Massey University’s Distinguished Professor Paul Moughan to chair the International Symposium on Dietary Protein for Human Health

Protein expert Distinguished Professor Paul Moughan is chairing an international protein conference about global food shortages and protein nutrition issues.

New Zealand protein experts will feature at a United Nations-sponsored international protein summit in the Netherlands.

Massey University’s Distinguished Professor Paul Moughan, Riddet Institute Fellow Laureate, is chairing the International Symposium on Dietary Protein for Human Health at Utrecht from September 14 to 16.

The conference will cover a broad range of topics, from the nutrient requirements of specific age groups, to solving problems of sustainability and global availability of food.

Along with Moughan, a leading authority on protein and nutrition, six scientists presenting at the event are either New Zealand researchers or have Massey University connections as Riddet Fellows.

The New Zealand-based presenters aligned with Massey University via the Riddet Institute are senior research officer Dr Suzanne Hodgkinson, Adjunct Professor Barbara Burlingame, research officer Dr Sylvia Chungchunlam, and Riddet Fellow Dr Andrew Fletcher of Fonterra.

A total of 37 scientists will speak at the summit.

“This is a milestone conference,” Moughan says. “It will provide a forum for debate to inform the complex issues around protein and amino acid nutrition and sustainable food production.

“Sufficient and efficient food protein production by 2050 is a looming global issue. The gathering in Utrecht will feature the world’s leading scientists in the field.”

The Riddet Institute is hosted by Massey University in Palmerston North and focuses on fundamental and advanced food research. The symposium is co-organised by Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the Riddet Institute and Wageningen University, and is being held in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Presented in-person and virtually, the dietary protein symposium’s proceedings are to appear in a leading open-access journal. Original research will be published and presented in posters and selected oral sessions.