The Canadian Foundation for Dietetic Research (CFDR) is a national charitable foundation dedicated to advancing food, nutrition and dietetic practice through targeted research funding. Recognized as an authoritative research funding organization in this field, CFDR acts as a catalyst by financing practice‑based and applied nutrition studies and disseminating new knowledge to support evidence‑informed decisions in health care and the food system.
Role of CFDR in the research funding ecosystem
Since the early 1990s, CFDR has awarded millions of dollars in grants to more than a hundred research teams led largely by Canadian registered dietitians. Its grants program focuses on innovative projects in nutrition and dietetics that enhance dietetic practice and ultimately improve the nutritional health of people living in Canada. Typical CFDR research grants range from $10,000 to $20,000 per project, with up to two years allowed to complete the funded work.
CFDR regularly runs national grant competitions, such as its 2026 CFDR Grant Competition, with a clear funding process that includes proposal registration, full application submission, peer review and public announcement of successful teams. A Scientific Review Committee evaluates applications on scientific merit and relevance to dietetic practice and can recommend full, partial or conditional support.
Funding priorities and target audiences
CFDR’s programs primarily target members of the dietetic profession affiliated with eligible sponsor institutions such as universities, hospitals, public health units and other registered charities. The foundation explicitly encourages participation from underrepresented groups, including First Nations, Métis and Inuit peoples, racialized persons and 2SLGBTQ+ communities, and favours collaborative, practice‑oriented projects.
For its current competition, CFDR structures its research priorities around five broad themes: critically rethinking dietetic practice; identifying determinants of food choice; accelerating cultural safety, diversity and health equity in practice; transforming food environments; and evaluating the effectiveness of clinical nutrition interventions. These priorities cover clinical settings, public health, community nutrition, education, health systems and food environments, offering wide scope for dietetic researchers across Canada.
Transparency, reporting and impact
CFDR publishes annual reports and maintains detailed online listings of successful research teams, funded projects by year and peer‑reviewed publications arising from CFDR‑supported work. Funded investigators must follow reporting requirements and submit scientific and financial reports, ensuring accountability for the charitable funds invested.
Through these mechanisms CFDR has supported over a hundred teams, generated dozens of peer‑reviewed articles and contributed to evidence‑based tools, interventions and guidelines. Testimonials from researchers highlight how CFDR grants enable robust study designs, advanced laboratory analyses and knowledge translation activities that might otherwise be impossible within practice settings.
Publics served and overall impact
By funding research that bridges dietetic practice and academia, CFDR benefits a wide range of stakeholders: hospital and community dietitians, educators, policy‑makers, patients and the broader Canadian public. Projects address topics such as chronic disease management, food security, cultural safety, nutrition education, digital health tools and clinical outcome measures. Overall, CFDR strengthens the scientific foundation of dietetic practice while promoting healthier, more equitable food and nutrition outcomes across Canada.