'The Global Focus of Food Science Excellence’

Dear IAFoST Fellows,

The Academy Executive Council (AEC) of the International Academy of Food Science and Technology (IAFoST) for 2024-2026 needs your help and involvement.

IAFoST, the global focus of food science excellence, with its repository of expertise and experience, acts as a think tank of IUFoST in promoting food science and technology, stimulating education and training, and fostering international cooperation and exchange of knowledge and ideas. Key focus areas include Food Processing and the debate around UPF and various classifications, curricula for the future, food safety curricula guidelines, training and empowerment from local to international in the discipline and exchange and work in the multi-disciplinary areas. 

The global food situation has worsened, and the challenges of food security and safety have been aggravated. Consequently, IUFoST has become even more relevant, particularly in three critical areas.

• The first is communication and knowledge sharing and IUFoST as the global voice of food science and technology must continue to reach out through every means available.  
• The second is around research, education and capacity building. 
• The third is in the area of project development and implementation, with IUFoST working closely with Adhering Bodies and international organisations, including United Nations agencies, the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS) and other scientific organisations under the International Science Council (ISC) to address global food and nutrition security and food safety issues, scaling up local solutions to address global problems.

These solutions need to reach regulatory bodies before decisions not based on sound science are implemented that will have ramifications for the safety and security of the food supply in all countries.

IAFoST is expected to provide the needed leadership, expertise and experience to help drive these initiatives. To this end, we wish to request that you kindly indicate specific areas in which you can bring your expertise, experience and connections to bear in driving these initiatives and contributing to the work of IUFoST.

To that end we attach an information request in a fillable format that we can draw on to ensure that we all are engaged to provide the necessary leadership, expertise and scientific communication from our discipline. There is room too for you to indicate where you will volunteer your services in areas beyond those mentioned in the form. An expert communicators network will be one of the foundations of our work as well as a database outlining your areas of expertise to be used by all those in need of mentorship and advice in our IAFoST and IUFoST global community.

Your response through this form is requested by April 2, 2025.

 We welcome the opening of these important communications with you, and we will do our best to respond quickly and effectively to your direction. 

 

Academy Executive Council

Fereidoon Shahidi, Pingfan Rao, Charles Aworh, Cristina Silva, Cesarettin Alasalvar