Learn more about CRN-I's scientific experts:

CRN-I Scientists

John Hathcock, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President, Scientific & International Affairs

Dr. Hathcock is responsible for scientific review and regulatory interpretation, specializing in safety and international issues. He has decades of experience in the field, having served as a professor at Iowa State University and a senior scientist at the Food and Drug Administration before joining CRN in 1995. An expert on the safety evaluation of nutrients and other dietary ingredients, he has made numerous presentations on the safety of vitamins and minerals and other dietary ingredients to the U.S. Food and Nutrition Board and is the author of CRN's Vitamin and Mineral Safety (1997 and 2004). In addition to publishing numerous peer-reviewed scientific articles, he regularly presents at major national and international conferences on food safety and regulatory issues, analyzes and develops CRN policy positions, and speaks on international regulations and issues, including those pertaining to the Codex Alimentarius, the European Commission, and the ASEAN health supplements harmonization of maximum levels. He has been appointed by the government of Singapore to membership in an external advisory committee on supplements. Dr. Hathcock holds B.S. and M.S. degrees from North Carolina State University and a Ph.D. in Nutrition from Cornell University and is an elected member of professional societies in nutrition and toxicology.

Duffy MacKay, N.D.
Vice President, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs

Dr. MacKay is a licensed Naturopathic Doctor and was a co-owner and practitioner in a family-owned New Hampshire complementary and alternative medicine private practice for seven years. In addition to his hands-on experience as a practitioner in the field of integrative medicine, he spent eight years working as a medical consultant for two companies in the dietary supplement industry, including four years as an executive with Nordic Naturals, where he was in charge of clinical research. He previously served as Technical Advisor for Thorne Research. Dr. MacKay has published articles in peer-reviewed journals, and serves on the Editorial Board of two peer-reviewed publications: the clinical journal Alternative Medicine Review and the official publication of the American Association of Naturopathic Physicians, Natural Medicine Journal.  Dr. MacKay earned his B.S. in Marine Sciences from the University of California, Santa Cruz and his N.D. from the National College of Naturopathic Medicine in Portland, Oregon. Dr. MacKay is licensed in the state of New Hampshire.

Taylor Wallace, Ph.D.
Senior Director, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs

Prior to joining CRN, Dr. Wallace worked at the International Life Sciences Institute, advocating for credible emerging science related to nutrition and food safety. His academic background includes a Ph.D. and an M.S. in Food Science and Nutrition from The Ohio State University and a B.S. in Food Science and Technology from the University of Kentucky. Dr. Wallace serves as a reviewer for the Journal of Food Science, Journal of Chromatography, Advances in Nutrition and Comprehensive Reviews in Food Science and Food Safety. He is the author of more than a dozen peer-reviewed articles/book chapters and has received seven nationally recognized grants from groups including the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Dr. Wallace is an active member of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT), the American Chemical Society (ACS), the American Society of Nutrition (ASN) and the Phi Tau Sigma Honor Society for Food and Technology.

Annette Dickinson, Ph.D.
CRN Consultant

Dr. Dickinson is a consultant on dietary supplement regulation and food and nutrition policy, and is also an adjunct professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition at the University of Minnesota. She worked in Washington, D.C., for over 30 years for the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), the leading trade association of the dietary supplement industry.  During that time, she was responsible for regulatory and scientific affairs for CRN and served as the association’s President prior to her retirement and move to Minnesota in 2005.   

Dr. Dickinson is the author of CRN’s publication The Benefits of Nutritional Supplements, a comprehensive review of the evidence demonstrating the health benefits of core nutritional supplements including multivitamins.  She was appointed in 2002 to serve a 3-year term on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Food Advisory Committee.  She was appointed by President Clinton to the Commission on Dietary Supplement Labels (1995-1997) and has been a frequent witness before the U.S. Congress and at other public forums.  Her expertise includes the legal and technical aspects of marketing dietary supplements, including provisions relating to labeling, advertising, and good manufacturing practices.  She earned her Ph.D. in nutritional sciences and her M.S. in food sciences from the University of Maryland.