The Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) is one of the seven institutes of the Joint Research Centre (JRC), a Directorate-General of the European Commission. The task of JRC-IRMM is to provide confidence in the comparability of measurements.
JRC-IRMM develops and validates methods of analysis, produces reference materials, organises interlaboratory comparisons, and provides reference measurements. JRC-IRMM’s expertise ranges from measuring genes and complex protein families and analysis of food contaminants to the testing of environmental pollutants, the accurate isotopic measurements needed to describe fundamental physics constants and to nuclear physics measurements relevant for nuclear safety and security issues. JRC-IRMM also operates the Community Reference Laboratories for feed additives, heavy metals, mycotoxins and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, and chairs the board of experts for monitoring water in poultry.
The research programme of JRC-IRMM is focussed on areas of policy relevance, and serves many Directorates-General of the European Commission. All Commission departments can also request IRMM to carry out specifically targeted research projects outside its annual programme. JRC-IRMM performs tasks complementary to those of the Member States, especially where an independent approach at European level is needed. It works in close collaboration with national and international research organisations, metrology institutes and competent authorities, universities as well as with industry.
The JRC-IRMM was the coordinator of all the collaborative studies organised at European level and is involved in the development and validation of ruminant specific tests that are expected to solve problems related to detecting extremely small amounts of MBM in feed. It has been the coordinator of the DG SANCO and STRATFEED validation studies.
Expertise in feedsafety projects
FARIMAL (Be) – New methodology for the species determination of animal products in feeds: combination of micro-spectroscopy techniques and Real-Time PCR (http://www.cra.wallonie.be/research/themes/index.php?fiche=213 ) – project partner
FEEDSAFETY platform (CRA-W – IRMM – RIKILT) – Network gathering institutes working to the development and validation of analytical methods for the feed sectors (http://www.feedsafety.org/) – project coordinator
SAFEED-PAP (FP6) – Detection of presence of species-specific processed animal proteins in animal feed (https://safeedpap.feedsafety.org/) – project partner
SIMBAGFEED (FP5) – Screening and Identification Methods for official control of Banned Antibiotics and Growth promoters in Feedingstuffs (http://www.rikilt.wur.nl/NL/onderzoek/Projecten/EU+projecten/Output+SIMBAG+FEED/) – project partner
STRATFEED (FP5) – Strategies and methods to detect and quantify mammalian tissues in feedingstuffs (http://www.stratfeed.cra.wallonie.be ) – project partner
Project team
Contact
Dr. Ana Boix
JRC-IRMM
Retieseweg, 111
B-2440
Geel
BelgiumTel : +32 (0)14 57 12 27
Fax : +32 (0)14 57 17 87
Email : ana.boix-sanfeliu@ec.europa.euWeb site : http://www.irmm.jrc.be
Staff
Ana Boix, Jean Charoud-Got, Hubert Chassaigne, Hakan Emteborg, Thomas Linsinger, Bol Slowikowski, Christophe Von Holst