scholarly journals Fresh street: the development and feasibility of a place-based, subsidy for fresh fruit and vegetables

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
C Relton ◽  
M Crowder ◽  
M Blake ◽  
M Strong
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Fruit And Vegetables ◽  
Processed Foods ◽  
Household Type ◽  
Eating Behaviours ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Subsidy Scheme ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
Local Stakeholders ◽  
Local Councillors

Abstract Background Many UK communities experience food insecurity, and consume diets high in energy-dense, nutrient poor, processed foods and low in fruit and vegetables (FV). We explored a novel area-based approach to promote FV consumption and healthy eating in one such community. Methods We developed a weekly subsidy scheme for fresh FV with key local stakeholders in an area of socioeconomic deprivation in Northern England. The scheme (Fresh Street) offered five £1 vouchers to every household, regardless of income or household type. Vouchers were redeemable with local suppliers of fresh FV (not supermarkets). The feasibility of the scheme was assessed in four streets using rapid ethnographic assessment and voucher redemption information. Results Local councillors and public health teams were supportive of the scheme. Most eligible households joined the scheme (n = 80/97, 83%), and 89.3% (17 849/19 982) of vouchers issued were redeemed. Householders reported that the scheme made them think about what they were eating, and prompted them to buy and eat more FV. Conclusions This feasibility study reported high levels of acceptance for a place-based, household-level weekly FV subsidy scheme. Further research is required to evaluate the effectiveness of this approach to creating healthy diets, eating behaviours and food systems.

scholarly journals The role of the transnational ultra-processed food industry in the pandemic of obesity and its associated diseases: problems and solutions

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlos A. Monteiro ◽  
Geoffrey John Cannon
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food Industry ◽  
Processed Foods ◽  
Lower Income ◽  
Processed Food ◽  
Civil Society Organisations ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
Problems And Solutions ◽  
Lower Income Countries

Policies to control and prevent the pandemic of obesity and related conditions and diseases have failed. This is because the efficient causes of the pandemic have not yet been agreed. We state here that its outstanding immediate cause is the increased and rapidly increasing consumption of ultra-processed foods, which displace unprocessed or minimally processed foods and freshly prepared dishes and meals, most conspicuously now in middle- and lower-income countries.   The underlying cause of this is the phenomenal rise since the 1980s of the transnational corporations whose huge profits depend on the use of cheap ingredients and arrays of additives made into ultra-processed food. The scale and power of the transnationals, which tend towards oligopoly, and their penetration of middle and lower-income countries, have been accelerated by global political and economic agreements that have deregulated trade and allowed capital flow that opens countries to penetration by foreign businesses.   Food is essential for life and health, but there is no need to consume ultra-processed foods. In this sense, they are similar to tobacco products. The same statutory policies and programmes that are applied to smoking should be adapted to limit and reduce consumption of ultra-processed foods. Revenue from taxation should be used to protect local food producers and retailers, to promote healthy and sustainable diets, and to ensure food security for vulnerable populations. Overall, a Framework Convention on Food Systems, promulgated by the relevant United Nations agencies as agreed by UN member states, supported by professional and civil society organisations and social movements, is needed. This will be designed to create healthy food systems and supplies and thus healthy diets that also are beneficial socially, culturally, economically and environmentally.

scholarly journals Toward Sociocultural Indicators of Sustainable Healthy Diets

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (13) ◽  
pp. 7226
Author(s):  
Jill Nicholls ◽  
Adam Drewnowski
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Research Priorities ◽  
Social Dimension ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Four Dimensions ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
The Social ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
Development Goals

Balancing the social, economic and environmental priorities for public health is at the core of the United Nations (UN) approaches to sustainable development, including the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The four dimensions of sustainable diets are often presented as health, society, economics, and the environment. Although sustainable diet research has focused on health and the environment, the social and economic dimensions of sustainable diets and food systems should not be forgotten. Some research priorities and sociocultural indicators for sustainable healthy diets and food systems are outlined in this report. The present goal is to improve integration of the social dimension into research on food and nutrition security.

scholarly journals Legal and human rights-based approaches to healthy diets and sustainable food systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (Supplement_5) ◽  
Author(s):  
D W Patterson ◽  
K Buse ◽  
R Magnusson ◽  
B C A Toebes
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Civil Society ◽  
Global Health ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Business Models ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
Health And Development ◽  
The Right

Abstract Issue Malnutrition in all its forms poses daunting challenges to global health and development. The agriculture sector is a significant contributor to global warming. COVID-19 has pushed many people into poverty, including food poverty. A radical rethink of business models, food systems, civil society involvement, and national and international governance is required to address the interlinked crises of COVID-19, obesity, undernutrition, and climate change. International human rights law, institutions and mechanisms provide important opportunities for norm setting, advocacy and accountability. Yet these pathways are under-utilised by both governments and civil society. Description The global AIDS response demonstrated the power of a human rights-based approach. United Nations' HIV/AIDS and Human Rights Guidelines greatly influenced the global consensus for effective, evidence-based approaches. The Guidelines also informed resolutions of the UN General Assembly and its Human Rights Council, contributing to more affordable medicines, an unprecedented increase in people on treatment, less stigmatising health services, the empowerment of marginalised groups, and the institutionalisation of norms, including “no one left behind.” Human rights-based approaches have also been successfully utilised in tobacco control. Results In 2019, 180 experts from 38 countries published an open call on WHO and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to initiate an inclusive process to develop guidelines on human rights, healthy diets and sustainable food systems. Most signatories were from the health and development sectors, demonstrating the increasingly broad interest in using human rights mechanisms to address global health challenges. Lessons Opportunities exist to transform food systems and create healthier food environments and a healthier planet by clarifying existing international obligations to progressively realise the right to food and the right to health. Key messages Market forces, alone, are failing to deliver healthy diets and sustainable food systems. International legal frameworks and accountability mechanisms provide opportunities for engagement and action. Human rights guidelines can help mobilize multisectoral action, strengthen State and private sector accountability, and deepen community engagement in the urgent task of achieving Agenda 2030.

