Commission Implementing Decision of 24 July 2014 establishing the work programme of the Commission for the year 2015 on financial contribution to the European Union reference laboratories

COMMISSION IMPLEMENTING DECISION

of 24 July 2014

establishing the work programme of the Commission  for the year 2014 on financial contribution to the European Union reference laboratories

2014/C 244/06

Article 1

The work programme

The annual work programme for the implementation of Union co-funded programmes of the European reference laboratories for 2015 as set out in the Annex is adopted.

The annual work programme constitutes a financing decision within the meaning of Article 84 of the Financial Regulation for actions funded from appropriations of  2014.

Article 2

Union contribution

The maximum contribution of the programme 2014 being implemented by the beneficiaries in 2015 is set at EUR 15 500 000 , and shall be financed from the following line of the 2014 general budget of the European Union: 17.0403.

Article 3

Grants

Grants may be awarded without a call for proposals to the bodies identified in the Annex, in accordance with the conditions specified therein.

ANNEX

concerning the  work programme of the Commission for 2014 and the financial contribution to the European Union reference laboratories

EU Reference Laboratories — Commission Work Programme for 2014

1.1.   Introduction

On the basis of the objectives given in Regulation (EU) No 652/2014 this work programme contains the actions to be financed and the budget breakdown  ————— for grants implemented under direct management and awarded to the European reference laboratories (EU-RLs) as the Union financial contribution to the implementation of functions and duties in the field of food and feed safety and animal health, animal welfare and plant health as laid down in Article 32 of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004.

EU co-finances the EU-RLs with the aim to ensure uniform high quality testing within the EU to support Commission's activities in relation to risk management (and to risk assessment). EU-RLs are in general embedded in (national) public institutions with long-standing high level expertise like national reference laboratories (NRLs) or regional reference laboratories of the World Organisation for Animal Health. They are designated by the Commission in accordance with sectoral legislation. Annex VII to Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 provides a list of the 44 EU-RLs.

The Commission works in close collaboration with the EU-RLs, which, together with the NRLs, play an essential role on scientific and technical support for the establishment of uniform practices of official feed and food controls as required by Regulation (EC) No 882/2004.

The implementation of this work programme will be subject to prior approval by the Commission of the EU-RL work programmes which are to be in conformity with the objectives and priorities laid down in the present work programme. Once approved, the EU-RLs are to implement their work programmes and provide the Commission with a report on such implementation.

1.2.   Legal basis

• —Article 32(7) of Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on official controls performed to ensure the verification of compliance with feed and food law, animal health and animal welfare rules (OJ L 165, 30.4.2004, p. 1);

• —Article 36(1) of Regulation (EU) No 652/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 May 2014 laying down provisions for the management of expenditure relating to the food chain, animal health and animal welfare, and relating to plant health and plant reproductive material (OJ L 189, 27.6.2014, p. 1).

1.3.   Budget line

• —17.0403

1.4.   Objectives — expected results — measures

(a) General objective

• —to contribute to a high level of health for humans, animals and plants, ensuring a high level of protection for consumers and the environment, while favouring competitiveness and creation of jobs.

(b) Specific objectives

• —to contribute to a high level of safety of food/feed and food/feed production and a higher animal health status;

• —to contribute to a timely detection and eradication of pests;

• —to improve effectiveness, efficiency and reliability of official controls.

(c) Operational objectives, indicators and expected results

(d) Measures and activities for the implementation of the operational objectives

Operational objective 1: To ensure the development and use of high quality analytical methods across the EU-RL network

• —ensuring dissemination of analytical and reference methods from EU-RLs to NRLs;

• —monitoring of publication by EU-RLs of new developed methods and corresponding validation studies;

• —coordination of EU-RL activities on practical arrangements for the application of new analytical methods;

• —EU-RLs, NRLs and Member States coordination for the preparation of the 2016 work programmes regarding new or improved methods, and/or dissemination information means on methods and reference materials;

• —planning of trainings, meetings and workshops organised by the EU-RLs for the harmonization of diagnostic techniques and of methods of analysis;

• —initiation of EU-RLs collaboration with laboratories in third countries.

