Jing Wu has won a research award for her work in human nutrition

On September 12, 2025, the prestigious SFEFS Research Award was presented at the Swiss Society for Nutrition's annual conference in Bern. This year’s award was granted to Jing Wu, PhD candidate at the School of Computer Science at the University of St.Gallen, in recognition of her innovative work in the emerging field of digital health, particularly for the article "FoodCoach: Fully Automated Diet Counseling" published at the IEEE Journal of Biomedical and Health Informatics - in collaboration with partners from the University of Bern, Technical University of Denmark, Rockstar Recruiting AG, Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, the University of Zurich and the School of Humanities and Social Sciences, University of St.Gallen.

Research on scalable dietary guidance

Wu´s research focuses on providing scalable dietary guidance, leveraging food purchase data from loyalty cards, food composition information, and large language models (LLMs). “The goal is to empower individuals to make healthier food choices while also supporting healthcare professionals, such as dietitians, with data-driven decision-making tools”, she said. In addition to this award, Jing Wu recently presented her research at 14th International Food Data Conference at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome, further underscoring the international impact of her work.

SFEFS Research Award supports promising ideas to advance human nutrition

The SFEFS Research Award supports early-career researchers who are pursuing promising approaches to advance human nutrition. Eligible nominees are under 35 years of age, have lived in Switzerland for at least four years, and are actively conducting research in the country. Jing Wu impressed the audience with her inspiring presentation in front of more than 200 attendees, including representatives from academia, industry, and healthcare systems. “It’s an incredible honor to receive the SFEFS Research Award”, she said. “I’m proud that our research is being recognized within Switzerland, and I sincerely hope it will help people live healthier lives while inspiring other researchers to create broader real-world impact together.”

For more detailed information and further reading, please refer to these links:

• Guidelines to the SFEFS research award for research in the field of Human Nutrition
• SFEFS Annual Reports
• 14th International Food Data Conference, 1–3 September 2025, Rome, Italy
  The Abstract: (O7.2) Integrating digital receipts with food composition information: a data infrastructure validated for consumer and dietitian use cases
  Oral presentation video of the abstract (starting from 4h21min)
• Swiss Society of Nutrition Annual Conference Agenda
• Swiss Society of Nutrition (SGE)
   

Image: SGE/sensibellefaces