German Nutrient Database BLS Cooperation Platform

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German Nutrient Database (BLS) Cooperation
Platform
www.blsdb.de

• Developing a Partnership with the German Industry
  Association for Nutrient Data Collection
• A.L. Vásquez-Caicedo, B. Hartmann
• Max Rubner Institut, Karlsruhe, Germany

Compile Network Meeting, Norwich 2008
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BLS Platforms
Cooperation
Publication
BLS cooperation platform
BLS portal
www.blsdb.de
www.cp.blsdb.de
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BLS Networking
State Department of Food Control Analysis
Food Industry
Private Laboratories
National Research Institutes
The BLS is open for new cooperation partners
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How to build a cooperation with the Industry?

• Exchange of general information
• our goals
• our methods
• data handling accesability who (users), how
  (free?, license?), when (online?)....
• Build up confidence / trust
• Build up a clear concept
• Negociacions

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General Issues

• Voluntary participation companies decide which
  data they want to deliver. Agreement at least
  Energy and macronutrients
• Confidentiality link between brand name and
  nutrient can be only done by the company
  itself. Data will be anonym.
• Practicability MRI work together developing all
  practical details of the cooperation, including
  the export format
• Own password, protected area
• Each partner uploads, and modifies their own data
• Conformity given by BLS team
• Matching brand names with nutrients is not
  possible by third parties

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Putting cooperation in practice

• Levels
• (1) Numeric data
• (2) Metadata (documentation)
• (2a) E.g. Analytical method
• (2b) Food description easier to assign a BLS code

• Completeness of data by level increases accuracy
  
• reliability
• of values
• ? Higher probability that data will be adopted
  by the
• BLS Database
• Remark Companies are free to decide how much
  information
• they are willing to provide

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Exporting data what are companies asked to do?

• Companies export their data from their own
  software system in CVS format according to the
  export template provided by the BLS team
• Most important the order / position variables
  are entered has to follow a given structure to
  facilitate import dataset with mistakes will be
  sent back for corrections
• Partner area company number (EAN), username,
  password
• Communication area contact person, address,
  messages, protocols
• Data overview numeric and graphic, for
  corrections and comparisons
• New imports and actualizations are possible

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What does BLS do with the data?

• Data import into CP
• Match data / products with BLS codes or generate
  new codes
• Anonym data company name, item nr., producer,
  brand name are removed new identification
  number is provided
• Data evaluation (level 2a 2b)
• Data processing, comparisons
• Decisions, traceability

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BLS-BLL Timeline

• End 2004 1st contact with BLL in Bonn ? data for
  2nd National Nutrition Survey is urgently needed
• 2005 informative meeting ? explanations, build
  up trust
• Dec. 2005 3rd meeting ? NVS II, BLS EuroFIR
• e.g. Nubel, Positive reaction to European Network
• Development of cooperation concept
• End 2006 contract negotiations
• March - June 2007 Development of cooperation
  Platform
• Sept. 2007 Last meeting ? demonstration CP,
  contract was signed!!

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Coping difficulties

• Need to understand industrys language rethink
  concept
• Companies are not homegeneous different
  structures conditions
• Umbrella organisations link, understanding of
  both sides
• Constant exchange to reinforce trust and
  advantages of cooperation

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BLS-BLL Contract

• BLL General contract, recomends members to sign
  individual contracts
• BLS CP must provide confidenciality
• Big 8 minimization of risk by providing data
  also available in labels
• Current situation 13 individual contracts, big
  players and specific associations (cereal, pasta
  meat)
• Short term key products for NVS II , also
  include some lab data
• Long term expand cooperation to more partners,
  incl. Lab data

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How to cooperate?

• Cooperation Platform available online

• Interfaces for data transfer

• Modular structure (extendable)

• Advantage flexible applications

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The BLS Partner Area
Partner 1
Partner 2
Partner 3
Partner X
Dataexport
Partner area
BLS cooperation- platform

• Import interface
• Communication area
• Data display
• Data comparison

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create partner contact data
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import product data
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and information about the product and nutrients
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Data comparison tabular, graphical,
statistical...
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BLS online www.blsdb.de
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Cooperation Confidentiality, trust Data
transparency