Working to promote the importance of high-quality nutrition for companion animals around the world
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The Global Nutrition Committee (GNC) is one of the WSAVA’s longest-serving Committees and promotes the importance of high-quality nutrition for companion animals and the central role of the veterinary healthcare team as the expert source of nutritional information. The Committee’s members are based around the world and hold different roles within the profession. They lecture and publish widely on all aspects of nutrition for companion animals.
Members of the GNC collaborate with other WSAVA Committees where appropriate and engage with other stakeholders, such as GAPFA, to promote the importance of nutrition in veterinary care.
GNC Resources
The WSAVA Global Nutrition Guidelines together with a regularly updated Global Nutrition Toolkit have been created for use by veterinary teams. Both are available in a range of languages and free to download from the WSAVA website.
A recent addition to the Toolkit is an engaging infographic to illustrate the potential risks of the use of raw foods in pet diets. The Committee has also recently updated its ‘Selecting a pet food’ tool. The revised version points out the most useful advice to be found on the label and highlights the importance of the manufacturer providing contact details so that follow up questions can be asked. It also reminds veterinarians and owners of the benefits but limitations of Association of American Feed Control Officials (AAFCO) adequacy statements.
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The GNC has recently supported the WSAVA’s Continuing Education Committee in creating a set of online nutrition modules. They are available for free download here
You can also watch this webinar ‘Pet Food Propaganda and how to avoid it’ presented by GNC member Dr Lisa Weeth last year.
GNC Co-chair Marge Chandler DVM, MS, MANZCVS, DACVN, DACVIM, MRCVS
“Owners want to best for their pets but there is so much confusing or simply wrong information out there that it can be hard for them to navigate their way.
Veterinary healthcare teams should, of course, be the first port of call for advice on nutrition and, we hope they will find that the educational resources we have created in our Toolkit, together with the WSAVA’s Global Nutrition Guidelines, give them the confidence to engage proactively with owners on the subject of nutrition and put them on the right path to feeding their pets an appropriate and well-formulated diet.”
GNC Co-chair Cecilia Villaverde DVM, MSc, PhD, Dipl ACVN, Dipl ECVCN
“Research shows that most pet owners would like nutritional advice but few feel they receive it. In some parts of the world, pet malnutrition remains a major challenge, while in many other countries, pet obesity is an increasing problem. In addition, there is confusion about optimal nutrition because there is now so much conflicting and inaccurate information available online.
The GNC Guidelines and our Toolkit give veterinary healthcare teams an evidence-based, independent and reliable set of resources to support their efforts to educate clients about feeding their companion animals an appropriate diet.”
The work of the Global Nutrition Committee is generously supported by Hill’s Pet Nutrition, the Purina Institute and Royal Canin.
The Committee operates independently and does not endorse, approve, recommend or support specific products or companies.