“I can’t say I understood much about the book as a 16-year-old,” Meg laughed, “But learning about the impact of food on our health had me intrigued.” After Meg researched more, she began boycotting family dinners and cooking healthier meals. Before long, she had recruited her sister and was getting up at six a.m. every morning to make healthy school lunches for them.

“I’d always enjoyed the kitchen growing up, and I baked cakes for everyone’s birthday,” Meg said. “But my cooking became more about nutritious meals and eating well. When I started thinking about university, I knew I needed a holistic degree,” Meg said. “I chose Endeavour because I knew it would put me on a different career trajectory to a public university.”

Meg studied the Nutritional and Dietetic Medicine degree completely on-campus in Melbourne. “I was captivated by nutritional biochemistry and at the same time, overwhelmed by it. The more I learnt, the more I realised how much we don’t know,” she said. “But the beauty of this science is that it never leaves you. You can use it every day of your life.”

“Student clinic at Endeavour was amazing. In one month, you learn what you could in five years in theory. By doing clinic, I realised I wanted more life experience before going into practice,” Meg said. “So, when I graduated, I started working in the food industry.”

“An Endeavour lecturer, Tanya Wells, said, ‘you will never find the job you want on Seek. You need to invent it or get out and talk to the people where you’d like to be.’ ” This advice stuck with Meg. Over the past seven years, she has carved out a niche as a recipe developer and freelance project manager with a range of well-known food and health brands.

It began an internship at I Quit Sugar and work with Sarah Wilson on her cookbooks. One project evolved into the next, and soon brands from Blackmores to HelloFresh were engaging Meg to develop recipes, meal plans and content for their cookbooks, TV programs and digital media.

“I’ve always worked for brands that are looking for qualified nutritionists to create nutritionally-balanced meals, plans and projects,” Meg said. “Right now, I’m writing CSIRO’s next cookbook and working part-time as a project manager for Sarah Wilson’s food charity.”

Despite Meg’s large Instagram following, she is not interested in being the face of a brand. “I have more fun supporting the frontperson and working alongside people who keep me learning.”

Natural Health Heroes

Natural Health Heroes celebrates the wellness journeys of our alumni. From where they began to where they are today, we showcase our alumni’s unique stories, experiences and successes.

Interested in reading more Natural Health Heroes stories? Head here for more.