location

The main offices for the European Food Information Council are located in Brussels, Belgium, but the organisation's network reaches across other European countries. The EUFIC is co-financed by the European Commission and the European food and drink industry. It is governed by a Board of Directors which is elected from member companies.

Funder controversies

Some of the companies that are listed as funders of EUFIC (see "Funding", below) have been involved in controversies which seemingly contradict EUFIC's aim (as expressed on one of its press releases) to enhance the public's understanding by providing "credible, science-based information on the nutritional quality and safety of foods".

For example, according to the Colombia Solidarity Campaign, Nestlé Colombia labelled powdered milk with false dates of production:

In November 2002, police ordered Nestlé Colombia to decommission 200 tons of imported powdered milk. The milk had come from Uruguay under the brand name Conaprole, but the sacks had been repackaged with labels stating they had come from a local Nestlé factory, and stamped with false production dates of 20th September and 6th October 2002. The real production dates were between August 2001 and February 2002... Senator Jorge Enrique Robledo charged Nestlé with using sub-standard, contaminated milk, “a serious attack on the health of our people, especially the children”.

Nestlé again came under scrutiny when, together with Coca-Cola, it produced and marketed a soft drink called Enviga which it claimed burned more calories than it provides and hence had the effect of "negative calories". Food Watchdog group CPSI (Center for Science in the Public Interest) said that "Enviga burns money, and over the long term is more likely to result in a negative bank balance than negative calories" and threatened to sue them if they continued to market the drink "with fraudulent calorie-burning and weight loss claims".

Pfizer, too, has been accused of illegal marketing. Former Pfizer marketing vice president Peter Rost MD launched a lawsuit against Pfizer accusing it of marketing the growth hormone Genotropin for unapproved purposes "such as combating aging in adults and treating short stature in children" in Indiana. A federal judge in Boston denied Pfizer’s motion to dismiss and allowed Rost to proceed with his allegations of false claims for pediatric uses (but not aging in adults). Although it is legal for doctors to prescribe drugs for off-label uses it is illegal for companies to market them for these purposes.

Pfizer is described by Corporate Watch as the "largest and richest pharmaceutical enterprise in the world". According to the Financial Times, "Pfizer has powered its way up the global ranking list to its unassailable position thanks mainly to its marketing prowess."

Scientific advisory board

According to EUFIC:

The primary role of the Scientific Advisory Board is to ensure that EUFIC's information and communication programmes are based on reviews of scientific evidence which have the support of the scientific community at large so that the information is representative, factually correct and truthful.

Members of the scientific advisory board as of March 2009 are:

• Renate Frenz, Past Honorary Chairman, European Federation of Association of Dieticians (EFAD), Germany, Vice Chairman of the Advisory Board.
• Joanna Koch, NGO Representative at the United Nations in Geneva, and Convenor - NGO Working Group on Nutrition, under the Committee on the Status of Women, Geneva, Switzerland.
• Onno Korver, Former Chief Nutrition Scientist, Unilever, The Netherlands.
• Milan Kovac, Permanent representative of the Slovak Republic to FAO and WFP, Roma, Italy
• Alan Reilly, Deputy Chief Executive, Food Safety Authority of Ireland.
• Michael Sjöström, Head of Unit of Preventive Nutrition, Department of Biosciences/Medical Nutrition, Karolinska Institutet, Sweden.
• Giorgio Poli, Dean of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Milan, Italy.
• France Bellisle, Service de Diabétologie, Hôtel Dieu, Paris, France.

Funding

According to EUFIC's website:

EUFIC is co-financed by the European Commission and the European food and drink industry. It is governed by a Board of Directors which is elected from member companies. Current EUFIC members are: Barilla, Cargill, Cereal Partners, Coca-Cola HBC, Coca-Cola, DSM Nutritional Products Europe Ltd., Ferrero, Groupe Danone, Kraft Foods, McCormick Foods, Masterfoods, McDonald's, Nestlé, Novozymes, PepsiCo, Pfizer Animal Health, Procter & Gamble, Südzucker, Unilever, and Yakult. ^[1]

Contact

Laura Smillie

European Food Information Council - EUFIC

Rue Guimard 19

1040 Brussels

Belgium

e-mail: laura.smillie@eufic.org

Affiliations

• EU Platform for Action on Diet, Physical Activity & Health
• European Snacks Association, member