The Steering Group Advisory Committee (Advisory Committee) has been established to guide the review of the Nutrient Reference Values for Australia and New Zealand including Recommended Dietary Intakes

Established by a CEO delegate under section 39 of the National Health and Medical Research Council Act 1992, the Advisory Committee provides advice to a Steering Group which is comprised of representatives from NHMRC, the Department of Health and the New Zealand Ministry of Health.

The Advisory Committee also guides the work of the nutrient-specific expert working groups:

Members were selected to ensure appropriate expertise in nutrition, micronutrients, end user needs, toxicology, public health, research, chronic disease and macronutrients/ total diet.

Terms of reference

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) has established the Steering Group Advisory Committee (Advisory Committee) to guide the review of the Nutrient Reference Values for Australia and New Zealand (NRVs).  

The Steering Group Advisory Committee will: 

  1. Provide advice to a Steering Group comprised representatives from NHMRC, the Department of Health, and the New Zealand Ministry of Health. 
  2. Provide expert advice to the Steering Group on priority nutrients for review. 
  3. Advise on additional required expertise for the nutrient Expert Working Groups. 
  4. Provide periodic advice and guidance to the Steering Group on review processes and NRV development as required, including advising on methodology for the review of Nutrient Reference Values.  
  5. Review outcomes from the nutrient reviews. 
  6. Provide advice on any risks associated with draft NRV recommendations. 
  7. Provide advice on the outcomes of public consultation on any of the NRVs reviewed. 

Appointments to the Steering Group Advisory Committee will conclude 31 December 2026.  

Membership

Member information and disclosure of interests (declarations)

NHMRC asks all committee members to document their interests for consideration by a CEO delegate prior to being appointed to the committee. Members are asked to update their interests during the term of their appointment or as soon as practicable after becoming aware of the interest or that there has been a change in the nature or extent of the interest. Members are asked to consider perceived interests as well as actual interests. A summary of the interests declared by each member is provided within the declarations (below).

Chair,
Ms
Janine
Lewis

(Commenced February 2021 to present)

Relevant experience

  • Nutrition
  • Fortification of micronutrients
  • Public health
  • Nutritional risk analysis

Declaration

  • Principal Nutritionist at Food Standards Australia New Zealand (to 8 February 2021)
  • Leader of the Australian delegation to the Codex Committee on Nutrition and Foods for Special Dietary Uses (CCNFSDU) from 1998 to 2016
  • Author on various publications relating to nutrient reference values including:
    • Codex nutrient reference values (ISBN: 978-92-5-131957-4)
    • Chapter 15 Establishing Nutrient Intake Values in Present Knowledge of Nutrition 11th edition, Volume 2, 2020 (ISBN: 9780128198421)
    • Review of derivation methods for dietary intake reference values for older infants and young children.  FAO request for scientific advice to develop general principles for the establishment of Codex nutrient reference values for older infants and young children (Final Draft) (FAO, 2021)

Dr
Barbara
Rita Cardoso

(Commenced June 2024 to present)

 Senior Lecturer in the Department of Nutrition, Dietetics and Food at Monash University.  

 Relevant experience:

  • Nutrition
  • Micronutrients
  • Nutrient deficiency/ toxicity
  • Research
  • Chronic conditions 

Declaration

  • Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Fellow, 2017 - 2019  
  • Research grants for: Australian Synchrotron Infrared Beamline 2022 - 2023; NHMRC Boosting Dementia 2019 - 2024; International Fruit and Dried Fruit Council research grant, 2019 - 2020
  • Member of the Nutrition Society Australia, current  
  • Council member for International Society of Trace Element Research in Humans, 2019 – current
  • Author or referee for various publications relating to the health benefits of nuts and nutrient reference values for selenium  
  • Media about health and nutrition topics - mostly related to selenium, nuts and ultra-processed foods  

Professor
Lisa
Houghton

(Commenced June 2024 to present)

