Meet Dr. Marion Nestle, Founder of a Food Studies Movement

Despite her tremendous impact, Nestle didn’t expect to follow this path. She began her career as a molecular biologist, teaching cell and molecular biology courses to undergraduates. When she was asked to teach a nutrition class, she dove into textbooks and research papers to prepare for the position. But many of the sources listed different nutritional requirements for the human diet. Nestle also found that some of the foundational nutrition studies were done on very small groups of people who were incarcerated. “It was clear that there were issues about the ethics of doing studies on people in prison,” Nestle says. “I thought, ‘This is a phenomenal way to teach critical thinking in science.’ I was hooked from the first day.”  

Nestle’s love for the study of food and nutrition flourished from there. In 1988 she joined NYU as chair of what was then the Department of Home Economics and Nutrition. Eight years later an opportunity arose to introduce a new program within Steinhardt. Nestle had heard from professionals across food industries, including chefs, food writers, and academics, that there was “a tremendous interest in the history and culture of food.” These individuals, she explains, “really wanted to hire people who knew food at a much deeper level.” With this understanding, she and food consultant Clark Wolf brought the idea for a food studies department to Steinhardt’s dean. The groundbreaking program launched soon afterwards, and was featured in The New York Times.

What has always set NYU’s Department of Nutrition and Food Studies apart is its intellectual rigor and multidisciplinary approach. “The diversity of the fields of study and the quality of faculty work makes the program distinctive,” Nestle explains. “Everybody on the faculty has different training. We have a sociologist, a historian, an American studies scholar, and an economist. I come from basic science. All these people working together have created a very strong program, and our students leave knowing a lot.” 

The Nutrition and Food Studies department at NYU has continuously innovated since its inception. Students graduate prepared for jobs in health care, business, government, private practice, food service, education, and community development. In addition to learning in the traditional classroom setting, at the NYU Urban Farm Lab, students gain experience propagating and caring for seasonal crops in an urban environment. At the NYU Food Lab, students cook nutritious, sustainable food while learning the techniques, history, and science behind food preparation. At the library students have access to more than 65,000 books on food and nutrition—a collection founded thanks to Nestle herself.

Majors in NYU’s Nutrition and Food Studies department are passionate about making a difference. There are countless ways to do so, according to Nestle. Across the food system—from the time food is planted, grown, transported and sold to when it is prepared, consumed, or potentially wasted—“there are a million issues,” she says. “Pick one that you really care about, find a group working on it, and start working with them. Learn as much as you can. The more you know, the more useful you will be.”

As the author of several best-selling books on healthy eating, Nestle is respected as a leading expert on the topic. When it comes to nutrition, her best piece of advice is a simple one, borrowed from journalist Michael Pollan: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” The New York Times, which recently profiled Nestle about her life’s work in nutrition, also featured her in a series on ultra-processed food intended to help readers make informed food choices and recognize how food marketing influences us. Nestle warns against shady food marketing techniques designed to sell as much as possible. For food companies, she explains, “It’s not about public health or social service, but making profits.”

Despite significant challenges in our national food systems, Nestle strongly believes there is so much good students can achieve by getting involved in food and nutrition. “Food has an enormous aura of hope around it,” she says. “Through food, you have an entry point into connecting with people. Yes, it’s important to look at the big picture and understand that there are a lot of difficulties. But there is so much that you can do at the local level that will make a real difference in people’s lives.”