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The International Society for Fat Research (ISF)

The International Society for Fat Research (ISF) was established in the 1950’s by Dr H.P. Kaufmann and 42 prominent colleagues from around the world. Dr Kaufmann was a well-known director of the German Institute for Fat Research in Munster and an expert in fat, food and pharmaceutical chemistry – three areas with many interrelationships.

According to Dr Kaufmann, the ISF should act as an international pool and forum for the collection and distribution of scientific and technological knowledge in the field of fats and oils; it would be an international body with members from countries all over the world. To achieve this, the ISF organised periodical meetings where current issues in fat chemistry and science were discussed. These meetings were to be held every second year in different countries.

In 1991, a revised constitution was set up with the following mission statement for the ISF:

“The mission of the ISF is to provide for the international exchange of information about fats, oils and related materials and products by organising periodic ISF World Congresses on fat science and technology, by stimulating and supporting occasional international symposia or courses covering limited areas within the field of fat research and technology, and by encouraging the development of related national and/or multinational regional associations.”

Membership under this new constitution is - contrary to the past where it consisted of participants of ISF Congresses – now held by oils and fats associations be they international, national or regional. In addition, there is now a professional ISF Secretariat managed by an Executive Director and housed at the AOCS headquarters in Champaign, Illinois, USA.

This was all adopted at the Board Meeting on 11 May, 1992 in Toronto, where the ISF formally became a federation of fats and oils associations around the world.

For further information on the ISF, please visit www.isfnet.org.

About Us

Recognizing the increasing number of congresses pertaining to professionals involved in the science of fats, oils, and lipids, the ISF Board of Directors decided in May 2005 to discontinue sponsorship of its own Congress and offer plenary lectures at a regularly scheduled meeting of one of its member organizations. Still offered on a biannual basis, the inaugural offering of the "ISF Lectureship Series" was held in 2007 during the 98 th AOCS Annual Meeting & Expo. The second offering of the "ISF Lectureship Series" will occur during the 2009 meeting of the Australian Oilseed Federation.

Membership in the ISF is open to national or regional organizations that are non-commercial, individual membership societies serving the interests of professionals in fields pertaining to fats, oils, and lipids related materials and their products.

Under its revised structure, the ISF Board is comprised of two distinct entities:

1. The Executive Board includes up to two representatives from each organization that is eligible to host an ISF Congress
2. The Extended Board, consisting of a maximum of two representatives from all member organizations

Eligibility to host an ISF Lectureship Series and have representation on the ISF Executive Board requires the member organization:

1. to be classified as an individual membership scientific organization
2. to host a regularly schedules international scientific meeting of 300+ attendees in English or with English translation
3. to send a representative to meetings of the Executive Board

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