It was clear from the discussion that whilst there are a number of local initiatives aimed at tackling malnutrition in older people, there is no national, coordinated and cross-sectoral strategy aimed at early identification and optimal nutritional management of those at risk. There was general agreement that an outcome of the policy workshop should be the establishment of a national, multidisciplinary task force that would advance the recommendations of the Prague Declaration in Ireland and give malnutrition a higher priority, particularly in older people.