Five clear steps to modernising chemical safety regulation
There is an unprecedented level of global dialogue and activity on the need to transition towards scientific approaches in regulatory testing, biomedical research and education without animals, for scientific, economic and ethical reasons.
With specific focus on regulatory testing, there is also a recognised urgency to develop and adopt new non-animal approaches to improve sustainability. There is a need for robust and reliable safety information on many thousands of new and existing chemicals which, it is widely agreed, the current system cannot keep pace with to provide. The tradition of using animals in toxicity testing over many decades has cemented a conventional view of them as the ‘gold standard’ in regulatory toxicology. However, in parallel, their reliability in predicting real world responses to chemical exposure has been increasingly criticised.
A new research paper by Lush Prize presents an overview of the ‘state of play’ and current thinking on the way forward to achieve a fit-for-purpose, internationally-harmonised regulatory framework for all chemicals assessment, which is reliant exclusively on animal-free, human- and environmentally-relevant technologies and approaches.
The paper is the result of a roundtable of specialists – from industry, regulatory and NGO sectors – hosted by Lush Prize to discuss ways to achieve a globally harmonised human-relevant regulatory framework for improved health and environmental protection.
We have also produced a simple summary of critical elements in a language that we hope is accessible to policymakers and others, at a time when there is a sense that regulatory and political inertia may be holding back progress, despite scientific innovation continuing to demonstrate how advances towards superior, animal-free approaches can be achieved.
Our five clear steps are:
1: A co-ordinated approach to communication
2: Future-proof the regulatory language
3: A focus on change management
4: Updating the validation process for new methods
5: A shift of focus towards risk management outcomes
You can read the full paper here.
Spread the word: