Coordinating their work at the EU level through the EC Directorate General “Taxation and Customs Union”, European customs laboratories help customs to more effectively tackle cross-border challenges for the benefit of European citizens and business.
Customs Laboratories work together at the European level through the Customs Laboratories European Network (CLEN). There are around 80 customs laboratories in the EU, whose 88% are accredited for the testing activities they performed. The link between customs and customs laboratories is the sampling activities and field measurements at the customs, entrance points or wherever needed.
CLEN initiated communication with EA regarding the options for accreditation of sampling activities. At the 5th Seminar of the European Customs Chemists held on 10-12 July in Paris, Ioannis Sitaras from the Greek NAB (ESYD), the convener of Technical Network “Food and Feed Testing” of the EA Laboratory Committee (EA LC), made a plenary lecture on accreditation of sampling and harmonization within the EU. The presentation also included other requested issues such as the accreditation of flexible scope and the use of opinions and interpretations in the reports. Fruitful discussions took place on the use of accreditation, and the EA LC’s work in favor of harmonization and exchange of experiences between EA-member ABs was emphasized.