Nutrition science receives a financial boost

The BNF Drummond Pump Priming Awards and the Nutrition Science Communications Awards have been launched to encourage greater understanding of nutrition science and support financially those embarking on academic careers in the subject.

To help newly-appointed university lecturers and research fellows in human nutrition to undertake the pilot work needed to generate data that can be used as the basis of a more substantial grant application, the BNF will be providing two grants this year, each of £5,000.

Applicants must be working in the field of human nutrition and will normally be within three years of their first academic appointment.

There is no restriction on the type of study, but preference will be given to studies involving humans (in vivo, in vitro and ex vivo human studies). The funding should be used to obtain pilot data that will lead to a major grant application.

BNF Drummond Pump Priming Award​

The deadline for the BNF Drummond Pump Priming Award​ is 31 January 31 2013.

The BNF Drummond Nutrition Science Communication Awards​ celebrate and reward excellence in the promotion of nutrition science to different audiences. The awards will be presented annually to health professionals, nutritionists and school teachers. They comprise a commemorative certificate, presented at the prestigious BNF Annual Day, and a prize to support the winners in their careers.

Roy Ballam, BNF education programme manager, said: “We are delighted to provide the fantastic opportunity, via the BNF Drummond Awards, to celebrate and reward the high quality achievement in communicating nutrition at various career stages. These Awards continue our objective of advancing knowledge of nutrition and promoting education and research.”​

The BNF was established over 40 years ago and exists to deliver authoritative, evidence-based information on food and nutrition in the context of health and lifestyle.

Nutrition science, education and media activities​

BNF’s work is conducted and communicated through a unique blend of nutrition science, education and media activities. BNF is a registered charity that attracts funding from a variety of sources, including contracts with the European Commission, national government departments and agencies; food producers and manufacturers, retailers and foodservice companies; grant providing bodies, trusts and other charities.

Last year the BNF took over the management of the Drummond Memorial Fund, previously administered by a board of Trustees from University College London, the University of Cambridge and the University of Edinburgh.

The Fund was established in 1954 in memory of Sir Jack Drummond who made a significant contribution to developments in the application of nutrition science for public health. Notably during the Second World War he worked as scientific advisor to the Ministry of Food and was responsible for the Wartime Food Survey, which was initiated to monitor the diet and nutritional intake of households and to inform recommendations for a nutrition strategy for a war-torn nation. He was knighted in 1944.