Lenka Malek

Dr Lenka Malek

Lecturer

School of Agriculture, Food and Wine

Faculty of Sciences, Engineering and Technology

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.


Dr Lenka Malek is a qualified dietitian who was awarded a PhD in Medicine from the University of Adelaide in 2015. In 2023, she commenced her role as a Lecturer in the School of Agriculture, Food & Wine. Prior to this she was a Research Fellow at the Centre for Global Food and Resources (part of the School of Economics and Public Policy) (2014-2022). 

As an education specialist, Lenka teaches into the Food and Nutrition Science program and is part of the Haide College teaching team. She teaches and assists with the development and delivery of several undergraduate and postgraduate courses, including Public Health Nutrition III, Nutrition II, Nutrition I, Food Quality and Regulation, Food Product Development III, Nutrition Metabolism, Research Methods and Data Analysis.

Lenka enjoys exposing others to the curious world of food choices and drivers of dietary behaviour through her role as lecturer and supervisor of higher degree research students. Her qualitative and quantitative research expertise covers a wide range of domain areas including but not limited to: changing protein consumption patterns, alternative protein products, lab-grown meat, food preferences, food recalls and food safety perceptions, food insecurity, environmental impact, sustainability, COVID-related dietary changes, dietary supplement use, food fortification, adherence to dietary recommendations, dietary intake during pregnancy, infant formula purchase and preparation decisions, and health care provider practices. She conducts focus group discussions, in-depth interviews and online consumer surveys and uses a range of techniques (e.g., discrete choice experiments and eye-tracking) to elicit consumer preferences and generate usable consumer insights.

Her multidisciplinary research aims to produce consumer behaviour insights which can be used to inform development of and improvements in food and health policy. For example, Lenka has conducted several projects for Food Standards Australia and New Zealand, the results of which have helped to inform changes to labelling standards for infant formula products. 

  • Appointments

    Date Position Institution name
    2023 - ongoing Lecturer The University of Adelaide
    2014 - 2023 Research Fellow University of Adelaide
    2012 - 2012 Lecturer, tutor and practical demonstrator (casual) University of Adelaide
    2011 - 2014 Research Assistant (casual) Women's & Children's Health Research Institute
  • Awards and Achievements

    Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount
    2017 Award Women's Research Excellence Award The University of Adelaide Australia $5,000
    2015 Recognition Deans Commendation for Doctoral Thesis Excellence University of Adelaide Australia -
  • Language Competencies

    Language Competency
    Czech Can read, write, speak and understand spoken
    English Can read, write, speak, understand spoken and peer review
  • Education

    Date Institution name Country Title
    2011 - 2015 University of Adelaide Australia PhD
    2007 - 2010 Flinders University Australia Bachelor of Nutrition & Dietetics (Hons)
  • Research Interests

  • Memberships

    Date Role Membership Country
    2016 - ongoing Member Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society Australia
  • Position: Lecturer
  • Email: lenka.malek@adelaide.edu.au
  • Campus: Waite
  • Building: Plant Genomics Centre, floor Level Two
  • Room: 2.05
  • Org Unit: Centre for Global Food and Resources

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