ILSI 2021 Annual Symposium Session 8: COVID-19: Nutritional Vulnerabilities and Food Supply Challenges

Thursday, April 22, 8:00 – 10:30 am US Eastern Time

Session Co-Chairs: Philip Calder, PhD, University of Southampton, United Kingdom and Geoffry Smith, Nutrition Strategies International Pte. Ltd., Singapore

Presenters and panelists include:

Geoffry Smith Philip Calder Tamas Fülöp Paul de Vos Paul Ziemnisky

Geoffry Smith

Mr. Geoffry Smith is President of the ILSI Southeast Asia Region based in Singapore, branch co-representative to the global ILSI Assembly, and past Member of the Executive Committee of the global ILSI Board. He is the Chairman of the Essential Micronutrients Foundation, a non-profit organization which addresses micronutrient deficiencies globally as a public health issue. In addition, he’s Director of Nutrition Strategies International, which deals with food and nutrition issues in developing countries. Author of a number of papers on nutrition and dietary issues, he serves as a member of the editorial board of the journal Food and Nutrition Bulletin. Prior to his current positions, Mr. Smith was the Global Director, Health Chelates for AkzoNobel Functional Chemicals, and directed the global business for these compounds in food and nutrition, as well as pharmaceutical applications. He was responsible for the global project within AkzoNobel addressing iron deficiency anemia. He is a thirty-year veteran of the chemical industry in Asia-Pacific and globally, and has resided in Singapore for more than 25 years. He is a member of the Nutrition Society of the UK, the American Society of Nutrition and the American Chemical Society.

Philip Calder

Control of Viral Infection: what is the Role of Nutrition? Philip Calder, PhD, University of Southampton, United Kingdom

Abstract: This presentation will provide an overview of anti-viral immunity and will go on to discuss the roles of frailty, obesity and specific nutrients on anti-viral immunity. Nutrients discussed will include vitamin D, vitamin C, zinc and selenium. Evidence will be mainly draw from research in humans.

Philip Calder is Professor of Nutritional Immunology in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton. He is an internationally recognized researcher on the metabolism and functionality of fatty acids, with an emphasis on the roles of omega-3 fatty acids, and on the influence of diet and nutrients on the immune and inflammatory responses. His research addresses both life course and translational considerations and includes research in cell and animal models and in healthy humans and patients.

Tamas Fülöp

Aging and immunity, Tamas Fülöp, PhD, University of Sherbrooke, Canada

Abstract: There are many physiological changes that come with aging. One of the most important changes to occur is in the immune system, which is referred to as immunosenescence. Immunosenescence affects both arms of the immune response: the innate and the adaptive immune response. During this presentation, I will describe how aging affects the phenotypes and the functions of the cells of the immune system. I will also discuss the mechanisms leading to these alterations. The corollary of this immunosenescence is inflammaging, which represents a low grade, clinically silent, chronic inflammatory state. The clinical importance of these immune alterations will also be presented.

Tamas Fülöp, MD, PhD, is Professor of Medicine and Geriatrics, and Senior Researcher at the Research Center on Aging at the University of Sherbrooke, Québec, Canada. He obtained his MD degree at Geneva University. He received his PhD in Biochemistry and Immunology from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and was a post-doctoral fellow at University Paris XII in Biochemistry. He is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. Dr. Fülöp's research is focused on immune response changes in T cells and neutrophils and the mechanism of inflammation with aging and age-related diseases in humans, including dementia and cardiovascular diseases. He is the editor-in-chief of the journal Gerontology.

Paul de Vos

Dietary fibers and immunity, Paul de Vos, PhD, University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands

Abstract: By development of new analytical and cellular approaches to characterize dietary fibers and its effects, we are more than ever able to identify efficacious immune regulating carbohydrates. These efforts have shown in recent years that not all carbohydrates have the same effects in different age classes and health disorders. Efficacy depends on the chemistry of the carbohydrates and can be helpful in the continuous fight against mucosal infectious agents.

The de Vos-group based at the University Medical Center Groningen, The Netherlands is multidisciplinary and composed of immunologists, polymer-chemists, and endocrinologists. Research efforts go from basic knowledge of carbohydrates, microorganisms to stimulation of pattern-recognition receptors and related immunological properties. More than 270 peer-reviewed manuscripts have published by the de Vos-group. The group is focusing on function-effector relationships between specific carbohydrates and the host immune or endocrine system.

Paul Ziemnisky

COVID-19 and the Food Supply Chain Disruption, Paul Ziemnisky, MBA, Dairy Management Inc., United States

Abstract: This presentation will discuss how the dairy industry has been disrupted in various food supply and service channels due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The author will highlight these channels, such as food service in retail, schools and areas experiencing food insecurity, with examples of disruption and how members of the dairy industry worked together to quickly address it.

Paul Ziemnisky is Executive Vice President, Domestic Partnerships, Dairy Management Inc. (DMI). Paul is a senior brand marketing, innovation and general management executive with more than 20 years of consumer package goods marketing, innovation and finance experience in a wide range of industries. Paul’s experience includes managing brands and leading innovation for well-known brands such as Kraft, Velveeta, Tombstone, DiGiorno, Rust-Oleum, First Alert and Cats Pride. Paul has guided brands with revenue from $100 million to over $1 billion, while launching more than $500 million of new product platforms. Prior to joining Dairy Management, Paul served in senior-level positions at companies including Kraft Foods, Jarden Safety, Rust-Oleum and Oil-Dri Corporation. In the EVP role, Paul leads DMI’s sales growth strategies, fluid milk revitalization program and domestic channel partnership efforts.