Alumni
John Core
Culinary Nutrition Lead, Sodexo Ireland
John is an experienced contract catering professional, working as Culinary Nutrition Lead for Sodexo Ireland. His career began in professional kitchens at the age of fifteen and developed into managing large-scale contract catering operations. Over time, John became increasingly focused on the gap between the food people eat every day and the nutrition they actually need, especially in busy, sedentary working environments.
This led John to return to education, and in 2020 he graduated from TU Dublin with a First-Class Honours MSc in Applied Culinary Nutrition, having completed his professional chef qualification with our school twenty years prior.
"TU Dublin shaped the direction of my career. The Applied Culinary Nutrition programme gave me the scientific grounding and practical confidence to bring meaningful change to workplace and school food environments. It helped me bridge the gap between nutrition theory and real-world cooking, and that has transformed the way I work with people every day."
Today, John's work centers on a food-first approach to health, combining culinary skills with nutrition science to create practical, accessible solutions for workplaces and schools. John also delivers seminars, mindful eating clinics and on-site pop-ups that support people in eating well in real-life circumstances.
John is also the author of Nutrition for Normal People, published in 2024, which translates key nutrition concepts into everyday language so people can understand and apply them without feeling overwhelmed.
Professional Affiliations
Sodexo WellChef Academy Lead
Research Interests and Expertise
Culinary nutrition for workplace wellbeing
Fibre-rich meal design for sedentary populations
Behaviour-focused nutrition education
Reformulation of traditional dishes for improved nutrient density
Publications
Nutrition for Normal People (2024)
Monthly culinary nutrition articles for Sodexo Ireland
Awards
Paula Mee Applied Culinary Nutrition Memorial Award (2023)