The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated Denmark’s Research Group for Risk Benefit at the DTU National Food Institute as a new WHO Collaborating Centre for Risk and Benefits of Foods and Diets, the agency announced. The centre, based in Kgs. Lyngby, will help WHO strengthen global work on food safety, nutrition, and evidence-based dietary guidance.
The new centre will support WHO’s efforts to better understand the global burden of foodborne diseases and develop integrated methods for assessing both the risks and benefits of different foods. The goal is to provide countries with tools and data to design healthier, safer, and more sustainable diets—reducing preventable illness linked to contaminated or unhealthy foods.
As one of WHO’s designated collaborating centres, the DTU team will work closely with WHO experts to advance three main priorities: improving the quality of foodborne disease data worldwide; developing a combined risk-benefit assessment framework that considers microbial, chemical, and nutritional factors along with sustainability; and strengthening national capacity so countries can conduct their own assessments and act on the findings.
“With robust scientific expertise, this new collaboration will help WHO and its Member States build policies that protect people’s health while promoting nutritious and safe food,” the organization said.
The centre joins WHO’s global network of more than 800 collaborating institutions that contribute technical knowledge and research in key areas of public health. Its establishment underscores WHO’s growing emphasis on tackling the health impacts of unsafe and imbalanced diets—one of the leading causes of preventable disease worldwide.
