For consumer protection: applying research together
How do food colourings affect intestinal bacteria and the mucosa? How can substances be detected that trigger changes in genetic material? How does machine learning help to recognise food in photographs? These are some of the scientific questions that are already under investigation by students from the Berlin University of Applied Sciences (HTW) at the German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR). The BfR and HTW will intensify their collaborationin the future. A cooperation agreement - signed today in Berlin by BfR President Professor Dr. Dr. Andreas Hensel and Professor Dr. Stefanie Molthagen-Schnöring, Vice President for Research and Transfer at the HTW - is providing a basis for this. "Research at the BfR is application-orientated and provides direct benefits to consumers - we overlap in many areas with the HTW's scientific activities," says BfR President Hensel. "We see diverse cooperation potential with the BfR and are pleased to be able to implement these in teaching and research projects," says HTW Vice President Molthagen-Schnöring.
The cooperation between the BfR and HTW aims at research projects in the natural sciences and computer science. This includes joint student research projects and theses. Students gain insights into employment opportunities in consumer health protection and young professionals for the BfR are promoted.
HTW Berlin is the largest university of applied sciences in Berlin. More than 70 study programmes in technology, computing, business, law, culture and design enable an interdisciplinary cooperation. Research is a core task at HTW Berlin.
About the BfR
The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) is a scientifically independent institution within the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL) in Germany. It advises the German federal government and German federal states ("Laender") on questions of food, chemical and product safety. The BfR conducts its own research on topics that are closely linked to its assessment tasks.
This text version is a translation of the original German text which is the only legally binding version.