Biographies

Dr Hazel Wallace
BSc MSc MBBCh ANutr is an NHS medical doctor, registered nutritionist (ANutR), best-selling author and the Founder of The Food Medic

She started The Food Medic blog in 2012, as a medical student, in a bid to bridge the gap between conventional medical advice and the latest thoughts and developments in nutrition and other areas of lifestyle. The blog has now extended to various other platforms and publications including social media, two books, The Food Medic and The Food Medic for life, and a podcast where she interviews leading experts on how we can live healthier lives. Dr. Hazel is also a qualified personal trainer and is passionate in the use of exercise as medicine, which was the topic of her TEDX talk. Hazel is a columnist for Health and Wellbeing magazine and features on James Martin Saturday Morning Kitchen as their resident doctor.
Hazel is currently working as a COVID doctor during this pandemic, treating patients acutely unwell with COVID and seeing patients in follow-up clinic with Post COVID syndrome (aka. Long COVID).

Dr Mark Messina
PhD, MS, Nutrition Matters, Inc
Soya researcher available for interview.

Dr. Messina is the co-owner of Nutrition Matters, Inc., a nutrition consulting company, an adjunct associate professor at Loma Linda University, and the Executive Director of the Soy Nutrition Institute. He is a former program director with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and while at the NCI he initiated a multi-million-dollar research program on the anticancer effects of soy.
Since leaving the NCI, Dr. Messina has devoted his time to the study of the health effects of soyfoods and soybean isoflavones. He writes extensively on these subjects, having published more than 100 articles and book chapters for health professionals, and has given more than 700 presentations to both consumer and professional groups in 55 countries.
Dr. Messina is the chairperson of the editorial advisory board of, and writes a regular column for The Soy Connection, a quarterly newsletter that reaches over 250,000 dietitians and other health professionals. He has also organized and chaired nine international symposia on the role of soy in preventing and treating chronic disease and has organized soy meetings in China, India, Brazil and Italy. Dr. Messina is the co-author of three books, The Simple Soybean and Your Health (Avery Publishing Group, 1994), The Vegetarian Way (Crown Publishers, 1996), and The Dietitian’s Guide to Vegetarian Diets: Issues and Applications (Aspen Publishers, 1996, Jones and Barlett, 2004, 2010, 2021).

Dr Mark Driscoll
Founder and Director Tasting the Future

Mark is Founder and Director of Tasting the Future, a purpose driven not-for-profit sustainable food systems consultancy. He is a global expert in and a passionate advocate for the need for food systems change. He has over years 30 experience of working with businesses, governments and civil society organisations on solutions that address some of the key social and environmental challenges confronting our global food system. He has developed and led large sustainable food programmes with organisations including WWF and Forum for the Future, focussing on policy and practice at the intersection of health, nutrition, and sustainability. Mark graduated from Wye College (London University) with a degree in Environmental science. He works for a range of international organisations including the Global Alliance for the Future of Food, the World Health Organization, WWF, and Compassion in World Farming. He sits on several advisory boards for business, government, and non-profit organisations. He also writes and blogs extensively on issues and trends impacting on the food system.

Professor Ian Rowland
Emeritus Professor of Human Nutrition, University of Reading

Prior to joining the University of Reading in 2007 as the Hugh Sinclair Professor of Human Nutrition, Ian was head of nutrition at Ulster University. He holds a BSc and PhD in microbiology from University College London and an honorary doctorate from Gent University for work on nutrition and cancer. His main research area is the impact of plant-based eating and phytochemicals on health, particularly cancer and cardiovascular disease. He has published over 400 papers.

Elphee Medici
Nutrition & Sustainable Diets Communications Consultant

A highly skilled and passionate dietitian with over 30 years’ experience including 10 years in the NHS. Before going freelance, Elphee worked as the in-house dietitian for various FMCGs including Alpro, Unilever & Yoplait -successfully executing healthcare and consumer wellness programmes – ensuring the science was never misinterpreted. Her core expertise includes critiquing scientific research and interpreting findings into practical implications and meaningful public health messaging. She has produced various evidence-based scientific and consumer publications on health issues such as bone health, vitamin D, soya isoflavones, plant-based diets, child health and heart health including the Ultimate Cholesterol Lowering Plan©.
Elphee is most recently proud to:
Have worked with the BDA working group on sustainable diets developing the recently launched One Blue Dot® project providing a scientific review of the evidence for sustainable diets and the nutritional implications for the UK public.
Be one of the originators of the Ultimate Cholesterol Lowering Plan© (UCLP©) alongside HEART UK and 6 other leading experts. She is also leading on the latest scientific review and update of the UCLP© released at the end of 2019.

All research to be discussed at the event has been subject to academic peer review and is published in independent, academic journals.

About Alpro

Alpro UK are committed to helping everyone to enjoy eating well for health & planet.
Alpro has dedicated web pages created for health professionals committed to plant-based sustainable resources.