The Society for the Study of Ingestive Behaviour meets each year to discuss and highlight recent developments in our understanding of all aspects of controls of eating and drinking. The aim of this satellite was to focus on key issues in human food intake control: palatability, central and peripheral signalling, dietary restraint, macronutrients, energy density, heritability and the significance of animal models for research in man, and to bring together researchers approaching these issues from different perspectives. The presentations including live discussions are reflected in the following papers.