Abstract
The objective of infrastructure development in nutrition is to ensure that every country has institutions with the competence needed for research, training, policy guidance, and dissemination of knowledge on all aspects of human nutrition and human food supply. The rapid advances in scientific knowledge of nutritional issues has increased both the importance and the scope of responsibility of national nutrition centres. It has also increased the number of disciplines that must be represented if institutions are to tee fully capable of utilizing existing knowledge and meeting national needs. Not only must all aspects of nutrition and food science be represented but also infectious and chronic diseases, health education, data management, anthropology and sociology, economics and political science. Examples are given of the stepwise development of successful national nutrition institutions as well as problems faced in their development.