National co-operation

The BfR cooperates with the federal research institutes as well as with other institutes in the portfolio of the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture - BMEL, with higher federal authorities of other ministries and with many university institutes as well as non-university research and scientific institutes active in closely related fields.

The aim is to provide a platform for the exchange of information and close co-operation on issues of common interest. 

Move the mouse cursor over the points on the map to obtain further information.

mobil nicht verfügbar / not available for mobile site

Federal research institutes of the BMEL

• Julius Kühn Institute, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants (JKI), Quedlinburg
• Friedrich Loeffler Institute, Federal Research Institute for Animal Health (FLI), Insel Riems
• Max Rubner Institute, Federal Research Institute of Nutrition and Food (MRI), Karlsruhe
• Thünen Institute, Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries (TI), Braunschweig

Other institutes of the BMEL

• Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL)
• Federal Office for Agriculture and Food (BLE)

• Senate of the Federal Research Institutes: the Senate was set up to ensure interdisciplinary coordination of the work of the departmental research institutes and the institutes of the Leibniz-Gemeinschaft (Leibniz Science Association).

Departmental research institutes of the federal government

• Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BauA), Dortmund
• Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Berlin
• Federal Environmental Agency (UBA), Dessau
• Federal Office for Radiation Safety (BfS), Salzgitter
• Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM), Berlin

• Working Group of the German Federal Departmental Research Establishments: more than 30 federal institutes conducting research activities have joined forces in this working group. The outcomes of their research and development activities serve as a source of advice for political decision-makers, and these institutes play a role in maintaining and developing the technical infrastructure in the Federal Republic of Germany. The BfR has been a member of the working group since it was founded.

Regional investigation institutes of the laender

• LUFA Nordwest (Agricultural Investigation and Research Institute Northwest): co-operation within the framework of the NRL for animal protein in feed
• Verband deutscher landwirtschaftlicher Untersuchungs- und Forschungsanstalten e.V. - VDLUFA (Association of German Agricultural Investigation and Research Institutes): co-operation in the field of assessment of potential health risks due to feed

University institutes

• Free University of Berlin (FU)
• Berlin Institute of Technology (TU)
• Humboldt University of Berlin (HU)
• University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (TiHo): when he was appointed Head of the Scientific Services Department, private lecturer Dr. Matthias Greiner was simultaneously appointed to the post of Professor at the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover (Professorship of Exposure Estimation and Quantitative Risk Assessment).
• University of Leipzig (UL)
• University of Göttingen (UGö)
• University of Cologne (KU)
• Friedrich Schiller University of Jena (UJe)
• Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich (LMU)
• University of Hamburg (UH)
• University of Bonn (UB)
• Justus Liebig University Giessen (UG)

• Charité: the Master of Science toxicology programme is a course of studies of the Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin organised in co-operation with the University of Potsdam and other institutions in the region. In this area, the BfR makes an important contribution to the process of scientific assessment in the field of toxicology by training and acquiring toxicologists.
• Berlin School of Public Health (BSPH): Berlin School of Public Health at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin (BSPH) was established at Charité in January 2007 with the participation of the Free University of Berlin (FU Berlin), the Humboldt University of Berlin (HU Berlin) and Berlin Institute of Technology (TU Berlin). The aim of the BSPH is to offer a comprehensive public health teaching and research programme with international scope in Berlin. Through its involvement in the BSPH, the BfR plays an important role in the training of future scientists.
• The joint creation of a full professorship by the BfR together with Charité and the appointment of the Head of Department 9 "Experimental Toxicology and ZEBET" is designed to raise the profile of the 3R concept both at university level and in the field of fundamental research.

Other partnerships and memberships

aid info-service consumer protection, food, agriculture, Bonn: the main activity of the aid info-service is the transfer of information from research and practice to the fields of agriculture, food and nutrition. Above and beyond the existing contacts, the aim of the co-operation between the two institutes is to work together to achieve progress in consumer health protection on German and European level. This aim is achieved not only through the scientific work of the BfR but also by ensuring consumer-friendly communication and information.

German Institute for Standardization (DIN), Berlin

Stiftung Warentest consumer information service (StWt), Berlin: Stiftung Warentest was created in 1964 by a decision of the German Bundestag parliament in order to provide consumers with independent and objective support in the form of comparative tests of products and services. The BfR is represented on the Board of Trustees by Professor Dr. R. Wittkowski.

German Agricultural Research Alliance (DAFA): DAFA was founded in the autumn of 2010 on the initiative of the BMELV (now called BMEL) by various university institutes, universities and departmental research institutes. It sees itself as a network for German agricultural and nutrition research and primarily aims to increase the visibility of German agricultural and nutrition research in an international context. The BfR is represented in the specialised "Aquaculture" and "Production Animals" forums.

German Chemical Society (GDCh), Society of Food Chemistry: the Society of Food Chemistry is the biggest division of the GDCh and investigates research and the exchange of information in the field of the composition and effects of food. This is an area in which the BfR can generate key stimuli for consumer protection and information

Berlin Working Group on Information - BAK (cooperative membership): the BAK is a specialist community for information professionals in libraries, archives and documentation centres.

The Fraunhofer Institute for the Promotion of Applied Research (FhG) co-operates with the BfR in the field of research with the aim of ensuring food safety in all stages of the commodity chain. The Fraunhofer Food Chain Management Alliance pools the activities of the FhG in the field of food research and is active at the interface to national and international public funding authorities as well as at the interface to the food industry.