Emeritus Professor of Human Nutrition University of Otago

Relevant experience:

  • Nutrition and food systems
  • International nutrition research
  • Maternal, infant and child health  
  • Food security
  • Micronutrient deficiencies 

Declaration

  • Professor of Human Nutrition at University of Otago, 2008 - 2023  
  • Research grant: SUNDIAL: Survey of Nutrition, Dietary Assessment and Lifestyles (Lottery Health), 2019
  • Food and nutrition consultant” ChildFund New Zealand, 2023 – present; Future-Proofing the New Zealand Food Composition Database, New Zealand Ministry of Health, 2022
  • Steering Group Member, Vitamin D and Sun Exposure in Pregnancy and Infancy for Allen + Clarke, 2022  
  • Published peer-reviewed papers in micronutrient health  
  • Co-founder of fni.health, Knowledge hub and educational platform designed to empower health professionals and organisations to learn and apply the latest scientific nutrition evidence 

Professor
Sarah
McNaughton 

(Commenced December 2022 to present)
Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Queensland

Relevant experience 

  • Nutrition 
  • Public Health 
  • Research 
  • Chronic diseases 

Declaration

  • NHMRC Career Development Fellow; 2016-2019 
  • Currently employed by University of Queensland
  • Employed by Deakin University January 2020 – January 2024
  • Grants and contracts for a range of nutrition related studies and projects from various sources including 
    • Federal and state governments (including NHMRC) 
    • Non-for-profit organisations 
    • Research foundations 
  • Served on various nutrition related advisory groups and committees for Government and non-government organisations, including: 
    • Chair of the NHMRC Dietary Guidelines Expert Committee (2021 to present) 
    • Nutrition Australia Victoria Board; Board Member; May 2017-Nov 2021 
    • NHMRC Discretionary Foods and Drinks Expert Working Group (2018 to 2020) 
  • Membership with various nutrition-related associations and societies 
  • Various publications / media about nutrition topics 

Professor McNaughton was employed by Deakin University. Deakin University was procured by NHMRC to complete the evidence reviews for the update to the sodium and iodine NRVs. A management strategy was put in place so that Professor McNaughton could continue her role in the evidence evaluation of sodium and iodine NRVs whilst being appointed to the Committee. Specifically, Professor McNaughton will be excluded from participating in the Steering Group Advisory Committee’s discussions and decisions relating to the work contracted to Deakin University. 

Dr
Jody
Miller

(Commenced June 2024 to present)

Senior Research Fellow with the Department of Human Nutrition, University of Otago 

Relevant experience:

  • Nutritional epidemiology
  • Clinical trials
  • Systematic reviews
  • National nutrition surveys.
  • Micronutrient status in infants and older adults
  • Food fortification and supplementation 

Declaration

  • Research Grants: University of Auckland and Comvita New Zealand Ltd, High-Value Nutrition National Science Challenge contestable funding, 2021; Massey University, High-Value Nutrition National Science Challenge contestable funding, 2021
  • Industry funding for research study investigating postbiotics and health, Asahi Quality and innovations Ltd Japan, 2023  
  • Published several peer-reviewed articles regarding selenium 

Dr
Alice
Owen

(Commenced December 2022 to present) 
School of Public Health & Preventive Medicine, Monash University 

Relevant experience 

  • Nutrition  
  • Public health 
  • Research  
  • End user needs 

Declaration

  • Project Manager, The ASPREE Microbiome Study, Alfred Health 
  • Former Chair of the Cancer Council of Victoria Human Research Ethics Committee. 
  • Employment, position funded by a grant to Monash University from the US National Institutes of Health 
  • Victorian Health Promotion Foundation (statutory authority VIC) grant support for the MyFoodSwaps Research Project. 
  • Externally Managed Superannuation (UniSuper) in a fund whose holdings include major grocery retailers 

Dr
Andrew
Reynolds

(Commenced December 2022 to present) 
Department of Medicine, University of Otago 

