Overview
Dole Nutrition Institute - Feeding the World with Knowledge
At Dole we believe that what you eat should give life—not limit it. Our message and our products are the answer to the nation’s obesity crisis.
The Dole Nutrition Institute was founded to help “feed the world with knowledge” about the benefits of a plant-based diet. As chairman of the world's largest provider of fresh fruit and vegetables, David H. Murdock wanted to go beyond offering healthy products. His mission: to cultivate the seeds of knowledge and provide the public with definitive, easily accessible, scientifically-validated information on nutrition and health.
The Dole Nutrition Institute harvests the latest findings from the finest universities around the world, including the eight universities collaborating with Dole scientists at the unprecedented North Carolina Research Campus, home of the Dole Nutrition Research Laboratory. We distribute this valuable info to consumers through a variety of vehicles: our multiple award-winning 2.5 million circulation, Dole Nutrition News, the recently published Dole Nutrition Handbook, videos, brochures, cookbooks and more.
The Dole Food Company has been an industry leader in children’s nutrition education for nearly twenty years. We have reached over 145,000 teachers, 48,000 schools and millions of kids and their families, providing educational materials and support. These include Teachers’ Toolkits, kids’ activity books, classroom curriculum, nutrition-oriented kids’ music and video games. Most recently we published a Dole Counting Book and are finalizing a new Kids’ Cookbook. Additionally, we have donated dozens of salad bars to public schools.
We believe in leading by example and so have created an employee wellness program encompassing a model cafeteria, fitness classes, trainers and seminars. To learn more, visit us online at Dole.com/nutritioninstitute.
JENNIFER GROSSMAN
Senior Vice President - Dole Nutrition Institute
At Dole, Jennifer Grossman promotes the health benefits of fruits and vegetables. She chiefly channels nutrition information to the public through the award-winning Dole Nutrition News (an electronic newsletter reaching 2.5 million subscribers) as well as brochures, videos, cookbooks and www.dole.com. A graduate of Harvard University, Jennifer has served as Director of Education Policy at the Cato Institute and as speechwriter to President George H.W. Bush, then continued to provide communications support for leading politicians and businessmen. Jennifer has been a frequent television commentator, with guest appearances including Larry King Live, the O'Reilly Factor, the Today Show and Politically Incorrect. Her opinion editorials have appeared in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Los Angeles Times, the New York Post, the Weekly Standard, National Review, the Women's Quarterly, and thousands of local publications around the country.
PAUL GROSS, Ph.D.
Senior Manager, Nutrition Research and Labeling - Dole Nutrition Institute
Paul Gross, BSc (Ohio State), MSc (Illinois) and PhD (physiology, Glasgow, UK), recently joined the Dole Nutrition Institute (DNI) as Senior Manager, Nutrition Research and Labeling, responsible for evaluating nutrition information in support of product development and nutrition labeling, as well as providing the research underpinning all of the DNI's educational materials, be they print, online or video. A former professor and academic scientist in cardiovascular physiology and neuroscience with a 25-year career in research, Paul has published 85 peer-reviewed papers or book chapters, held research awards from Switzerland and Canada, co-authored a book on the Chinese wolfberry (goji) and published the McGraw-Hill book, Superfruit, in 2009. His previous industry experiences include consulting work as a science analyst for a biotechnology venture capital fund and a major fruit grower and juice processor. He was also co-founder of three companies: Neurochem Inc., a biotechnology firm traded on NASDAQ, CroMedica Inc., a clinical trials management company and Berry Health Inc., a nutritional supplements firm.
NICHOLAS D. GILLITT, Ph.D.
Director of Nutrition Research - Dole Nutrition Research Laboratory
As Director of Nutrition Research, Nicholas Gillitt, Ph.D. provides scientific support to Dole divisions regarding new product development, coordinating with the DNI in publishing new scientific discoveries. Previously, Dr. Gillitt served as Senior Nutrition Research & Labeling Manager at the DNI, where he provided scientific backup for all educational content. Dr. Gillitt graduated from the UK’s Newcastle Polytechnic in 1990, received his Ph.D. in 1994 from the University of Northumbria at Newcastle and co-authored over 35 papers in peer reviewed scientific journals. He completed his post doctoral study at the University of California at Santa Barbara.
JOAN LUEBBERT
Executive Assistant - Dole Nutrition Institute
At the Dole Nutrition Institute, Joan Luebbert is Executive Assistant to Senior Vice President, Jennifer Grossman. Joan joined the DNI team in 2005 after 18 years of providing administrative support to top-level executives in county, social service and education environments. In addition to providing executive administrative support, Joan serves as coordinator for the Employee Wellness fitness classes and editor of the online Dole Nutrition News. In her “off hours” she enjoys hiking the trails around Westlake Village and cooking for her large family and many friends.
JENNA SCHIEDERMAYER
Department Assistant - Dole Nutrition Institute
As Department Assistant to the DNI team, Jenna Schiedermayer provides research assistance for the Dole Nutrition News as well as administrative support to the DNI team. She also updates and maintains the “healthy conversation” on Dole’s Facebook and Twitter pages. A member of Lambda Pi Eta, the Communication Honor Society, Jenna graduated from Pepperdine University in 2009 and held internships at American Express Publishing and several other marketing firms. When not searching for the latest in nutrition research, Jenna spends her time reading, cooking and exploring Santa Monica on her bike.