Initiative benefits food research

AN initiative by University College Dublin to bring a number of scientific disciplines together to benefit national food safety research was launched yesterday.

UCD president Dr Art Cosgrove launched the Centre for Food Safety at a conference in the university.

Academics engaged in food safety-related teaching and research across the UCD campus will share their expertise.

The aim will be to advance food safety knowledge to protect consumers’ health and the reputation of the multi-billion euro Irish agri-food sector.

Dr Cosgrove said Irish food businesses are competing on a global stage. Freer movement of goods would emerge from the current WTO round in Mexico.

European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) chief executive Geoffrey Podger said there was urgent need for collaboration between scientists to ensure multi-disciplinary research.

Centre director Professor Shea Fanning said with more than one third of the population overweight, Ireland could anticipate immense future health problems unless healthy nutrition was fully addressed.