Relevant experience 

  • Public health 
  • Nutrition 
  • Research 
  • Chronic disease  

Declaration

  • Heart Foundation (New Zealand) Fellowship 
  • World Health Organization Consultancy 
  • Board member: 
    • Diabetes and Nutrition Study Group of European Association for the Study of Diabetes 
    • Otago Southland Diabetes Research Trust 
    • Expert Nutrition Policy Advisory Group of the Heart Foundation 
  • Executive member - Edgar Diabetes Obesity Research Centre 
  • Management committee member - Oceanic Nutrition Leadership Platform (Ceased January 2023) 
  • Grants and contracts for a range of nutrition- related studies and projects from various sources including: 
    • New Zealand Government, for example through the Health Research Council of New Zealand 
    • University of Otago 
    • World Health Organisation 
    • Research institutions such as the Riddet Institute 
    • Baking Industry Research Trust (topic: wholegrain structure in diabetes management). 
  • Health Research Council of New Zealand grant assessment panel (trials) 

Dr
Anne
Williams

(Commenced December 2022 to present)
National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, US Center for Disease Control (CDC (Nov 2023 to current)

Relevant experience 

  • Nutrition 
  • Public health 
  • Research  

Declaration

  • Currently employed by US Center for Disease Control (CDC)
  • Employed by Emory University (December 2022 – November 2023)
  • Employed by University of Otago, New Zealand (From SGAC appointment to December 2022)
  • Nutrition Consultant on a food fortification project funded by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) to Host Creative (2022-2023)  
  • Nutrition Consultant for the International Micronutrient Malnutrition Prevention and Control Team (IMMPaCt) at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2017-2021)  
  • Investigator on a research grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation to Emory University (2015-2021) 
  • Investigator on a research grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation to the University of California, Davis (2012-2014)  
  • Referee for various scientific journals. 

 

Professor
Amanda
Lee

(2018 to 2021)
The Australian Prevention Partnership Centre, The Sax Institute and University of Queensland

Relevant experience

  • Nutrition
  • End user needs
  • Public health
  • Research
  • Chronic disease and macronutrients/ total diet

Declaration

  • Invited to provide peer review of draft evaluation report on fortification of food supply with folic acid and iodine for the Commonwealth Department of Health (July 2016)
  • Invited to provide independent advice on strategies to improve the nutritional health of the Australian population in a brief report to the Woolworths Board (March 2013)
  • Consultant to NHMRC on Discretionary Foods Project (July to November 2018)
  • Chair of the Food Standards Australia New Zealand Consumer and Public Health Dialogue (2013 to current)
  • Referee for various scientific journals
  • Media about health and nutrition topics

Honorary Professor
Samir
Samman

(2018 to 2020)
School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney

Relevant experience

  • Nutrition
  • Micronutrients
  • Nutrient deficiency/ toxicity
  • Public health and research

Declaration

  • Associate Editor Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition; Editorial Advisory Board Member British Nutrition Foundation Nutrition Bulletin
  • Associate investigator on a research grant from Meat & Livestock Australia (April 2014 to May 2015)
  • Immediate Past President, Nutrition Society of Australia (2018 to 2019)
  • Referee for various scientific journals

Emeritus Professor
Murray
Skeaff

(2018 to 2021)
University of Otago

Relevant experience

  • Nutrition
  • Public health and research

Declaration

  • Member of Nutrition Guidance Expert Advisory (NUGAG) Subgroup on Diet and Health, since 2010. The World Health Organization published in 2012 guidelines for 'Sodium intake for adults and children'. NUGAG advised WHO in the development of these guidelines.
  • Member of Technical Advisory Group for the Eating and Activity Guidelines, New Zealand Ministry of Health (2013 to 2016)
  • Referee for various scientific journals
  • Media about health and nutrition topics
  • Married to member of the Iodine Expert Working Group