EFPIA Playbook Recognises FAIR Cookbook as Essential for Data Sharing

In July 2024, EFPIA, the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Association, officially released a comprehensive playbook to guide Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI) and Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) projects implementing best data-sharing practices. Among its key recommendations, the playbook highlights the FAIR Cookbook, a service of the ELIXIR-UK Node, co-run with and recognised by the wider ELIXIR community.

The EFPIA playbook, a culmination of extensive collaboration among researchers who have navigated the complexities of data sharing, offers a practical blueprint for effectively managing human and health data. It identifies common workflows and technical processes that address the challenges of data sharing, such as adhering to regulatory mandates.

It recommends using the FAIR Cookbook, a live “The Essential Resource by and for FAIR doers”   that provides a step-by-step guide to making data Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable (FAIR).

Oxford e-Research Centre researchers Professor Susanna-Assunta Sansone and Dr Philippe Rocca-Serra, both key members of ELIXIR-UK, have championed the FAIR Cookbook, with colleagues from Luxemburg, Switzerland, Spain and The Netherlands, and in collaboration with the USA NIH Office of Data Science Strategy. Their work has been instrumental in establishing it as a trusted resource within the research community and funding agencies since the IMI/IHI Project Guidelines also recommend the FAIR Cookbook for “Open Access to Publication and Research Data, and Horizon Europe Work Programme for Health.

The recognition of the FAIR Cookbook in the EFPIA playbook underscores its importance as a tool for researchers and organisations engaged in making their data FAIR. For more information on the playbook and its recommendations, read the official EFPIA news release.

About ELIXIR-UK

ELIXIR-UK is part of the European ELIXIR infrastructure, which supports life science research and its translation to medicine, the environment, and society. By integrating national bioinformatics resources, ELIXIR-UK aims to provide a sustainable infrastructure for biological information, ensuring that data is effectively managed, analysed and shared across the scientific community.