Managing Food Chain Risks (RELU-RISK)

Biography

Professor Monique Raats is a senior academic and research leader with more than 35 years of experience in developing interdisciplinary research, securing external funding, and translating evidence into policy, practice and societal impact. Originally trained as a nutrition scientist, she has built an internationally recognised interdisciplinary research portfolio spanning behavioural and social sciences, public health, health services research, healthy ageing, sustainability, governance and implementation.

Professor Raats is an inclusive, evidence-led leader with extensive experience directing large multidisciplinary programmes and fostering collaborations across universities, government, healthcare, social care, industry and international organisations. She previously served as Founding Co-Director of the University of Surrey's Institute for Sustainability and as Associate Dean for Research and Innovation in the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, where she led research strategy, infrastructure development and cross-faculty/university collaboration.

She is Director of the Food, Consumer Behaviour and Health (FCBH) Research Centre, one of Europe's leading centres for interdisciplinary food-related research. Together with the Department of Nutritional Sciences, FCBH was awarded the prestigious 2017/2018 Queen’s Anniversary Prize in recognition of its internationally outstanding research and impact.

Research

Professor Raats' research focuses on understanding how individuals, organisations and systems influence food-related behaviours, health outcomes and sustainable lifestyles. Her work integrates behavioural, social, policy and systems perspectives to address major societal challenges including healthy ageing, obesity, public health, food security and sustainability.

Key areas of research include:

• Behavioural and policy interventions that support healthier and more sustainable lifestyles
• Social, ethical and governance dimensions of food, health and sustainability challenges
• Food systems research that examines the interactions of stakeholders across complex food environments
• Innovation in food consumer science through new data sources, data linkage methods and interdisciplinary approaches
• Public health nutrition and the implementation of evidence into policy and practice

Her research has employed a wide range of qualitative, quantitative and mixed-methods approaches and has informed policy development, health promotion initiatives and stakeholder engagement across multiple sectors.

Career and Scholarly Contributions

Prior to joining the University of Surrey, Professor Raats held positions at the Institute of Food Research (now the Quadram Institute), Health Education Authority and University of Oxford.

She has published more than 160 peer-reviewed journal articles, numerous professional and policy publications, over 20 book chapters, and has co-edited two influential volumes:

• The Psychology of Food Choice (2006)
• Food for the Ageing Population (1st edition 2009;  2nd edition 2016)

Her work has contributed significantly to the development of behavioural nutrition, food choice research, healthy ageing and public health policy.

National and International Leadership

From 2011 to 2018, Professor Raats served on the UK Government's Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN)  and was a member of its Subgroup on Maternal and Child Nutrition, contributing evidence and expertise to national nutrition policy and guidance.

She is also a founding member of the International Society of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity. Between 2001 and 2006 she served on the Society's Board of Directors and was Secretary from 2004 to 2006. ISBNPA has become the leading international learned society for researchers working at the intersection of diet, physical activity, behaviour and health, and supports excellence in research through its annual congress and the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity.

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Biography

Richard Shepherd is an Emeritus Professor of Psychology, having retired in August 2011. He obtained degrees in Natural Sciences from Cambridge and in Psychology from Cardiff and Southampton. He was a Research Fellow at the University of Surrey and then worked at the Institute of Food Research from 1982 to 1998, initially in Norwich and then in Reading, before joining the University of Surrey as a Reader.

He has carried out research on a range of issues related to the factors influencing food choice. In particular this has involved the development and application of social cognition models to food choice issues and the exploration of the factors influencing dietary change. He has also conducted research on the perception of risk and risk communication particularly in relation to food issues. He has published widely in all of these areas of research, including editing two books.

He has directed research funded by BBSRC, ESRC, MAFF, FSA, Wellcome Trust and industry, in addition to several collaborative European projects funded by the EU. He is a Chartered Psychologist and a Fellow of the British Psychological Society. In the past Richard has been a member of the UK Food Standards Agency Social Science Research Committee, Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) Social Science Expert Advisory Group and the ESRC Grant Assessment Panel. 

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