Advisory council profile

Prof. Alastair Robertson is a food and agriculture science and research strategist. With a degree in applied biology and a PhD in plant biochemistry he was a Director of the UK Institute of Food Research; Technical Director and Head of R&D with Safeway; and Director of Food Science at Campden-BRI Food Research & Services. Between 2003 and 2013 he held numerous roles at CSIRO in Australia starting as Chief Executive of the CSIRO-DPI Victoria Joint Venture, Food Science Australia. He became the CSIRO Group Executive of Agribusiness in 2005 and Deputy Chief Executive of Science Strategy and Investment in 2007 before becoming Group Executive of Food, Health and Life Science Industries which occupied almost one third of CSIRO’s operations with a budget of around $375m. Prof. Robertson is active on boards and committees in Australia and New Zealand. He currently chairs the Science Advisory Panel of New Zealand’s Riddet Institute, a Centre of Research Excellence in Food Structure, digestion, nutrition, and health. Prof. Robertson’s contribution will help to hone Food Frontier’s strategic research priorities.