THE BIOHEALTH WHISTLEBLOWER SYSTEM
As a responsible company, we attach great importance to the integrity and transparency of our business processes. Establishing a whistleblower system makes it possible for you to report violations confidentially.
This is consistent with the German Whistleblower Protection Act (HinSchG), which guarantees the safety and anonymity of people who call attention to irregularities.
We encourage you to use this system if you observe any discrepancies. Your cooperation is vital to ensure we adhere to ethical standards and to protect our company.
Information regarding the implementation of the guidelines of the German Whistleblower Protection Act (HinSchG)
In the following, we provide information about the use of a whistleblower system at BHI Biohealth International GmbH.
BHI Biohealth International GmbH, as a company with more than 50 employees, is required to implement the legal requirements of the German Whistleblower Protection Act. On 17 December 2023, we therefore established a whistleblower system in accordance with Section 12 of the German Whistleblower Protection Act, which you can use to submit reports. You can access our whistleblower system at the following link:
The purpose of implementing such a system is to provide a secure channel for receiving reports of and investigating breaches of rules and regulations. We would also like to use the submitted reports as an opportunity to identify problems and drive improvements within the company.
What you can report via the system
The prerequisite for submitting a message is that the breach comes under the material scope of application of the act. This applies if a breach of EU law or national legislation has occurred. The legislator has published an overview of the scope of application of reports. This includes the following areas:
• Public procurement
• Financial services, products and markets
• Prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing
• Product safety and compliance
• Transport safety
• Protection of the environment
• Food and feed safety, animal health and welfare
• Public health
• Consumer protection
• Protection of privacy and personal data
• Security of network and information services
• Breaches that are criminal offences under German law
• Breaches that are subject to fines under German law, where the breached provision serves to protect the life, limb, health and rights of employees
• Other breaches of legal provisions of the German government and federal states
Who can submit a report using our whistleblower system
Everyone who has a professional relationship with BHI Biohealth International GmbH is entitled to submit a report via the available channel. The authorised group of people includes:
• Employees, also former
• Voluntary staff
• Applicants
• Trainees
• Service providers and their employees
• Shareholders and people who belong to the administrative, executive or supervisory body of the company
• Cooperation partners
Handling reports and their content
BHI Biohealth International GmbH is intent on maintaining strict confidentiality and protecting the data of the reports in the system. We implement suitable technical and organisational measures in connection with the whistleblower system to ensure an appropriate level of data protection.
Only authorised people can access the data and are responsible for processing this data when receiving a report. The data is not disclosed to management or other third parties.
Consequences of submitting a report
Once you have submitted a report, you have no need to fear any disciplinary actions or other reprisals as a whistleblower.
Truthfulness of information
As a whistleblower, you must have sufficient grounds to assume that the information about the breach provided at the time of reporting represents the truth.
Material scope of application is established
The reported breach must relate to an act or omission that is covered by the material scope of application.
Use of the permitted reporting channel
In principle, the whistleblower channel is provided for submitting reports. Alternatively, it is also possible to make a report via an external reporting channel operated by the responsible supervisory authority. When using the external reporting channel, the report will be handled exclusively by the supervisory authority.
Procedure of the reporting process
The submitted reports will be anonymised and processed by the assigned person at BHI Biohealth International GmbH. In general, there is no obligation to pursue reports that do not come under the material scope of application of this act. The following procedure illustrates what happens when a report is submitted.
a) Breach observed by the whistleblower
b) Whistleblower evaluates their observations and secures evidence
c) A report is made through the internal reporting channel
d) Review by the whistleblower protection officer
e) Clarification of open issues and queries for the whistleblower
f) Confirmation of receipt within 14 days
g) Initiation of follow-up actions
h) Notification of the outcome of follow-up actions within 3 months
Please note that the presumption of innocence applies regarding the reported person or presumed breach while we investigate the report. We will also keep you updated about the progress of the investigation within the specified periods. However, it may be necessary for us to contact you with enquiries. We therefore ask for your cooperation throughout the review process to ensure that we clarify the circumstances in full.
If a report is not covered by the above-specified material scope of application, it will not be pursued or processed any further. The legislator also provides for sanctions and claims for damages against the whistleblower, who will forfeit the right of protection when reporting or knowingly disclosing false information. This will occur if a submitted report is intentionally or grossly negligent. The exception to this is if you are strongly convinced that the circumstances represent the truth at the time of reporting.
You should only use the whistleblower channel provided by us to submit reports. This ensures that your identity and the circumstances described in the report are protected at all times. Only authorised people will have access to your report.
Here you can find the Data protection notice for the whistleblower system.