scholarly journals Review of Methodologies for Assessing Sustainable Diets and Potential for Development of Harmonised Indicators

2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (7) ◽  
pp. 1184 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Eme ◽  
Jeroen Douwes ◽  
Nicholas Kim ◽  
Sunia Foliaki ◽  
Barbara Burlingame
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Health Indicators ◽  
Evidence Base ◽  
Socioeconomic Indicators ◽  
Nutrition And Health ◽  
Dietary Practices ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
The Social

The underlying values and priorities that drive policy responses depend largely on the constructs that researchers and decision makers select to measure and the metrics used. Despite much recent attention being given to sustainable diets and food systems and to the importance of clearly measuring sustainability to meet targets, to achieve goals, and to appraise dietary and environmental policies, it is not commonly agreed how the different indicators of sustainable diets are assessed. The evidence base for assessment of these indicators are frequently weak, fragmented, and arbitrary. The aim of this paper was to compare a range of published methods and indicators for assessing sustainable diets and food systems in order to harmonise them. Keyword and reference searches were performed in PubMed, Scopus, CAB Abstracts, and Web of Knowledge. Fifty-two studies (21 proposed methods and 31 used methods) that combined environment, nutrition and health, and socioeconomic aspects of sustainable diets were reviewed. The majority (over 90%) of the studies focused on high-income countries. Twenty-eight studies assessed the environmental effects of different dietary practices, eight of the studies examined the nutrition and health indicators used for assessing sustainable food systems, and seven studies assessed the social and economic costs of diets. A classification of the elements was developed, and common elements are proposed for standardizing. These elements were categorized into nutrition and health indicators, environment indicators, and socioeconomic indicators. Standardized or harmonized indicators can be used for consistency and applicability purposes and to support, implement, and monitor relevant policies.

scholarly journals How Can Dietitians Leverage Change for Sustainable Food Systems in Canada?

2019 ◽  
Vol 80 (4) ◽  
pp. 164-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liesel Carlsson ◽  
Edith Callaghan ◽  
Göran Broman
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Ecological Systems ◽  
Unintended Consequences ◽  
Knowledge Development ◽  
Organizational Policy ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Leverage Points ◽  
The Social

Purpose: In this paper, we begin to set out language defining sustainable food systems (SFS) in Canada, through the voices of dietitians, and identify leverage points where dietitians can affect change. Methods: Dietitians of Canada members were invited to a Delphi Inquiry process; questions explored a vision of SFS in Canada, barriers to that vision, and actions. Results were independently analysed by 2 members of the research team who used the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development to structure the data. Results: Fifty-eight members participated. The resultant vision describes a future food system in 15 thematic areas of the social and ecological systems. Barriers are described according to how they undermine sustainability. High-leverage actions areas included: (i) facilitating knowledge development within the profession and public, (ii) influencing organizational policy to support SFS, and (iii) and influencing public policy. Approaches to such action included: (i) facilitating cross-sectoral collaboration and (ii) applying reflexive approaches. Conclusions: This research suggests a multidimensional understanding of food systems sustainability among dietitians. The vision provides some language to describe what dietitians mean by SFS and can be used as a compass point to orient action. Action areas and approaches have the potential to drive systemic change while avoiding unintended consequences.

scholarly journals Our people, our food, our planet

2020 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cath Conn ◽  
Radilaite Cammock ◽  
Katrina Ford ◽  
Gloria Faesen Kloet ◽  
Shoba Nayar
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Dietary Practices ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Health Crisis ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Integrated Policy

Video link: Our people, our food, our planet: Sustainable food systems policy in the Pacific Pacific Island Countries and Territories are facing a health crisis with non communicable diseases (NCDs) currently accounting for more than 80% of deaths. In the 21st century, advances in health intervention and policy render this figure unacceptable. Multiple risk factors contribute to the NCD crisis; a leading driver being obesity due to changing dietary practices arising from the global food system. A system  which is dominated by processed foods high in starch and sugars. This situation is compounded by changes in the natural and built environments relating to climate change. Tackling this issue is beyond the sole domain of public health and is, therefore, more suited to a planetary health approach. This paper applies a sustainable food systems approach to analysing NCD policy developments in the Pacific region. In particular, three domains of policy which impact diets in the Pacific are examined: food production, climate change and sustainability, and trade. It is argued that countering the NCD crisis demands a global multisectoral approach, with governments leading the way, to develop integrated policy and interventions that will secure the future wellbeing and protection of our people, our food, our planet.

