"For the tasks mentioned in the Annex of Regulation (EC) No 1829/2003 and in particular, for testing and validation of detection methods, the EURL GMFF is assisted by National Reference Laboratories (NRLs) which are members of the ENGL. The list of the designated NRLs is provided in Annex II of Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) No 120/2014.

The EURL GMFF verifies if the method and the data on the method testing provided by the applicant meet the minimum acceptance criteria as defined in the guidance document: "Definition of Minimum Performance Requirements for Analytical Methods of GMO Testing" elaborated by the ENGL (ENGL, 2015). If the assessment is positive the EURL GMFF carries out the validation process according to the requirements of the international standards ISO 5725 (ISO 5725, 1994) and/or International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) protocols (Horwitz, 2009).

Upon completion of the validation study only methods fully meeting the "method performance requirements" described in the ENGL document are considered fit for regulatory purposes. The protocols and reports of validated methods are provided to EFSA and made available at the EURL GMFF website. Since May 2011 a searchable EU database of reference methods for GMO analysis including methods validated by the EURL GMFF for EU legal purposes is also available on the web site."