Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture Series

The 2026 Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture will feature nutrition researcher Yanni Papanikolaou at 7 p.m. Monday, Oct. 5, in McCain Auditorium.

Papanikolaou will explore what large-scale nutrition data can — and cannot — tell us about protein, dietary patterns and long-term health, including some of the questions behind today's debates about animal and plant protein.

The Henry C. Gardiner Global Food Systems Lecture Series brings science-based perspectives to important issues shaping the global food system. The series gives K-State students, faculty and staff, as well as Kansans and other guests, opportunities to engage with U.S. and international leaders in food, agriculture and related fields. Kansas State University and Gardiner Angus Ranch established the lecture series in 2015.

2026 Gardiner Lecture Speaker – Yanni Papanikolaou

Yanni Papanikolaou, MPH, is president of Nutritional Strategies, where his work focuses on nutrition research and regulatory affairs. For more than 20 years, he has used large-scale nutrition and health data, including the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, or NHANES, to examine how foods and dietary patterns relate to nutrient intake, diet quality and health. His research has explored grains, dairy, eggs, beans, protein sources and other components of the diet.

At K-State, Papanikolaou will take audiences behind the data used to answer some of today's biggest nutrition questions. His lecture will examine research on animal and plant protein, dietary patterns and longevity while considering how individual foods fit within the broader diet — moving beyond the simple food-versus-food framing that often dominates nutrition conversations.

Past lectures:

• Megin Nichols, director in the Division of Foodborne, Waterborne, and Environmental Diseases at the Center for Disease Control
• Peer Ederer, founder and director of GOALSciences, the Global Observatory of Accurate Livestock Sciences
• Greg Doud, vice president of global situational awareness and chief economist at Aimpoint Research, as well as incoming CEO and president of the National Milk Producers Federation
• Beth Ford, president and CEO of Land O' Lakes, Inc.
• Frank Mitloehner, professor and air quality extension specialist, University of California, Davis
• Dennis Dimick, National Geographic magazine
• Sara Menker, founder and CEO of Gro Intelligence
• Jason Clay, Senior Vice President for Markets and Food at World Wildlife Fund
• Jay Famiglietti is a hydrologist and professor of earth system science and of civil and environmental engineering at the University of California
• Greg Page, Executive Chairman, Cargill
• Robert Fraley, Monsanto Executive Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
• Steve Hunt, former CEO of U.S. Premium Beef