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This site deals only with the corporate corruption of science, and makes no inference about the motives or activities of individuals involved.
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OPINION ONLY [Temporary: while site is under construction]Institut fur Biologische Forshung(INBIFO)INBIFO was a small commercial laboratory with considerable skills in animal-based research. IT was purchased by Philip Morris's Richmond Research & Development Division in the early 1970s. They did this by way of their Swiss subsidiary Fabriuques de Tabac Reunies (FTR), to keep their interest in the organization secret. The Swedish researcher, Ragnar Rylander, was then brought in on a part-time basis (He was also at the University of Geneva) to further hide Philip Morris USA's direct involvement. PRELIMINARY MATERIAL ONLY In order to hide their ownership of the INBIFO facilities at Cologne, Marienburg and Porz, all work done for Philip Morris's (Richmond, USA) Research & Development division (run by Drs Wakeham and Osdene) were given normal commercial project numbers. All accounts and expenses were charged through Philip Morris's subsidiary in Switzerland, the Fabriuques de Tabac Reunies (FTR) (based in Neuchatel). The special charge number 0500 identifies these 'pass through' payments. The INBIFO organization retained its appearances as being a normal, commercial, independent research laboratory, and continued to accept contracts from other companies and industries for work. Many of the staff divided their time between the extra-mural research, and Philip Morris's inhouse research. However, from 1972 on, Philip Morris began expanding the laboratory mainly for its own purposes, although in 1973 the expenditures of the R&D division at INBIFO were limited to $350,000. Special Pathogen Free (SPF) facilities were introduced for animal (skin painting and inhalation) research. Payment for these facilities was made also via FTR. 1972 May 26: Osdene and Wakeham are in Europe visiting INBIFO and some other contract researchers. They visit Rylander at the Karolinska Institute. He is doing animal inhalation research for them using SPF guinea pigs. [However the Institute, it later transpires, is not at all happy about this sort of product research being conducted under the Hygiene Department auspices] Confidentially, Dr Rylander has told me that he may be moving to the University of Geneva in the late fall and I expect to hear further details shortly.[The R&D group in Richmond have been unhappy with the lack of communications from the INBIFO staff, who have always acted as independent researchers in the past. The FTR in Switzerland had been given the job of keeping track of their work, but they were not animal-research experts.]  
1972 June 12: Tom Osdene writes to Ulrich Hackenberg, the chief scientist at INBIFO their secretly-owned laboratory complex in Cologne. He has just returned from visiting INBIFO and Rylander in Stockholm, and suggests that Hackenberg might visit Rylander to discuss mouse research techniques.
1972 Jun 20: INBIFO is planning new skin-painting experiments at their new facility at Marienbad. 1972 June 28: Philip Morris's Director of Research, Dr Tom Osdene's notes of a telephone Conversation with Ragnar Rylander which was sent to his immediate boss Helmut Wakeham. Dr Rylander returned my call today and we briefly discussed the subject of INBIFO. The following points were made:[In sum, he would act as the American research division's liason and supervisor with the German secret research group — protecting the cigarette company from being implicated in animal research, and himself requiring the FTR as a cut-out so that he is not directly implicated.] In response to his request whether he could continue working with other non-commercial organizations such as WHO, I said that I felt that this would be possible. I also said that we would expect to maintain a degree of support for continuation of our joint projects.[They would have been delighted to have him continue working with the World Health Organization.] 1972 Sep: Philip Morris took out a three year lease on the Marienburg facility [Note not 'Marienbad'], which was to be used for mouse skin-painting and for long-term inhalation research. The short term inhalation work becan Jan 1 1973 and finished March 31. The two year inhalation work began with the SPF facility in June 1973. 1972 Sep 18: Osdene to Wakeham outlining how they should handle the "Technical Program at INBIFO" [Copied to Rylander on 7th December] Philip Morris research staff in America (Richmond) and Switzerland (FTR) had had problems in dealing with the INBIFO group (which had been an independent laboratory until the PM purchase). Osdene writes: In view of some problems of communication between INBIFO, FTR and Richmond R&D, particularly in the transmission of reports and of bills, we propose the alleviation of these problems by the following system of operations.[This was the job description for Rylander's new role, supposedly as a 'FTR consultant' but, in fact, as a part time supervisor, advisor and liason between INBIFO and Philip Morris R&D in Richmond. The FTR only provided financial services and played a window-dressing/cut-out role.] 1972 Oct 5: Ragnar Rylander met Wakeham at INBIFO on this day.
1972 Oct 10: Rylander is ready now to shift to Geneva, and will make his decision about INBIFO "within a few weeks." 1972 Oct 31: Meeting on PR R&D and INBIFO. Decisions being made without Rylander. 1972 Nov: /E Philip Morris started using the SPF Facility involved long term inhalation work at Marienburg. 1984 July: Report of INBIFO meeting in October says about skin-painting experiments:
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