The Israel Laboratory Accreditation Authority (ISRAC), associated with the Ministry of Industry and Trade, has signed an agreement with the US Environment Protection Agency (EPA). The agreement follows a mutual recognition agreement that Israel signed through ISRAC with the European Union (EU).
The mutual recognition agreement stipulates that the EU will recognize and accept research and pre-clinical data from recognized laboratories in Israel.
Under the new agreement, the EPA recognizes Israeli research facilities conducting pre-clinical tests for the registration of toxic materials, pesticides, and other materials affecting the environment.
Before the signing of this agreement, results from Israeli laboratories could not be used in submitting registration dossiers for toxic materials and pesticides in the US. The new agreement will therefore held Israel compete globally in this field.
Ministry of Industry and Trade sources said the agreement would save costs and time for trials in Israel and the US, before new products are introduced in the US market, and facilitate marketing there.
ISRAC general director Orna Dreazen said the US had followed the EU’s lead in reaching an agreement with ISRAC. “Gaining the trust of the US and achieving penetration of the large US market is an appropriate step towards expanding trade and gaining membership in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD),” Dreazen said.
The agreement with the EPA will be officially confirmed during a visit by EPA laboratory personnel to Israel in two months. Dreazen remarked that the agreement was likely to pave the way for a similar agreement with the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which usually refuses to delegate its authority. Furthermore, with EU and US support, Israel can expect to join the OECD committee dealing with these issues.
ISRAC is a statutory body, founded in 1997 under Israeli commitments, undertaken as part of agreements under World Trade Organization (WTO). Israel agreed to establish a nationwide laboratory accreditation body, in order to facilitate mutual recognition between Israel and other countries in matters of measurements, calibration, and testing.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on March 24, 2003