ABF is part of the laboratory network in PARC

We are surrounded by thousands of chemicals present in the environment. Most are harmless, but some can cause adverse health effects with chronic exposure. Human biomonitoring (HBM) assesses the exposure to toxic chemicals by measuring the chemicals or their metabolites in biological samples, usually urine or blood. Therefore, HBM is the main tool for exposure assessment and helps to understand the potential risks associated with exposure to many chemicals and identify the main sources of exposure. This information is of paramount importance to inform policymakers and the public in the interest of public health.

Harmonization of HBM in Europe: HBM4EU and PARC

Human Biomonitoring for Europe (HBM4EU) was a joint initiative of 28 participating countries – the 24 EU Member States plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Israel – and the European Environment Agency. The project received €74 million in funding under Horizon 2020 (European Commission) and was jointly implemented by 120 partners from the participating countries. Its aim was to measure Europeans’ exposure to chemicals and their health effects and strengthen HBM’s role in the chemical risk assessment strategy for Europe.

Its follow-up project “Partnership for the Assessment of Risks in Chemicals (PARC)” takes the HBM4EU work forward by strengthening the scientific basis for chemical risk assessment and facilitating the EU’s transition to next generation evidence-based risk assessment. HBM studies are carried out by each country individually. To ensure comparability between countries with high quality HBM data, the laboratories must demonstrate their expertise and the accuracy and reproducibility of the applied analytical methods. Therefore, laboratories must successfully participate in interlaboratory comparisons on a regular basis to be considered reliable and provide robust data for an HBM campaign.

ABF is part of the PARC laboratory network

ABF has already delivered high quality data within HBM campaigns of several countries in HBM4EU. Now, we are also part of the HBM laboratory network in PARC and participating in the currently ongoing QA/QC program. We are dedicated to deliver accurate data and constantly enlarge our method portfolio in the field of HBM. All of our HBM methods are accredited according to ISO 17025. Today, we have validated numerous methods targeting a broad range of environmental chemicals under investigation in PARC, such as phthalates, pesticides, PAHs and many more.

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