Petra Verhoef

Background

About Petra Verhoef

Petra Verhoef obtained a PhD-degree in nutritional epidemiology at Wageningen University (Wageningen, The Netherlands) in 1996, on the topic of ‘Homocysteine, B vitamins and cardiovascular disease’. She went on to do a post-doctoral fellowship at the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, USA. Between 1998 and 2006, she was leading a research programme at the Top Institute Food and Nutrition on Diet, Homocysteine, and Age-related Disease, including cardiovascular disease and cognitive function. Petra is (co)-author of about 100 peer-reviewed papers, and several reviews and book chapters. She was a topic editor of the AJCN between 2006 and 2012. She joined Unilever R&D Vlaardingen in June 2006, leading a group of scientists working in the area of Applied Nutrition research. Next, she had other roles within Unilever, in the area of Nutrition and Heart Health across the lifecycle. Until the end of 2014 she was operations manager for open innovation with supplier partners in Foods. Since Jan 2015 she was leading a global R&D project on diabetes prevention. Between February 2018 and May 2023, Petra worked at the Rathenau Institute in The Hague. She was leading research and societal dialogue on the impact of implementing new technologies for prevention, health care and sustainable food production. The institute advises the Dutch and European parliament, ministeries, stakeholders and society as a whole. As of May 2023 Petra is Director of The Netherlands Nutrition Centre, an independent organization to which citizens and professionals can turn with any questions they have on healthy, safe and sustainable food.