Goals in Nutrition Science 2025–2030

By:
Elliot M. Berry, Barbara R. Cardoso, Sean B. Cash, Alejandro Cifuentes, Maria Carmen Collado, Johannes le Coutre, J. Bruce German, Elena Ibáñez, Mark Lawrence, David C. Nieman, Igor Pravst, David Raubenheimer, Michael Rychlik, Andrew Scholey, Annalisa Ter
Date:
2026
Resource type:
Peer review

This comprehensive review article outlines the major priorities, emerging challenges, and future directions for nutrition science between 2025 and 2030. The paper emphasizes that nutrition, food security, sustainability, and planetary health are inseparable components of complex adaptive food systems. The authors argue that modern nutrition science must evolve beyond reductionist nutrient-focused approaches toward integrated systems thinking that considers environmental, social, economic, and technological dimensions simultaneously.

A major theme of the article is the need to strengthen resilient and sustainable food systems amid climate change, geopolitical instability, pandemics, and global market disruptions. The review introduces the concept of food systems as “Complex Adaptive Systems” (CAS), where food production, distribution, policy, consumer behavior, and environmental factors interact dynamically. The article highlights strategies such as localized supply chains, adaptive governance, diversified agriculture, and community-centered food systems to improve resilience and equity.