CRIIGEN was set up nearly 25 years ago with the aim of making available to the public a committee of independent experts, i.e. not funded in any way by the agrochemical industry, to study the real impact of genetically modified organisms and pesticides.
It's a challenge in a world where everything becomes binary, but Criigen's work has enabled us to make great strides in terms of the transparency of studies and to have major points of law judged, as shown by our recent victory against the Anses and Monsanto/Bayer, which highlighted the violation of the precautionary principle in the marketing authorization of glyphosate-based Roundup pro 360.
The credibility of an organization like Criigen depends, of course, on the quality of the studies it produces, but also on its difference from militant non-governmental organizations, which are perfectly legitimate and necessary, but which have a different objective. Criigen's job is to provide these and other organizations with the objective scientific evidence they need to make their case.
The covid crisis has created hysteria in society and made scientific debate difficult. Nonetheless, this is not sufficient reason for Criigen to turn into a militant organization considered by many to be anti-vax.
The positions taken by certain members of Criigen's scientific and administrative councils, which should have remained personal, as well as a communication style that had become militant and non-objective, damaged Criigen's credibility, leading the majority of its board of directors to decide to react. Publications deemed questionable have been removed from the site.
In this way, CRIIGEN, which has already gone through difficult times but has managed to survive since 1998, will be able to continue its work to develop the studies essential for understanding the negative effects on human health and living organisms of synthetic pesticides, endocrine disruptors and other products that jeopardize the health of living organisms.
The Chairman