Conflict of Interest and Financial Disclosures (Specific to Reviewers)

A reviewer's judgement is only useful if it is independent. IAJAVS therefore asks reviewers to declare conflicts of interest before they agree to evaluate a manuscript. This page applies COPE's Ethical Guidelines for Peer Reviewers and our general Conflict of Interest Policy to the review process.

What You Must Disclose

Financial interests in the outcome, such as funding, consultancy, equity or paid advisory roles with companies selling seeds, agrochemicals, fertilisers, feed, veterinary drugs, vaccines or farm equipment
Personal or professional relationships with the authors, including current or recent collaborators, family members, and current or former students or supervisors
A shared institution where your objectivity could reasonably be questioned
A directly competing interest, such as your own ongoing trial on the same specific question

When a Conflict Exists

Decline the invitation. Please don't accept and disclose later. If a conflict only becomes clear after you have started, stop, tell the editorial office straight away and withdraw from the review.

Confidentiality and Personal Advantage

Information, data and ideas you see as a reviewer may not be used for your own benefit, including in your own research, before the manuscript is published.

Wider Financial Relationships

If you have an ongoing pattern of financial ties to companies working in the journal's field, such as regular industry consultancy, we encourage you to tell us when you join the reviewer pool. That lets editors assign manuscripts sensibly.