Future of food: Innovating towards sustainable healthy diets

The Mediterranean diet (MD) concept as currently known describes the dietary patterns that were followed in specific regions of the area in the 1950s and 1960s. The broad recognition of its positive effects on the longevity of Mediterranean populations also led to the adoption of this diet in other regions of the world, and scientific interest focused on revealing its health effects. MD is not only linked with eating specific nutritional food products but also with social, religious, environmental, and cultural aspects, thus representing a healthy lifestyle in general. However, modern lifestyles adhere to less healthy diets, alienating people from their heritage. Therefore, considering the increasing evidence of the beneficial health effects of adherence to the MD and the ongoing transitions in consumers’ behavior, the present review focuses on updating the scientific knowledge regarding this diet and its relevance to agrobiodiversity. In addition, it also considers a sustainable approach for new marketing opportunities and consumer trends of the MD.

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Shaping Physical, Economic, and Policy Components of the Food Environment to Create Sustainable Healthy Diets

Food and Nutrition Bulletin ◽

10.1177/0379572120945904 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (2_suppl) ◽

pp. 74S-86S

Author(s):

Adam Drewnowski ◽

Eva C. Monterrosa ◽

Saskia de Pee ◽

Edward A. Frongillo ◽

Stefanie Vandevijvere

Keyword(s):

Low Income ◽

Food Environment ◽

Food System ◽

Well Being ◽

Food Environments ◽

Healthy Foods ◽

Equitable Access ◽

Nutrition Labels ◽

Healthy Diets ◽

Physical Spaces

Background: Sustainable healthy diets are those dietary patterns that promote all dimensions of individuals’ health and well-being; have low environmental pressure and impact; are accessible, affordable, safe, and equitable; and are culturally acceptable. The food environment, defined as the interface between the wider food system and consumer’s food acquisition and consumption, is critical for ensuring equitable access to foods that are healthy, safe, affordable, and appealing. Discussion: Current food environments are creating inequities, and sustainable healthy foods are generally more accessible for those of higher socioeconomic status. The physical, economic, and policy components of the food environment can all be acted on to promote sustainable healthy diets. Physical spaces can be modified to improve relative availability (ie, proximity) of food outlets that carry nutritious foods in low-income communities; to address economic access certain actions may improve affordability, such as fortification, preventing food loss through supply chain improvements; and commodity specific vouchers for fruits, vegetables, and legumes. Other policy actions that address accessibility to sustainable healthy foods are comprehensive marketing restrictions and easy-to-understand front-of-pack nutrition labels. While shaping food environments will require concerted action from all stakeholders, governments and private sector bear significant responsibility for ensuring equitable access to sustainable healthy diets.

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Picturing the future of food

tppj ◽

10.1002/ppj2.20014 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 4 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Anna L. Casto ◽

Haley Schuhl ◽

Jose C. Tovar ◽

Qi Wang ◽

Rebecca S. Bart ◽

...

Keyword(s):

The Future ◽

Future Of Food

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Territorial and Sustainable Healthy Diets

Food and Nutrition Bulletin ◽

10.1177/0379572120976253 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 41 (2_suppl) ◽

pp. 87S-103S

Author(s):

Fatima Hachem ◽

Davy Vanham ◽

Luis A. Moreno

Keyword(s):

Natural Resources ◽

Dietary Habits ◽

Production Systems ◽

Political Support ◽

Economic Sustainability ◽

Policy Coherence ◽

Health And Nutrition ◽

Healthy Diets ◽

Rapid Changes ◽

New Nordic Diet

The rapid changes that societies have gone through in the last few decades have led to the increase in the prevalence of malnutrition in all its forms and to the degradation of natural resources and the environment. The change in the dietary habits and production systems are responsible for much of this change. Some territorial diets have been shown as potentially capable of reversing these trends by positively contributing to the health of people and the environment such as the Mediterranean Diet and the New Nordic Diet. In this paper, we review the contribution of these 2 diets to health and nutrition and to environmental, sociocultural, and economic sustainability proposing pertinent indicators. Learning from a culturally established diet and a constructed one, tradeoff could be reached to ensure better health and sustainability outcomes. Strong factors for achieving this goal lie in building on the sociocultural appropriation of diets, having the proper tools and indicators, investing in cross-sector collaboration and policy coherence, and having the necessary political support to push the agenda of sustainability forward.

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Evaluation of the impacts of a community garden program for veterans on food security and indicators of healthy diets.

Journal of Hunger & Environmental Nutrition ◽

10.1080/19320248.2021.1886215 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-4

Author(s):

Karen Besterman-Dahan ◽

Nora B. Arriola ◽

Sarah E. Bradley

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Community Garden ◽

Healthy Diets

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Measuring cost and affordability of current vs. healthy diets in Argentina: an application of linear programming and the INFORMAS protocol

BMC Public Health ◽

10.1186/s12889-021-10914-6 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 21 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Gabriel Giacobone ◽

Maria Victoria Tiscornia ◽

Leila Guarnieri ◽

Luciana Castronuovo ◽

Sally Mackay ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Linear Programming ◽

Energy Intake ◽

Current Model ◽

Food Product ◽

Poor Households ◽

Average Household Income ◽

Healthy Diets ◽

Diet Cost ◽

The Difference ◽

Optimal Approach

Abstract Background Food cost and affordability is one of the main barriers to improve the nutritional quality of diets of the population. However, in Argentina, where over 60% of adults and 40% of children and adolescents are overweight or obese, little is known about the difference in cost and affordability of healthier diets compared to ordinary, less healthy ones. Methods We implemented the “optimal approach” proposed by the International Network for Food and Obesity/non-communicable diseases Research, Monitoring and Action Support (INFORMAS). We modelled the current diet and two types of healthy diets, one equal in energy with the current diet and one 6.3% lower in energy by linear programming. Cost estimations were performed by collecting food product prices and running a Monte Carlo simulation (10,000 iterations) to obtain a range of costs for each model diet. Affordability was measured as the percentage contribution of diet cost vs. average household income in average, poor and extremely poor households and by income deciles. Results On average, households must spend 32% more money on food to ensure equal energy intake from a healthy diet than from a current model diet. When the energy intake target was reduced by 6.3%, the difference in cost was 22%. There are no reasonably likely situations in which any of these healthy diets could cost less or the same than the current unhealthier one. Over 50% of households would be unable to afford the modelled healthy diets, while 40% could not afford the current diet. Conclusions Differential cost and affordability of healthy vs. unhealthy diets are germane to the design of effective public policies to reduce obesity and NCDs in Argentina. It is necessary to implement urgent measures to transform the obesogenic environment, making healthier products more affordable, available and desirable, and discouraging consumption of nutrient-poor, energy-rich foods.

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