Operational objective 2: To maintain appropriate level of proficiency testing ensuring efficiency of control analysis methods

• —ensuring planning and initiation of comparative testing by EU-RLs in accordance with internationally accepted protocols;

• —address underperforming related issues within the EU-RL network;

• —coordination of EU-RLs, NRLs and the Member States for the planning of performance testing in the work programmes.

Operational objective 3: To ensure the availability of scientific and technical assistance provided by the EU-RLs

• —queries to EU-RLs for policy making and enforcement;

• —initiation of EU-RLs collaboration with EFSA and international organisations;

• —organisation of meetings for scientific and technical assistance from the EU-RLs;

• —guidance initiation regarding analytical methods;

• —networking activities for appropriate assistance by the EU-RLs.

Operational objective 4: To ensure a sound and efficient management of EU-RL funding cycle

• —collection, verification and validation of EU-RL work programmes;

• —control and verification of financial expenditure;

• —communication with EU-RLs for the execution of their work programmes;

• —evaluation of the EU-RL annual technical and financial report;

• —support to the EU-RLs for the preparation of their annual work programmes;

• —evaluation of the EU-RL reported performance indicator ex-ante and ex-post.

1.5.   Priorities

Risk containment and enforcement needs in the areas covered by Regulation (EC) No 882/2004 evolve constantly. In recent years, new challenges have emerged resulting from the increased trade in animals, food and feed and animal substances used for their production, and from progress in science and technology and as a consequence in diagnostic techniques.

A coordinated approach is needed to ensure:

• —protection against the re-emergence of new/greater risks;

• —prevention and early detection of diseases and threats through food and feed;

• —effective implementation of enforcement and official controls.

EU-RLs, NRLs and competent authorities in the Member States form a network with a very important role both in the case of emergencies and in times of ‘business as usual’. The maintenance of the robustness of the network and its role will be a constant priority for the Commission's work programmes,  not only for the year 2014, but also in the future.

2015 will be the first year when the provisions of Regulation (EU) No 652/2014 will apply with regard to the management of expenditure of EU-RLs and therefore, it will be a transitional year. The priorities will follow a common logic over the operational objectives presented above, and will be developed in detail together with EU-RLs in their work programmes. In general terms, focus will be on:

• —the development of certified reference material and standardised and validated methods for measurement and identification of hazards (chemicals, contaminants, pesticides, pathogens), for the presence of unauthorised GMOs in food and feed, and the detection of unauthorised substances or the unauthorised use of authorised substances;

• —the analysis of substances and authorised GMOs to enable the verification of compliance with the food and feed and animal health legislation;

• —the use and communication of information on the adequate analytical methods;

• —the development of sound analytical capability to detect fraudulent practices (testing for DNA, pesticides, additives).

While core activities and priorities laid down in this work programme will be covered in collaboration with the EU-RLs when establishing their work programmes, a room for manoeuvre is necessary for activities resulting from non-predictable factors (e.g. factors related to the re-emergence of priority diseases, the potential introduction of new diseases, the increasing complexity of supply chains).

1.6.   Description of the activities to be funded

[^E0001]: (¹)Council Directive 84/500/EEC of 15 October 1984 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to ceramic articles intended to come into contact with foodstuffs (OJ L 277, 20.10.1984, p. 12).

[^E0002]: (²)Commission Regulation (EU) No 10/2011 of 14 January 2011 on plastic materials and articles intended to come into contact with food (OJ L 12, 15.1.2011, p. 1).

1.7.   Essential criteria

1. Eligibility criteria

• —Status of a European Union reference laboratory in accordance with Regulation (EC) No 882/2004, excluding EU-RLs within the Joint Research Centre.

2. Exclusion criteria

The applicants are not in any of the situations of exclusion listed in Articles 106 and 107 of the Financial Regulation.

3. Award criteria

• —Conformity with objectives and priorities of the present Commission’s work programme for the year 2014.

1.8.   Implementation

The work programme will be implemented directly by the Commission.

1.9.   Indicative timetable and indicative amount of the grants awarded without a call for proposals

January 2015.

1.10.   Maximum possible rate of co-financing of the total costs

100 %