Publications

FENS issues guidance for writing and reviewing press releases

The Federation of European Nutrition Societies (FENS) has issued guidance for writing and reviewing press releases. It is now available and an article about the guidelines has been published in the European Journal of Nutrition.

Having identified issues with the credibility and capability of human nutrition research, the FENS President is currently sponsoring an activity aimed at improving standards and assuring trust in the science of nutrition. This activity involves three working groups looking into concepts and methodologies; organisation, capabilities and funding; and external communication and public trust. Working Group 3, which is composed of 20 nutrition scientists from across Europe, has been charged with developing guidance to assure and promote stakeholder trust in nutrition science. The apparent lack of a standardised approach to disseminating nutrition research findings to key stakeholders such as clinicians and the general public has potentially contributed to a feeling of confusion and mistrust, thereby undermining the credibility of the science of nutrition. The Working Group identified a need to develop guidance for the communication of the findings of research in nutrition science to the public with a focus on accuracy of what is reported and on the language used.

The Working Group developed a handbook to support and guide nutrition scientists in improving the quality and clarity of press releases related to their work by detailing step-by-step guidance for writing and reviewing press releases.

There are also easy-to-use checklists for writing and reviewing a press release and a template for scoring a press release.

The handbook is free and available to download from the FENS website.

The FENS Working Groups will be holding symposia on this research during the 14th European Nutrition Conference in Belgrade, Serbia from 14 – 17 November 2023. Abstract submission is still open until 30 April 2023. Visit fens2023.org to submit an abstract or to register for the conference.

Second Circular Available: 22nd IUNS-ICN International Congress of Nutrition in Tokyo, Japan, December 6-11, 2022

The second circular for the IUNS-ICN is now available.

22nd-IUNS-ICN_2ndCircularDownload

The 22nd IUNS-ICN is a fantastic opportunity to bring the international nutrition community together to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee, as the first ICN was held in 1946.

The ICN will take place in the Tokyo International Forum, an iconic state-of-the-art conference venue in the heart of Tokyo.  Delegates have the chance to not only experience the board scientific knowledge gained by attending the Congress but also an opportunity to fully immerse in Japanese culture, history, entertainment and cuisine.

New FAO publication: Layman’s guide to food safety in Asia and the Pacific

There are various elements connected to food safety and it can be challenging to group them together under the food safety umbrella. In fact, keeping up the pace with the contemporary reality can be challenging, and more and more areas related to food safety emerge: it could be challenging to recognize and trace the links.

In June 2021, the FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific published a booklet entitled “Layman’s guide to food safety in Asia and the Pacific – Introduction to the food safety toolkit”. The booklet provides a small and unconventional handbook that introduces various food safety topics, provides reference documents and offers ideas to consider.

Food allergies, fake news, new technologies, raw foods safety: these and more topics are discussed in the booklet, each one with relevant references from FAO and other international organizations. The guide also serves as an index for the entire food safety toolkit, a collection of nine booklets, and outlines lesser discussed topics of food safety on which readers are invited to read more.

Download the publication FAO Food safety toolkit booklet 1 – Layman’s guide to food safety in Asia and the Pacific – Introduction to the food safety toolkit

Food safety toolkit for Asia and the Pacific

·         Layman’s guide to food safety in Asia and the Pacific – Introduction to the food safety toolkit

·         Backyard farming and slaughtering – Keeping tradition safe

·         Investing in food safety for global benefits – A concrete case in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries

·         Food allergies – Leaving no one behind

·         Food frauds – Intention, detection and management

·         Organic food – Are they safer?

·         Parasites in foods – An invisible threat

·         Slowing down superbugs – Legislations and antimicrobial resistance (AMR)   

·         Measuring food safety – Indicators to achieve sustainable development goals (SDGs)

For more information:

Food safety page – FAO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay

Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism – IUNS News

The IUNS and one of our long-standing collaborative partners, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) have recently enhanced the scope of our collaboration. Cornelia Loechl, Head of the Nutritional and Health-Related Environmental Studies Section of IAEA and IUNS Secretary General, Catherine Geissler co-authored a report on these discussions for the IUNS News featured in the Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, April 2020 edition (Ann Nutr Metab 2020;76:441–442), available now on the Annals website.

Read More

Schoolgirl in Haiti receiving WFP meal. Photo: WFP/Antoine Vallas

School Feeding Coalition Formation: A Game Changing Effort

The number of children living in households that are struggling to put food on the table has doubled during the pandemic, approximately “38 million children were acutely hungry in 2019 and the pandemic could push this further… taking the total to 74 million”. Under the coordination of UN Nutrition, a coalition on school feeding is being formed in 2021 to address these challenges, in the context of the Food Systems Summit and key education sector discussions such as the Global Education Forum, Global Education Summit.

The IUNS International Malnutrition Task Force has been actively involved the early stages of the formation of this coalition. An update is available to provide information on the evolution of the coalition formation and provides information for those interested in joining the coalition.

Update on School Feeding coalition discussions March 2021Download
Credit: WFP/Ahmed Haleem

New Publication: IUNS TF and World Food Programme- State of School Feeding Worldwide 2020 Report

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) has launched the current report analysing the State of School Feeding Worldwide, an inter-agency undertaking with extensive engagement of UNESCO, UNICEF and others. The IUNS International Malnutrition Task Force has worked directly with the inter-agency group.
The report includes “A paediatric nutritionist’s perspective on food, schools and school feeding”, contributed by the Co-Chair of the IUNS International Malnutrition Task Force, Prof. Alan A. Jackson.


The report uses the best available data sources to describe key aspects of coverage, implementation practices and costs of school-based health and nutrition programmes worldwide. Additionally the report seeks to analyse the direction and scale of change between the previous report (2013) and 2020, and to provide an update on advances in evidence and understanding of school feeding programmes. The report includes analysis of the impact the COVID-19 Pandemic has had on the global growth of school feeding programmes.

The report is available here State of School Feeding Worldwide 2020 | World Food Programme (wfp.org)


During 2020 the UN Network for the Scaling Up Nutrition (SUN) Movement and the UN System Standing Committee on Nutrition (UNSCN) merged to form UN Nutrition. This inter-agency collaboration is focused on tackling School Feeding and the effective prevention and treatment of severe malnutrition infants and young children. The International Malnutrition Task Force will continue engagement with the activities of UN Nutrition.