($100 Bills with Bow - KIWA Staff Photo)Des Moines, Iowa (RI) — The recipient of the 2026 World Food Prize is being recognized for leading efforts to improve food safety around the globe.
Huub Lelieveld, a scientist from the Netherlands, was honored Thursday night in Des Moines as this year’s World Food Prize Laureate. The award includes a $500,000 prize.
Lelieveld says his passion for food safety began at a young age.
Lelieveld founded the Global Harmonization Initiative in 2004, bringing together food safety experts and scientists from around the world to develop international standards for the safe movement of food across borders.
His work has helped reduce foodborne illness, improve food safety practices, and make it easier to transport food and humanitarian aid worldwide.
The World Food Prize was established in 1986 by Iowa native Norman Borlaug, whose efforts to increase wheat production in developing nations earned him the 1970 Nobel Peace Prize.
