Top Institute Food and Nutrition (TIFN)

The public-private partnership Top Institute Food and Nutrition provides a knowledge base for sustainable innovation in food and nutrition. The Partnership joins forces of enterprise and research institutes active in food and nutrition. The collaboration with partners has resulted in an effective approach for sharing knowledge and for integration of TIFN’s latest research insights into the partners’ own R&D activities.

Projects are within research themes Cardiovascular Health, Gastrointestinal Health, Muscle Health and Function, Weight Management, Food Structuring, Sensory-Liking, Texture-Taste, Functional Fermentation, Food Safety and Preservation, Oral Health, Food Chain Sustainability and Dynamics and in three cross-theme knowledge platforms: Platform Bacterial Genomics, Platform Knowledge Management and Platform Nutrigenomics.

Over the past two years, also international partners like PepsiCo, joined this initiative. Moreover, in agreement with the industry, TIFN decided to turn the individual project on muscle health into a whole new research theme, Muscle Health and Function, focused on muscle function and composition in the frail elderly and athletes. Since 1998, TIFN has 21 patent families granted, >1000 peer reviewed publications and 130 PhD theses performed. The annual turnover is €25 million , 280 scientists employed. Partners in the period 2011-2014: 21 Industry partners and 6 Research partners.