Aarhus University failed to report on the lack of contracts in the reports examined after oksekødssagen.

Aarhus University has held for the public, that in 19 out of the 55 externally funded research projects from the research center behind the above-mentioned oksekødsrapport have lacked a legal contract between the university and the provider.

in spite of the fact that Aarhus University itself has uncovered the extent of the lack of contracts as part of a study of 55 externally funded reports.

It writes the Information.

the Investigation was launched after the case of oksekødsrapporten, where researchers at the Aarhus University lod Agriculture & Food and Danish Crown affect a report on the klimaaftrykket from the beef.

Since the university published the results of the survey in early november, it appeared that only three of the reports were found “critical shortcomings”.

But the university has not disclosed that in more than a third of the investigated reports were missing a contract.

– It does not look good for Aarhus University, says professor emeritus at Copenhagen University and an expert in research ethics Heine Andersen.

– It is not very seriously, that after oksekødsrapporten doing a study to see if there are errors in other reports, and so retain one key thing that has come forward in the investigation.

Acting dean of Science and Technology at Aarhus University Lars Henrik Andersen recognises the importance of contracts when the university doing research with external funding.

– Situation is, of course, that many of these errors could be be done, if there had been a proper contract. It is what we are working towards. But the contractual relationship is not the same as research results. That we distinguish a little, he says.

the Study from Aarhus University have in the past been criticized by outside experts to be both opaque, inadequate and problematic.

the Experts estimated that in addition to the lack of contracts is in fact the more serious errors and shortcomings in the examined reports, than what the university claims.

/ritzau/