scholarly journals Ultra-processed foods and binge eating: A retrospective observational study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnes Ayton ◽  
Ali Ibrahim ◽  
James Dugan ◽  
Eimar Galvin ◽  
Oliver Wroe-Wright
Keyword(s):  
Eating Disorder ◽  
Observational Study ◽  
Binge Eating ◽  
Clinical Sample ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Retrospective Observational Study ◽  
Processed Foods ◽  
Eating Behaviours ◽  
Male Patients ◽  
The Impact

OBJECTIVEThere is increasing evidence of the impact of ultra-processed foods on multiple metabolic and neurobiological pathways, including those involved in eating behaviours, both in animals and in humans. In this pilot study, we aimed to explore ultra-processed foods and their link with disordered eating in a clinical sample. METHODSThis was a single site, retrospective observational study in a specialist eating disorder service using self report on the electronic health records. Patients with a DSM-5 diagnosis of anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN) or binge eating disorder (BED) were randomly selected from the service database in Oxford from 2017 to 2019. The recently introduced NOVA classification was used to determine the degree of industrial food processing in each patient’s diet. Frequencies of ultra-processed foods were analysed for each diagnosis, at each mealtime and during episodes of bingeing.RESULTS71 female and 3 male patients were included in the study. 22 had AN, 25 BN and 26 had BED. Patients with AN reported consuming 55% NOVA-4 foods, as opposed to approximately 70% in BN and BED. Binge foods were 100% ultra-processed.DISCUSSIONFurther research into the metabolic and neurobiological effects of reducing ultra-processed food intake on bingeing behaviour is needed.

scholarly journals Child-centered food systems: Reorienting food systems towards healthy diets for children

2020 ◽  
Vol 27 ◽  
pp. 100414 ◽  
Author(s):  
Corinna Hawkes ◽  
Elizabeth Fox ◽  
Shauna M. Downs ◽  
Jessica Fanzo ◽  
Kimberley Neve
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
Child Centered

scholarly journals Healthy Diets and Reduced Land Pressure: Towards a Double Gain for Future Food Systems in Nigeria

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 835 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zuzana Smeets-Kristkova ◽  
Thom Achterbosch ◽  
Marijke Kuiper
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Global Economy ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Leverage Points ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Healthy Diets ◽  
The Impact

Nigeria is one of the most dynamic economies in Africa. Strong GDP and population growth coupled with urbanization trends place tremendous pressures on natural resources and the food systems that are dependent on them. Understanding the impact of these “mega trends” is important to identify key leverage points for navigating towards improved nutrition and food security in Nigeria. This paper contributes to the Foresight Project of the Food Systems for Healthier Diets which aims to analyse how the food system in Nigeria is expected to transform in the next decades, and to identify the leverage points for making sure that the transformation contributes to balanced consumer diets. For the food systems foresight, a well-established global economy-wide model, MAGNET, is applied that enables to capture the interlinkages among different food industry players in one consistent framework. By linking MAGNET to the GENUS nutritional database, it is further possible to relate the developments occurring on a macro-level with detailed macro and micronutrient consumption. Model projections suggest that a process of intensification of agriculture in combination with land substitution appears critical for the evolution of food and nutrition security, and for shifts towards healthy diets for the population. Intensification results in greater diversity of the production systems, which in turn cascades into positive effects on the diversity in the food supply and better food security outcomes.

scholarly journals Healthy diets and sustainable food systems

The Lancet ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 394 (10194) ◽  
pp. 214-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edward Archer ◽  
Carl J Lavie
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Healthy Diets

scholarly journals Unlocking Uncultivated Food for Mountain Livelihood: Case from Hindu Kush Himalayas

2013 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
pp. 160-170 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kamal Aryal ◽  
Rajan Kotru ◽  
Karma Phuntsho
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Essential Elements ◽  
Income Generation ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Food And Nutrition Security ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
Food And Nutrition ◽  
Hindu Kush

Throughout the Hindu Kush Himalayas, uncultivated plants provide a green social and cultural security to millions of people supporting their livelihood. Review on evaluating the multifunctional role of uncultivated plants in perspective of livelihood support finds that plants add diversity to local food systems, reinforce local culture and contribute diversity to farming systems, and finally are important for household food and nutrition security, social security, income generation and health care. Further, this paper clarifies that local people maintain and conserve diversity for the sake of use. The wise conservation and use of uncultivated plants are essential elements for increasing food security, eliminating poverty, and maintaining the environment. However, the value and potential of uncultivated plants for food and nutrition security, household level health care, income generation opportunity are not yet realized. Fast changing climate and early projections on its impacts suggest that such programmes must increasingly consider the sustenance of ecosystem that promotes uncultivated plants as basis for the welfare of millions.

Healthy diets as a guide to responsible food systems

2021 ◽  
pp. 323-352
Author(s):  
Shireen Kassam ◽  
David Jenkins ◽  
Doug Bristor ◽  
Zahra Kassam
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Healthy Diets
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