Proceedings of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS) 20th International Congress of Nutrition.

Introduction On 15–20 September 2013, the Spanish Society of Nutrition (SEÑ) organized the 20th International Congress of Nutrition (ICN) in Granada, Spain, on behalf of the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS). Since its founding >6 decades ago, the IUNS has remained true to the guiding principle of its mission “to promote the advancement of the science of nutrition, research, and development through international cooperation globally.” The ICN is organized every 4 y by a different adhering body and normally in a different region of the world to facilitate more opportunities for young nutrition scientists to share their experience with the international scientific community. Transparent in all actions, the IUNS works in partnerships but places public interests first, and scientists representing the IUNS are involved in different activities of international organizations and agencies of the United Nations System. These are carried out at regional and global levels and include noncommunicable disease prevention, food and nutrition surveillance systems, food quality and safety, and monitoring and evaluation of nutrition intervention programs. To facilitate cooperation with the private sector to sponsor the organization of its scientific events, the IUNS published guidelines, which are binding for fundraising efforts of the host of the ICN (http://www.unscn.org/files/Publications/SCN_News/SCNNEWS39_10.01_low_def.pdf). Connections to the private sector are encouraged but chosen carefully, always bearing in mind the independent sciencebased and credible profile of the IUNS. Despite a concurrent economic crisis in Spain, the 20th ICN received financial assistance from 63 international agencies and several local institutions. Fifty-two food and nutrition associations and companies sponsored the event, which allowed us to support the participation of young scientists from both developed and developing countries through travel grants. Furthermore, the 20th ICN provided subsidized rates for students and delegates from lowand middle-income countries. The ICN serves as a global forum for interactions in research and information exchange, and important global topics in nutrition form the basis for substantial parts of the scientific program. Traditionally, the ICN offers a unique global forum where almost all disciplines of nutrition, diet, and health are considered and where results of basic and applied research projects are presented. Also, the ICN provides a recognized platform to discuss research outcomes and views of projects conducted at multinational, regional, and global levels. Indeed, the 20th ICN Congress provided a broad platform to discuss experiences in the fields of nutrition research, human nutritional requirements, the roles of nutrition in the promotion and prevention of chronic noncommunicable diseases, and nutrition education, the composition of foods, and the role of bioactive food components on health and well-being in different food cultures. Likewise, food safety and consumer protection and food production and environmental sustainability worldwide were included. For 2014 we planned a comprehensive Congress under the theme “Joining Cultures through Nutrition” to promote nutrition and healthy lifestyles to people on a sustainable planet. Hence, the 20th ICN offered a modern and attractive Congress, joining different cultures, traditions, and knowledge with respect to new aspects of nutrition research, development, and innovation around the world. Being conscious of the broad range of professionals working in the different fields of nutritional sciences, the 20th ICN featured a “track” design of audience segmentation by grouping related subthemes and ensuring the inclusion of sessions from scientific knowledge to application. 1 Published in a supplement to Advances in Nutrition. Presented at the International Union of Nutritional Sciences (IUNS) 20th International Congress of Nutrition (ICN) held in Granada, Spain, 15–20 September 2013. The IUNS and the 20th ICN wish to thank the California Walnut Commission and Mead Johnson Nutrition for generously providing educational grants to support the publication and distribution of proceedings from the 20th ICN. The contents of this supplement are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent official views of the IUNS. The supplement coordinators for this supplement were Angel Gil, Jose Alfredo Martinez, and Ibrahim Elmadfa. The supplement coordinators had no conflicts of interest to disclose. 2 Author disclosure: A. Gil, no conflict of interest. * To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: [email protected]