Mission & Objectives

In order to set priorities for the LRI programme, steps are taken to identify areas where scientific knowledge relevant for both the industry and the regulators should be enhanced.

At the set-out of the initiative, international representatives from the chemical industry, including Cefic, ACC and JCIA, with the help of independent scientists, undertook a State of the Science (STOTS) study related to the potential impact of chemicals on health and the environment to identify these issues. The first STOTS studies were published in 1998 and some were reviewed in 2001. Focus areas were identified according to vertical disciplines such as chemical carcinogenesis, neurotoxicity or respiratory toxicity.

During the course of the following three years, workshops were held to discuss the relevance of these areas and their applicability. Cross-cutting issues were identified which involved several research disciplines and better reflected the nature of the issues to investigate. These cross-cutting issues, including sensitive subpopulations, biomarkers and exposure assessment, are encompassed in another set of white papers published in 2001.

Focus Areas

LRI provides financial support for independent research in four focus areas. Research projects may overlap over several of these areas.