Prize History

In the 1950s, margarine as a basic element in nutrition became increasingly important. In 1963, the Margarine Institute endowed the Heinrich Wieland Prize to support research in the field of lipids.

The Board of Trustees, which elects the annual Heinrich Wieland Laureate, was first headed by Prof. Konrad Lang, the doyen of nutrition physiology in Germany. From 1977 to 1995, Prof. Theodor Wieland, a son of Heinrich Wieland, chaired the award committee. He was succeeded by Prof. Nepomuk Zöllner, who headed the Board of Trustees from 1996 - 2006. In 2006, Prof. Konrad Sandhoff became the Chair of the Board of Trustees.

In 1989, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Heinrich Wieland Prize, a Heinrich Wieland "Medal in Gold" was endowed. This can be awarded by the trustees to especially honour a scientist's lifetime achievement.

The outstanding reputation the prize enjoys is reflected in the list of Heinrich Wieland Laureates which shows a large number of world-renowned scientists. The Heinrich Wieland Laureates from 1974, Michael S. Brown and Joseph L. Goldstein from Dallas, Texas/USA, went on to receive the Nobel Prize in medicine in 1985. Bengt Samuelsson from Stockholm/Sweden, the Heinrich Wieland Laureate in 1981, was awarded the Nobel Prize for medicine shortly after.

In 2000, the Margarine Institute ended its sponsorship of the Heinrich Wieland Prize and the pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim became the new sponsor.

In the early 20th century, Boehringer Ingelheim and Heinrich Wieland had a joint history when Heinrich Wieland and his brother Hermann were involved in the early stages of the company’s pharmaceutical research.

Since 2011, the Heinrich Wieland Prize is endowed by the Boehringer Ingelheim Foundation.