New Vice President of the DGE: Prof. Dr. Buyken takes on an important role!

New Vice President of the DGE: Prof. Dr. Buyken takes on an important role!

On October 8, 2025, Prof. Dr. Anette Buyken elected as the new Vice President of the German Nutrition Society (DGE). The election took place during the general meeting in September and now secures her a three-year term of office. Buyken has been a nutritionist at the University of Paderborn since 2017, where she leads the “Public Health Nutrition” working group. Her research focuses on primary prevention of diet-related diseases and health promotion. Another focus of her work is addressing nutritional environments that influence people's nutritional behavior.

The DGE plays a central role in nutritional advice and education in Germany. It coordinates the quality of nutritional advice and develops scientifically based, independent educational materials and programs for professionals in the areas of nutritional advice, public health and mass catering. These initiatives are supported by continuing education courses that cover both scientific content and practical consulting techniques. The DGE also publishes advice standards that provide professional guidelines for qualified nutritional advice. These standards include recommendations on nutrients and foods as well as the evaluation of different diets.

The new management structure of the DGE

With the election of Prof. Dr. Buyken, the DGE Executive Board will be supplemented by experienced members. Her predecessor, Prof. Dr. Bernhard Watzl was President of the DGE until 2022. Subsequently, Prof. Dr. Britta Renner took over the presidency after previously serving in the role of vice president. In addition, Prof. Dr. Ute Nöthlings from the Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität Bonn was also elected vice president. The newly elected executive board consists of a total of eight additional experts from various nutritional science disciplines.

The DGE is institutionally supported by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Community (BMLEH), which underlines its important role in public health and nutrition education. Nowadays, such organizations are essential to ensure the quality of nutritional advice and to educate the population about healthy diets.

The responsibility of the DGE

The DGE aims to provide evidence-based information that is understandable for both professionals and the general population. This includes developing nutritional guidelines tailored to the needs of different populations, including people with specific health conditions. This reflects the DGE's commitment to ensuring and promoting scientifically based and practical nutrition education.

The nutritionists and specialists who work in the DGE work every day to translate nutritional topics that are relevant and up-to-date and to make them accessible to society. The DGE and its members, including the newly elected Vice President Prof. Dr. Anette Buyken, play a crucial role in formulating guidelines and recommendations that can positively influence people's nutritional behavior.