The prevalence of obesity, overweight and type 2 diabetes are increasing in all regions of Europe. Obesity is already commonplace, affecting 10–20% of men and 10–25% of women, and by 2010 approximately 31 million of the population will require treatment for diabetes and its related complications, including the ‘metabolic syndrome’ (a cluster of cardiovascular risk factors). Associated health and social welfare costs are expected to rise to economically unsustainable levels in Europe as a direct result of these trends. Effective strategies are needed to tackle this major public health problem and to decrease dependence on medical management. These issues are the focus of LIPGENE (FOOD-CT-2003-505944), funded by the European Commission, which will investigate the interactions between dietary constituents and the genome in the development of chronic diseases, such as the metabolic syndrome, and will utilise new technologies to identify novel solutions. The LIPGENE consortium comprises twenty-five research centres across Europe. Features of the 5-year work programme include a major human nutrition intervention study in eight European cities, development of a sustainable vegetable oil product naturally rich in long-chain n-3 fatty acids, and identification of a protocol for feeding dairy cows that will result in milk with a more favourable fatty acid composition. Other work packages will provide a detailed economic analysis of the current and future healthcare costs associated with the metabolic syndrome, and an analysis of consumer attitudes. There is also a dissemination programme associated with the project that features conferences, workshops and associated publications.