Robbie
Burns
Former vice president for health and nutrition policy at Grocery Manufacturers Association (now Consumer Brands Association)
Areas of Expertise:
Dr. Robbie Burns, member of APCO’s International Advisory Council, is an adjunct professor in the School of Public Health at Indiana University, Bloomington and a former executive in the food industry with over 30 years’ experience in nutrition science, product innovation and policy development.
Dr. Burns is a food industry consultant through his business, Nutrition Implications, LLC. Previously, he served as the vice president for health and nutrition policy at Grocery Manufacturers Association (now Consumer Brands Association), global head of nutrition and scientific affairs at Cadbury (now Mondelez) and director, nutrition science and policy at Mead Johnson.
He in an active member of the leading food industry professional organizations, the Institute of Food Technologists and the American Society for Nutrition, in which he was elected as a fellow in recognition of his service and contributions to the field of nutrition.
While at the Grocery Manufacturers Association, Dr. Burns advised the food industry of new developments in food policy. He advocated and advanced GMA positions on federal food and labeling policies that were based on a rigorous and balanced application of the available science and pragmatic business perspectives. This helped ensure that policies could be implemented in ways that have the greatest potential for positive public health outcomes.
At Cadbury, Dr. Burns partnered with marketing to champion a range of wellness-based product innovations, including promoting chocolate as a treat to be enjoyed in moderation, and saw the wellbeing portion of the product portfolio increase by 40%. He enhanced the company’s reputation by developing, implementing, and communicating science-based positions on public health priorities and consumer concerns, and building relationships with NGOs. Over a 3-year period the company’s ranking rose from 47th to fourth among Britain’s most admired companies.
During his first corporate position in research and development at Mead Johnson, (at the time a Bristol-Myers Squibb company), Dr. Burns developed productive working relationships with the external regulatory and medical/scientific communities to help advance product innovations, including the supplementation of infant formula with lipid compounds like those found in human milk for improved neural development.
He has a doctoral degree in agriculture and food chemistry from Queen’s University Belfast and conducted post-doctoral training at Nottingham University and the University of Illinois. He has a bachelor’s degree in biochemistry from Queen’s University Belfast.