GLOBAL CHALLENGES AND SOLUTIONS FOR FOOD AND NUTRITION SUSTAINABILITY PANEL DISCUSSION Barbara O. Schneeman, Ph.D.
Report from the 1995 FAO-WHO consultation Central Challenge: Reorientation from Nutrients to Food and Dietary Patterns
Forming a working group: Expertise needed for FBDG Nutrition Science Metabolism of food components/pathophysiology. Food Science and Technology Composition, physical properties, food formulation and processing. Educational, Behavioral and Social Sciences Understanding of behavior and motivation to change. Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Production capacity, sustainability
Key Elements for FBDG Relevant to public health issues Recognize social, economic, agricultural, and environmental aspects of foods and eating patterns Reflect food patterns rather than numeric goals Positive and encourage enjoyment of appropriate dietary intakes. A variety of dietary patterns can be consistent with good health.
FAO: More than 100 countries world-wide have developed food-based dietary guidelines...
FAO: the need to produce more food in a more sustainable way
FAO Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity Sustainable diets are those diets with low environmental impacts which contribute to food and nutrition security and to healthy life for present and future generations. Sustainable diets are protective and respectful of biodiversity and ecosystems, culturally acceptable, accessible, economically fair and affordable; nutritionally adequate, safe and healthy; while optimizing natural and human resources. FAO, 2010, Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity.
FAO: Dietary Guidelines and Sustainability In an effort to reduce the environmental impact of food production and consumption, some countries, non-governmental and charitable organizations as well as civil society movements have developed dietary recommendations that are considered more sustainable and protective of human health and the environment. Such recommendations include: increased consumption of plant foods and a focus on local foods, reduction of food waste, consumption of fish from sustainable stocks only and reduction of consumption of red and processed meat, highly-processed foods and sugar-sweetened beverages.
Consideration of Sustainable Diets by the 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee Scope: To understand the link between how our food is grown, caught, produced, processed, and transported on the health of humans and the environment. This will enable us to inform policies related to dietary guidance, agriculture, and aquaculture. The goal is to develop dietary guidance that supports human health and the health of the planet over time. From Meeting 2 slides. Scope: Address food and nutrition issues that will inform public health action and policies to promote the health of the population through sustainable diets and food safety. From Meeting 7 slides
Draft definitions* operationalized for the DGAC Sustainable diets are a pattern of eating that promotes health and well-being, and provides food security for current and future populations while sustaining human and natural resources. Food security exists when all people living in the United States now and in the future have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs for an active and healthy life. *From slides for Meeting 4 of the DGAC
From DGAC draft major conclusions and recommendations A dietary pattern higher in plant-based foods, such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and seeds, and lower in animalbased foods is more health promoting and is associated with lesser environmental impact that is the current average U.S. diet Sustainability considerations provide an additional rationale for following the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. The addition of environmental considerations to dietary guidance can be accomplished because of the compatibility and overlap between favorable health and environmental outcomes. *From slides for Meeting 7 of the DGAC
Example from Sweden
Observations Sustainability is defined in general terms and typically related to environmental outcomes/goals It is typically used to justify diets that are primarily plant-based. A challenge is balancing expertise in working groups considering sustainability and nutritional goals. Maybe used to promote organic production methods Maybe used to target certain types of processed foods (sugarsweetened beverages, certain refined oils, highly-processed foods)