For today’s big dietetic debate, we're delighted to be joined by registered nutritionist and regulatory affairs consultant Sue Oldreive. Having been a consultant in this area for 11 years and worked with people such as the probiotic company Symprove, Sue is the perfect guest for this episode as we explore why it’s so challenging to communicate the science of probiotics to consumers. We’ll dig into why the word probiotic is considered a health claim and the impact that this has on companies marketing products, on consumers seeking out these products and on healthcare professionals advising patients.

Sue became a consultant in Nutrition and Regulatory affairs 11 years ago – after working for a Global direct sales company, UK retailer and for the UK Government as a Nutritionist and Food Scientist. Her work has been hugely varied from sampling grass in Yorkshire through to briefing Ministers, being the company spokesperson on nutrition and promoting nutrition and product training with many companies. Nowadays, Sue uses her knowledge to help clients find their balance with marketing messages, as well as creating and managing evidence bases for compliance. She will always champion training to anyone who will listen!Sue keeps the demands of work in perspective by living with a high-maintenance husband, a highly curious “almost-adult” and a highly competitive teen. Throw in 3 guinea pigs, 2 horses and one opinionated chicken and you have the context for a successful Food and Nutrition Consultant.

Just one final thing before we wrap up today’s episode… An exciting announcement! Are you a dietitian, nutrition professional or student? The BDA Industry Specialist Group has officially been launched! The group will represent dietitians working in all areas of industry where the research, development and product of nutritional products, services, resources and communications are the main outputs. If you’d like to find out more about the group and the committee, visit the BDA website https://www.bda.uk.com/specialist-groups-and-branches/dietitians-in-industry-specialist-group.html and for more regular updates, follow them on LinkedIn (BDA Industry Specialist Group) and Twitter (@BDA_Industry).Thank you for listening to the Dietitian Café podcast, and our next episode will be out soon.

Show Notes:

Sue’s twitter handle: @SueOldreive

https://www.symprove.com/pages/symproveforprofessionals