Michael Scannell is an official of the European Commission since 1991. He is currently Director for the Food Chain – Stakeholder and International Relations in the Directorate General for Health and Food Safety. He was until recently Director of the Food and Veterinary Office which was responsible for promoting proper enforcement and compliance with EU requirements on food safety, animal and plant health in both EU Member States and third countries. His previous positions included chief spokesperson for the EU in the Codex Commission and in the Sanitary and Phytosanitary Committee of the World Trade Organisation between 2002 and 2010. This period included the creation of a specific Directorate General for Health Protection and of the European Food Safety Authority. Mr Scannell is Irish and a graduate in economics and politics from University College Dublin.