International Life Sciences Institute
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Nickname | ILSI |
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Formation | 7 July 1978 |
Headquarters | 740 15th Street, Suite 600 Washington, DC 20005 United States |
Coordinates | 38°53′59.7″N 77°2′2.1″W / 38.899917°N 77.033917°W |
Website | ilsi |
The International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) is a global
In 2021 ILSI North America rebranded as the Institute for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Sciences (IAFNS).
Structure
Until 2018, ILSI operated as a member organization, whose members were exclusively food and beverage, agricultural, chemical, and pharmaceutical companies. In November 2018, ILSI restructured as a global federation of entities, consisting of non-profit organizations with public and private sector members.[6] Based on its 2020 annual report, 70.8% of its revenue comes from membership dues and committee assessments; 19.2% from grants and contributions; and the remaining from publications and conference registration.[7]
According to ILSI's
According to ILSI, the organization receives in-kind support of time and expertise from volunteer academic, government, and non-governmental scientists.[10]
History
ILSI was formed in 1978 by Alex Malaspina, who was concurrently a senior vice president at Coca-Cola from 1969 until leaving both Coca-Cola and the institute in 2001.[11][2]
In 1986, ILSI employee Michael Gough published a book about Dioxin and Agent Orange entitled Dioxin, Agent Orange: The Facts. The Los Angeles Times said that The Facts had "minimal scientific merit" as the book is about "toxicology, teratology, carcinogenesis, epidemiology and medicine"—areas where Gough had no authority as his qualifications were in molecular biology. The Times said that The Facts would however be useful to "dioxin defense attorneys, his current employers at the Risk Science Institute of the International Life Sciences Institute in Washington (a chemical industry think tank), and also his future industrial clients."[12][13]
in 2009, partly in response to questions about the
In 2015, ILSI Mexico's operations were suspended for a year by the Board Executive Committee when it was discovered ILSI Mexico had sponsored a local conference where soft drink taxation was discussed, which was viewed as a "public relations effort to influence policy for commercial purposes" by the institute.[15][16] ILSI Mexico was shut down in 2020.[3]
In 2018,
In 2021, ILSI North America rebranded as the "Institute for the Advancement of Food and Nutrition Sciences" (IAFNS).[19][20]
ILSI Global was awarded
Controversies
A 2021 qualitative document analysis concluded that "The activities developed by ILSI on scientific integrity principles are part of a broader set of political practices of industry actors to influence public health policy, research, and practice."[19]
Tobacco industry
In 2001, an editorial in the
A 2019 New York Times article described ILSI as an organization 'which championed tobacco interests during the 1980s and 1990s.'[3]
Nutrition
Nutritionist Barry Popkin says that in China ILSI had "an extremely harmful influence, because they prevented raising awareness for a healthy diet."[26][27]
Sugar industry
In January 2020, an ILSI-sponsored survey report by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and National Institute of Nutrition (NIN) on consumption of added sugar among Indians, drew criticism from the Alliance Against Conflict of Interest (AACI).[28][29] They described ILSI as a lobbying arm of the food industry, notorious for pursuing policy influence globally, with particular respect to sugary foods and beverages.[30] As such, ILSI was accused of influencing the decisions of WHO and governments in their favour.[31][32][27][33] The AACI "wonder[s] what strategic direction ICMR-NIN, the premier research agency of India, is giving to the people of India when this survey's findings projected in the media may potentially perpetuate more sugar consumption while pretending to be concerned about non-communicable diseases".[30]
Notes and references
- ^ International Life Sciences Institute, 1985 IRS ILSI Tax Code Determination Archived 2011-03-22 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ ISBN 9781501747052. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
- ^ a b c d Jacobs, Andrew (16 September 2019). "A Shadowy Industry Group Shapes Food Policy Around the World". New York Times. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ "Science institute that advised EU and UN 'actually industry lobby group'". the Guardian. 2019-06-03. Retrieved 2022-01-26.
- ^ "ILSI 2020 Annual Report" (PDF). International Life Sciences Institute. Retrieved 17 February 2022.
- ^ "ILSI Governance Change Initiative". International Life Sciences Institute. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
- ^ "ILSI 2020 Annual Report" (PDF). ILSI. November 2021. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
- ^ International Life Sciences Institute, ILSI ByLaws
- ^ "2018 ILSI Annual Report_Final".
- ^ "Mandatory Policies of the International Life Sciences Institute" (PDF).
- ^ "ILSI Response to The New York Times". International Life Sciences Institute. Retrieved 22 December 2021.
- ^ "Dioxin, Agent Orange: The Facts by Michael Gough". Los Angeles Times. 1986-08-24. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
- ISBN 978-0-306-42247-8. Retrieved 2019-09-23.
- PMID 19403704.
- ^ "Influential Science Nonprofit ILSI Exposed as a Food Industry Lobby Group". EcoWatch. 2019-06-07. Retrieved 2022-01-20.
- ^ "ILSI Response to Globalization and Health". International Life Sciences Institute. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Prentice, Chris (5 February 2018). "M&M's maker publishes science policy in bid to boost transparency". Reuters. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ Pulley, Brett (13 January 2021). "Coca-Cola severs longtime ties with pro-sugar industry group". Seattle Times. Bloomberg. Retrieved 18 May 2021.
- ^ PMID 33879204.
- ^ "Who We Are". IAFNS. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ^ "International Life Sciences Institute (ILSI) - GuideStar Profile". www.guidestar.org. Retrieved 2022-03-18.
- ^ "Transparency Register". ec.europa.eu. Retrieved 22 March 2022.
- ^ "La Gaceta Costa Rica" (PDF). National Printing of Costa Rica. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
- PMID 11238148.
- PMID 12036766.
- ^ Wie Coca-Cola Chinas Gesundheitspolitik manipuliert Der Standard, 13 January 2019.
- ^ a b Susan Greenhalgh: Making China safe for Coke: how Coca-Cola shaped obesity science and policy in China The BMJ, 9 January 2019.
- ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2020-06-12.
- ^ https://www.indiansugar.com/PDFS/SUGAR_AND_HEALTH.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ a b Alliance Against Conflict of Interest (2020-01-14). "Sponsorship of the survey on sugar consumption by ILSI-Concerns" (PDF).
- ^ "Look at who the Niti Aayog is consulting". Times of India Blog. 2017-10-26. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ "Is Coca-Cola Influencing India's Public Health Policies?". The Wire. Retrieved 2022-03-19.
- ^ Boseley, Sarah (2019-01-10). "Coca-Cola influences China's obesity policy, BMJ report says". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-03-19.