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European Union Reference Laboratory for Genetically Modified Food and Feed (EURL GMFF)

ENGL

The European Network of GMO Laboratories

The European Network of GMO Laboratories (ENGL) is a consortium of official enforcement laboratories designated by the EU Member States plus Norway, Switzerland and Turkey.

The primary purpose of the ENGL is to assist the EURL GMFF in its tasks laid down in Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 and to help solving the challenges of detection, identification and quantification of GMOs.

 

This objective is achieved through various activities:

  • Organisation of plenary meetings for the exchange of experience;
  • Preparation of guidance documents on topics of interest to the enforcement laboratories;
  • Co-operative research, exchange of scientists, training;
  • Technology transfer between ENGL members;
  • Exchange of scientific literature.
The European Union Reference Laboratory for GM Food & Feed

The network was inaugurated in Brussels on December 4th 2002 and is governed by the ENGL Consortium Agreement (PDF). The EURL GMFF chairs the ENGL and provides its secretariat.

Members

As stated in Article 2.1 of the ENGL Consortium Agreement (PDF):

"New Parties designated by National Competent Authorities operating under one of the Community Acts or under corresponding equivalent Regulations and Directives of EEA, EFTA member states and Candidate Countries and Potential Candidate Countries related to Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), may join the ENGL."

List of ENGL members
English
(609 kB - PDF)
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ENGL CIRCABC

Associated laboratories

As stated by Article 9.3 of the ENGL Consortium Agreement (PDF):

"The Contracting Party may share all information distributed within ENGL with other GMO laboratories of their countries that have similar obligations as those stipulated in the current Agreement but that are not or cannot be nominated as a formal ENGL Member."

List of ENGL Associated Laboratories
English
(229 kB - PDF)
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Publications

Guidance on the selection and use of DNA extraction methods, 2024
English
(3,257 kB - PDF)
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Detection of food and feed plant products obtained by targeted mutagenesis and cisgenesis, 2023
English
(1,436 kB - PDF)
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Guidance document on multiplex real-time PCR methods, 2021
English
(1,683 kB - PDF)
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ENGL - Report on detection of food and feed plant products obtained by new mutagenesis techniques, 2019
English
(673 kB - PDF)
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Overview and recommendations for the application of digital PCR, 2019
English
(2,589 kB - PDF)
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Recommendation for the unit of measurement and the measuring system to report traceable and comparable results expressing GM content in accordance with EU legislation, 2017
English
(1,502 kB - PDF)
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Detection, Interpretation and Reporting on the presence of authorised and unauthorised genetically modified materials, 2017
English
(1,586 kB - PDF)
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Verification of analytical methods for GMO testing when implementing interlaboratory validated methods, 2017
English
(1,631 kB - PDF)
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European Network of GMO Laboratories Working Group “Seed Testing” (WG-ST) Working Group Report, 2015
English
(1,904 kB - PDF)
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Guidelines for sample preparation procedures in GMO analysis, 2014
English
(1,229 kB - PDF)
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Working Group for identification of stacked GM events (WG-IGSE) Working Group Report, 2014
English
(842 kB - PDF)
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Overview on the detection, interpretation and reporting on the presence of unauthorised genetically modified materials, 2011
English
(2,374 kB - PDF)
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Working groups

Title Status Downloads
Detection of genetically modified microorganisms in food and feed Active Mandate
Working group on Method Performance Requirements (WG-MPR) Active Mandate
Working group on DNA extraction (WG-DNAex) Active Mandate
Working Group on good practice/quality of DNA sequencing data (WG-seq) Active Mandate
Working Group on multiplex PCR Methods (WG-mpPCR) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on update of methods (WG-UpMeth) Active Mandate
Working group on digital PCR (WG-dPCR) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on unit of measurement (WG-UoM) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on Seed Testing (WG-ST) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on Detection, Interpretation and Reporting on the presence of authorised and unauthorised genetically modified materials (WG-DIR) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on Sample Preparation Procedure (WG-SPP) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on identification of stacked GM events (WG-IGSE) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report
Working group on “Method Verification” (WG-MV) Concluded Final report - Version 2
Working group on “unauthorised GMOs” (WG-UGM) Concluded Mandate  -  Final report

Meetings

Since its establishment in 2002, the European Network of GMO Laboratories (ENGL) has normally held two plenary meetings and two meetings of its Steering Committee each year. More recently, the two plenary meetings are substituted by an Annual Meeting. Until 2013 the reports of the ENGL meetings were not published but made available to ENGL members only. Since June 2013, however, they are made available via this ENGL site.

Title Date Place Downloads
34th Plenary 27/09/2023 Seville, Spain Meeting report
45th Steering Committee 20/06/2023 Online meeting Meeting report
44th Steering Committee 09/03/2023 Online meeting Meeting report
33nd Plenary 30/09/2022 VC meeting Meeting report
43rd Steering Committee 30/08/2022 VC meeting Meeting report
42nd Steering Committee 24/02/2022 VC meeting Meeting report
32nd Plenary 19/11/2021 VC meeting Meeting report
41th Steering Committee 10/06/2021 VC meeting Meeting report
40th Steering Committee 10/03/2021 VC meeting Meeting report
31st Plenary 30/9/2020 VC meeting Meeting report

Annex
39th Steering Committee 23/06/2020 VC meeting Meeting report
38th Steering Committee 18-19/02/2020 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
30th Plenary 1-2/10/2019 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
37th Steering Committee 18-19/06/2019 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
36th Steering Committee 19-20/02/2019 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
29th Plenary 2-4/10/2018 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
35th Steering Committee 12-13/06/2018 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
34th Steering Committee 20-21/02/2018 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
28th Plenary 20-21/09/2017 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
33rd Steering Committee 20-21/06/2017 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
27th Plenary 6-7/04/2017 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
32nd Steering Committee 15-16/02/2017 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
26th Plenary 21-22/09/2016 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
31st Steering Committee 21-22/06/2016 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
25th Plenary 13-14/04/2016 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
30th Steering Committee 3-4/02/2016 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
24th Plenary 22-23/09/2015 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
29th Steering Committee 24-25/06/2015 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
23rd Plenary 15-16/04/2015 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
28th Steering Committee 10-11/02/2015 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
22nd Plenary 01-02/12/2014 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
27th Steering Committee 15-16/09/2014 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
21st Plenary 04-05/06/2014 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
26th Steering Committee 25-26/03/2014 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
20th Plenary 04-05/12/2013 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
25th Steering Committee 10-11/09/2013 Ispra, Italy Meeting report
19th Plenary 19-20/06/2013 Ispra, Italy Meeting report