Richard Butterwick

Professional Bioghraphy

Richard Butterwick is Principal Nutrition Scientist at the Waltham Centre for Pet Nutrition, providing leadership and expertise on nutrition related matters for Mars Petcare.

After graduating from the Department of Agricultural Biochemistry and Nutrition, Newcastle University, UK in 1985, Richard obtained his PhD in 1990 from research on the metabolic and nutritional consequences of growth hormone treatment in dairy cows. After completing his PhD he spent a short sabbatical lecturing preclinical studies at the Samora Machel Veterinary School, Lusaka, Zambia, before joining the Department of Paediatric Endocrinology at Saint Bartholomew's Hospital, London working on growth disorders and insulin like growth factors.

In 1991 Richard joined the Waltham Centre and worked on the research and development of veterinary clinical diets, with emphasis on the management of obesity, gastrointestinal disease, neonatal and post-operative nutritional support. Since then Richard has led a number of research programmes, covering a broad spectrum of nutritional areas in dogs and cats, including energy requirements and obesity, digestive function and health, probiotics, growth and development, and oral health. Richard has published widely in the field of dog and cat nutrition and is a member of a number of professional bodies.