With coordination of the IPA Scientific Director, Dr. Jessica Terhaar (nee Younes), the role and function of the Scientific committee is to help in making IPA the recognized trade association for the probiotics industry by providing it with a sound scientific basis. The scientific committee will suggest urgent scientific issues to the IPA Board of Directors (BoD) and respond to requests from the BoD. Besides any short-term scientific responses, the scientific committee strives to address bigger topics and report its findings on these topics back to the BoD. The output of scientific committee activities is in principle intended to be published in scientific journals; giving appropriate credit to IPA.
In line with IPA’s overall goal of raising global awareness for probiotics and of IPA as the voice of the probiotics industry, the scientific committee will work in close collaboration with the other committees within the IPA; in particular the Regulatory Committee but also the Marketing Committee. This collaboration between the committee’s is to guarantee that all IPA work is of highest standard and disseminated in a clear and concise manner, in turn ensuring recognition all IPA activities. The scientific committee does not have corporate authority and will look to the BoD for approval of new activities.
Committee Objectives:
- Ensure high scientific standards of IPA
- Respond swiftly to urgent scientific matters in the field of probiotics
- Work on a bigger scientific topic on request of or as suggested to the BoD
- Disseminate work produced by the at scientific fora (publication and presentations)
- Interact with the BoD to understand the scientific questions that concern the members
- Suggest to the BoD new scientific matters
- Provide scientific support to other IPA Committees
- Assist in the organization of IPA World Congress; contents and speakers
- Identify key conferences the IPA should be present at – either as visitors or exhibitors
- Contribute in parallel with the other committees in building strong relationships with other organizations interested in the advancement of the probiotics industry