December 2020 - The Investigative Desk

Are Unilever’s ties with Wageningen University too close?

Wageningen University & Research (WUR) takes pride in its excellent relations with the food and agriculture industry. It is particularly close with Unilever. The public-private research projects this global food giant co-finances are supposed to be ‘independent’. The Investigative Lab discovered, however, that the company effectively pulls the strings in all phases of these projects. …

Are Unilever’s ties with Wageningen University too close? Read More »

Rehabilitating nicotine amidst a pandemic: Big Tobacco’s Playbook in the 21st century

Tobacco / By Ties Keyzer

A cross-border investigation uncovered how COVID-19 is used a marketing opportunity for the tobacco industry. For decades the tobacco industry casted doubts on the harms of smoking. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a network of scientists and lobbyists brought forward supposed benefits of nicotine, such as protection against the coronavirus. The Investigative Desk and Le Monde …

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Covid-19: EU countries spent over €220m stockpiling remdesivir despite lack of effectiveness

Pharmaceuticals and health care / By Lucien Hordijk

The drug’s manufacturer was aware of the negative results of the Solidarity trial before the European Commission struck a procurement deal with it, finds an investigation. Read the full article here. On 7 October the European Commission struck a so called joint procurement framework deal with the drug manufacturer Gilead, after reports the day before …

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Marlboro producer outsmarts its competition (and politicians)

Tobacco / By Ties Keyzer

Tobacco manufacturer Philip Morris conducts a sophisticated lobby in the Netherlands, using a meticulous international step-by-step plan. Yet it still manages to make a profit, to escape regulation and to maintain its competitive edge. The Investigative Desk analysed leaked internal documents and obscured government documents to gain insight into the workings of one of the …

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Are Unilever’s ties with Wageningen University too close?

Rehabilitating nicotine amidst a pandemic: Big Tobacco’s Playbook in the 21st century

Covid-19: EU countries spent over €220m stockpiling remdesivir despite lack of effectiveness

Marlboro producer outsmarts its competition (and politicians)

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