Throughout the day the discussions were hosted by BBC's Justin Webb as over 100 delegates prominent in the fields of health and nutrition attended in person, and hundreds more around the world followed the debate on the live stream. This clearly demonstrates the importance of gut health and nutrition and how it needs to be part of vital discussions around healthcare and wellbeing.

The first speaker, Dr James Kinross, is a senior lecturer in colorectal surgery and consultant surgeon at Imperial College London and author of Dark Matter. He leads a team researching how the microbiome influences cancer and other chronic diseases of the gut.

His work advocates for a better understanding of the gut microbiome, which might help prevent the diseases he operates on. He argues that a healthy microbiome is a fundamental human right and that the industrialisation of food and other influences are causing us an 'internal climate crisis', but that simple, achievable changes can be made.

Dr Chris van Tulleken, is a BAFTA-winning broadcaster, doctor at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in London, an Associate Professor at UCL, and author of his book, Ultra Processed Food. His research focuses on how corporations affect human health.

He painted a bleak picture of the power and influence of 'Big Food' and how the ultra-processed foods it produces promotes a 'commodification of ill-health’, in which food is produced for profit rather than for nutrition.

Sharing the platform with Chris was Jessie Inchauspé, the biochemist, product developer, founder of Glucose Goddess and author of international bestseller, Glucose Revolution. She shares Dr Chris’ concerns around ultra-processed food, explaining just how radically our bodies' reaction to food is changed by processing. She believes that education is key in the fight against poor nutrition and health, and importantly, showing people how and where to start: making change easy and fun and, appropriately, bite-sized.

In the final session the Summit was honoured to hear from Professor Pekka Puska, the Finnish public health pioneer whose ground-breaking North Karelia Project starting in the 1970s proved that a systemic approach to improving health, involving every aspect of society, from social clubs to the media and big corporations could have measurable impacts on individuals. During his 25-year tenure, premature mortality from heart disease among the working-age population in Finland declined by 80%. 

He shared that the war on tobacco would look easy by comparison with changing the world's addiction to ultra-processed foods, but that there were still lessons to be learned, such as the efficacy of marketing bans and the need to exclude food companies from influencing their own regulation.

He ended on a more positive note: People do want to eat better and prevention is not only possible, but it really pays off.

Throughout the important discussions, with both the leading experts and changemakers in the fields of nutrition and healthcare - along with guests at the Summit and watching online – one thing is clear; there has never been a better time to focus on both the long and short-term advocation of gut health as part of the wellbeing and healthcare agenda at every level of society.

Goodwood proudly shares this ethos and passionately supports every guest who visits the Estate to live well and thrive. We believe that the right balance of gut health nutrition, industry-leading expertise, immersive experiences and the right environment and open space can contribute towards high-performing teams and individuals to support your people as a whole.

With 12,000 acres of parkland that surrounds us here at Goodwood, we offer a range of specialist workshops and immersive experiences designed to increase resilience, reduce stress and equip your team with healthier habits and ultimately, a sharper mindset.

Get in touch with us to find out how we can support your teams to be primed for success. From meetings to team retreats, we are here to help you reach your full potential.