We have much to celebrate with the IAFNS community. From 20+ scientific peer-reviewed articles published in 2023 to our collaborations across the food and beverage ecosystem, IAFNS advances actionable science in support of public health every day.
A scientific nonprofit, IAFNS funds research and convenes scientists to advance precompetitive research on nutrition, food safety and food packaging sustainability. As an independent organization, we support tens of thousands of professionals with the useful food safety and nutrition knowledge.
IAFNS tripartite operating model spans the university, industry and government sectors where officials from each serve on all committees and working groups. IAFNS members connect, collaborate and catalyze science across the public and private sectors. Over the course of 2023, IAFNS hosted 24 workshops, webinars, conferences and scientific meetings — with many events being recorded and made publicly accessible. In 2023, IAFNS’ events garnered over 6,000 views on YouTube. IAFNS supported science is regularly presented at outside scientific conferences and internationally.
This year IAFNS mobilized knowledge by issuing over 25 news releases on the scientific research we supported. This outreach resulted in over 746 earned media pick-ups on IAFNS science in outlets including Yahoo!, The Miami Herald, US News & World Report, UPI and the trade press. IAFNS also published 10 Op-Eds demonstrating thought leadership and sharing helpful technical information with food safety and nutrition professionals, government officials, healthcare leaders and scholars across Canada and the U.S.
IAFNS has secured external validation of its scientific integrity and transparency practices, which ensure that funding is fully disclosed and that studies are pre-registered. In 2023, IAFNS earned again the Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid — the most rigorous level of transparency from the world’s largest database of nonprofit organizations. IAFNS is committed to scientific integrity, including the publication of all funded research. Also, IAFNS holds that the credibility of science should be judged on the merits of study design, methodology and validity of the conclusions – not the funding source of the science.
IAFNS pursues science to impact and to benefit the public. The governance structure includes a Board which is co-led by scientists from the public sector and the private sector. Further, the Board Program Committee, which is majority public sector, reviews and must approve each new IAFNS project prior to initiation.
We are excited about our January 24-31, 2024, special webinar series on the roles of sodium in foods and the myriad of other webinars and scientific presentations slated for the new year. The IAFNS community looks forward to celebrating our third anniversary in February 2024! We also hope to see you June 4-5 at our Annual Meeting and Science Symposium at the National Press Club in Washington D.C.
Thank you for your support of IAFNS in 2023. We look forward to continuing to advance science with you in 2024!