Sustainable Diets: How Ecological Nutrition Can Transform Consumption and the Food System

Description

How can huge populations be fed healthily, equitably and affordably while maintaining the ecosystems on which life depends? The evidence of diet’s impact on public health and the environment has grown in recent decades, yet changing food supply, consumer habits and economic aspirations proves hard. This book explores what is meant by sustainable diets and why this has to be the goal for the Anthropocene, the current era in which human activities are driving the mismatch of humans and the planet. Food production and consumption are key drivers of transitions already underway, yet policy makers hesitate to reshape public eating habits and tackle the unsustainability of the global food system. The authors propose a multi-criteria approach to sustainable diets, giving equal weight to nutrition and public health, the environment, socio-cultural issues, food quality, economics and governance. This six-pronged approach to sustainable diets brings order and rationality to what either is seen as too complex to handle or is addressed simplistically and ineffectually. The book provides a major overview of this vibrant issue of interdisciplinary and public interest. It outlines the reasons for concern and how actors throughout the food system (governments, producers, civil society and consumers) must engage with (un)sustainable diets. Sustainable Diets- Front Cover......Page 1 Sustainable Diets......Page 2 Title Page......Page 4 Copyright Page......Page 5 Contents......Page 6 List of figures......Page 7 List of tables......Page 8 Acknowledgements......Page 10 List of acronyms and abbreviations......Page 12 Introduction......Page 16 Outline of the book......Page 20 References......Page 21 Core arguments......Page 22 Sustainable diets: both a practical and conceptual problem?......Page 23 Sustainable diet as code for better consumption......Page 28 The intellectual case for sustainable diets......Page 29 Reactions to the case for sustainable diets......Page 32 The framework used in this book: six key headings......Page 35 References......Page 40 Chapter 2: Methodologies: measuring what matters while not drowning in complexity......Page 46 What is the point of indicators and measurement?......Page 47 Available indicators and measures of a sustainable diet......Page 51 Health indicators......Page 53 Environmental indicators in relation to diet......Page 61 Social values......Page 69 Economic indicators......Page 73 Food security indicators......Page 75 Social LCA......Page 77 Multi-criteria indicators......Page 79 References......Page 81 Chapter 3: Health: nutrition science and the messy effects of diet on health......Page 91 Dietary links with health......Page 92 Causes of obesity......Page 95 Non-communicable diseases (NCDs)......Page 98 Under-nutrition......Page 102 Dietary guidelines......Page 104 Microbiological foodborne illness......Page 107 Chemical foodborne illness......Page 108 Antibiotic use in the food system......Page 109 Health effects for people associated with food production......Page 112 Is a healthy diet an environmentally friendly diet and vice versa?......Page 114 Conclusions......Page 121 References......Page 123 Chapter 4: Environment: why food drives ecosystem stress......Page 134 The impact of food and diet on the environment......Page 135 Climate change......Page 136 Energy use......Page 143 Water......Page 145 Land use......Page 148 Soil......Page 151 Biodiversity......Page 153 Local food......Page 157 Organic food......Page 160 Waste......Page 162 Environmental impacts of diets......Page 165 References......Page 169 Core arguments......Page 182 Food is social......Page 183 Food access and inequality......Page 189 Causes of dietary inequalities......Page 191 Hunger amid affluence......Page 194 Human right to food: could sustainable diets fit in?......Page 195 Pleasure: the subversive element of sustainable diets......Page 196 Identity......Page 198 Marketing......Page 199 Labelling, education and information......Page 201 Animal welfare......Page 205 Fair trade......Page 207 References......Page 208 Core arguments......Page 218 What is food quality?......Page 219 The visibility of food quality: making the(un)sustainable obvious......Page 232 Bridging personal and cultural preferences......Page 234 References......Page 235 Core arguments......Page 240 Why economics matters for the sustainable diets debate......Page 241 Economics of the food system: price or priceless?......Page 245 The real cost of food......Page 256 Conclusions: fixing the economics for sustainable diets......Page 263 References......Page 266 Chapter 8: Policy and governance: will anyone unlock the consumption lock-in?......Page 274 Core arguments......Page 275 What is meant by policy and governance?......Page 276 Different positions emerge on what to do......Page 281 Governance in practice: who has tried to do what?......Page 293 Governance themes have emerged......Page 316 Conclusion: achieving action through the SDG2 strategy......Page 321 References......Page 323 Core arguments......Page 341 A focus on consumption......Page 342 The problem is real (not a conspiracy to undermine rights or choice)......Page 344 Need for change......Page 347 What action is needed, and by whom?......Page 348 The core messages of a sustainable diet......Page 352 The last word on sustainable dietary guidelines......Page 353 References......Page 355 Index......Page 358