Virginia Messina is a nutrition consultant in private practice, serving as an advisor to non-profit organizations that produce educational materials on vegetarian diets. She is on the editorial staff of the newsletter of the Vegetarian Nutrition Dietetic Practice Group. She speaks and writes about plant-based nutrition for both the public and health professionals. She was on the faculty of the dietetics department of Central Michigan University, and has worked as a public health nutritionist in rural Michigan and in Washington, DC.