New global initiative to train food scientists and expand food composition database
The American Heart Association and The Rockefeller Foundation are spearheading a pioneering research fellowship programme aimed at advancing our understanding of food composition and its impact on human and planetary health.
Good Food Fellows programme launched
In a bold move to address the global challenges of diet-related diseases and unsustainable agricultural practices, the American Heart Association has announced the launch of the Good Food Fellows programme. This initiative, supported by The Rockefeller Foundation, is part of the broader Periodic Table of Food Initiative (PTFI) and aims to train a new generation of scientists to expand our collective understanding of food composition.
The programme will support graduate students and early career researchers in low- and middle-income countries, providing them with research training and grants focused on the study of food quality. The inaugural cohort comprises 38 fellows who will contribute their research findings to the PTFI’s global database.
Comprehensive food composition analysis
At the heart of the Good Food Fellows programme is the use of advanced omics technologies to map the biomolecular composition of the world’s edible biodiversity. This approach will allow researchers to characterise both known and unknown components in food, coupled with food system attributes.
Dr J. Bruce German, American Heart Association volunteer and member of the Food EDU curriculum advisory committee, commented: “The entire world is facing a daunting challenge: to revolutionise agriculture and food into an enterprise that is both supportive of human health and sustainable for the planet. The Periodic Table of Food Initiative and Food EDU will now provide young scientists from around the world with the food data and training they need to meet that challenge.”
Global centres of excellence
Six academic institutions have been selected as Periodic Table of Food Initiative Centres of Excellence. These centres, located in Colombia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Ghana, Mexico, and Thailand, will generate comprehensive food composition data and train the next generation of global scientists working at the intersection of foodomics, agriculture, nutrition, and health.
Each centre will fund six or seven fellows over a two-year period, primarily master’s or doctoral students, as well as early career researchers. The programme includes training on various omics platforms, community-engaged research, and science communication, accompanied by formal mentorships and networking opportunities.
Research projects
The fellows’ research projects cover a wide range of topics, including:
- The nutritional and medicinal value of underutilised food crops
- Effects of climate change on crops
- Community knowledge and spiritual attachment to foods
- Nutrients in commonly consumed foods
- Metabolism of bioactive compounds in local foods
- Eating habits related to diabetes risk
Dr Selena Ahmed, dean of Food EDU and global director of the Periodic Table of Food Initiative at the American Heart Association, emphasised the programme’s broader goals: “We started the Good Food Fellows programme as an incubator to build capacity, with food at the centre of workforce development. Key to our vision is building the capacity to translate knowledge to inform decision-making. We see the Good Food Fellows programme as a vehicle for food systems transformation to better support people and the planet.”
Food EDU: A comprehensive educational platform
The Good Food Fellows programme is part of Food EDU, an open-access platform providing online courses, global case studies, and other educational and professional development opportunities for scientists, policymakers, and food and health practitioners worldwide.
Food EDU’s inaugural course track, Foodomics & Society, expands on the science of food composition by highlighting the broad spectrum of biomolecules in food. The course addresses food biomolecular connections to food systems, human nutrition, agricultural practices, climate, and dietary guidelines.
International collaboration and support
Food EDU is jointly facilitated by the American Heart Association and the Alliance of Bioversity & CIAT (International Center for Tropical Agriculture) as co-secretariats of the PTFI. Both Food EDU and the Good Food Fellows programme are supported by The Rockefeller Foundation.
Dr Warangkana (Nadine) Srichamnong, programme director of the Centre of Excellence in Asia at Mahidol University, highlighted the international nature of the initiative: “This is an exciting opportunity to learn and share experiences related to food and food culture through different contexts, and in this case different continents. Projects selected by Good Food Fellows will help us to understand the effect of food processing, farm management and crop variety on food composition.”
As the American Heart Association celebrates its centenary in 2024, this initiative represents a significant step towards addressing global health and environmental challenges through advanced food science research and education. With its focus on training the next generation of food scientists and expanding our understanding of food composition, the Good Food Fellows programme and Food EDU platform are poised to make substantial contributions to the fields of nutrition, agriculture, and planetary health in the years to come.