scholarly journals TOWARDS AN INTEGRATED ANALYTICAL FRAMEWORK TO MAP SUSTAINABILITY TRANSITIONS IN FOOD SYSTEMS

AGROFOR ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hamid EL BILALI ◽  
Lorenz PROBST
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Innovation System ◽  
Analytical Framework ◽  
Social Practices ◽  
Sustainability Transitions ◽  
Transition Management ◽  
Change Initiatives ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
The Social

Transitions to sustainable food systems are considered necessary to addresssustainability challenges in industrial food systems – but also to achieve food andnutrition security especially in countries of the South. To facilitate such transitions,we need a thorough analytical understanding of change processes in food systems.Different transition frameworks have been suggested in the literature, with theMulti-Level Perspective (MLP) on socio-technical transitions being the mostprominent. While MLP has proven to be a useful heuristic, earlier studies haveidentified weak points (e.g. regarding agency, power, landscape factors andinstitutional innovations) calling for the integration of complementary concepts.This paper proposes a framework for the analysis of sustainability transitions infood systems that integrates elements of the Social Practices Approach, TransitionManagement, Strategic Niche Management and Innovation Systems. The startingpoint of the suggested analytical process is to map emerging sustainable foodsystems along the MLP levels of niche, regime and landscape. To better understandprocesses of creating and developing initiatives in food systems, our mapping relieson Innovation System approaches (e.g. identifying actors and their networks),Transition Management (e.g. niche stabilization and expansion processes) andStrategic Niche Management (e.g. breakthroughs). As wider transitions require areconfiguration of relevant regimes, interactions across levels are of particularinterest. The Social Practices Approach helps to make niche-regime interactionsexplicit. Finally, by looking at the impacts and outcomes of change initiatives, wecan make statements about the type of transition pathway taken – and whether aninitiative has transformative potential or is an incremental adaptation. Further workis needed to refine and test the framework in different contexts.

scholarly journals Participative Processes as a Chance for Developing Ideas to Bridge the Intention-Behavior Gap Concerning Sustainable Diets

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 4434 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonie Fink ◽  
Angelika Ploeger ◽  
Carola Strassner
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Actual Behavior ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
Development Processes ◽  
Need For Support ◽  
German Cities

Sustainable diets are drivers and results of sustainable food systems. Therefore, they are crucial for improving our global diet-related problems. When trying to adopt sustainable diets, people often struggle with the gap between their good intentions and their actual behavior. Here we see a need for support. To understand people’s needs and what could help them, it stands to reason that they can be directly involved in the development processes for appropriate ideas. On that account, we conducted six workshops in different German cities from September to December 2016 with 82 participants in total. We collected data by letting participants generate ideas to bridge the intention-behavior gap. The qualitative data was then coded in internal (168) and external factors (989). Analyzing data shows that the higher numbers of external factors offer a wider range of aspects that contribute to closing the intention-behavior gap from the participant’s point of view. We discuss whether the external factors such as availability, advertising, pricing, and education about food and nutrition may be a prerequisite for a broad mass of people to practice a more sustainable diet.

scholarly journals Healthy and Sustainable Diets and Food Systems: the Key to Achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2?

Food Ethics ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 159-174 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Fanzo
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Global Trends ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
Global Goal ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Food Security And Nutrition

Abstract The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are considered a unifying global goal setting agenda that every country is meant to achieve. One of those goals, SDG2, promises to ensure food security and nutrition within sustainable food systems. However, achieving that goal is riddled with uncertainty because of the way in which the world currently produces and consumes foods. The global trends of diets and the food systems that produce those diets suggest that they are neither healthy nor sustainable, which has implications for achieving SDG2. This paper characterizes the current state of global diets and food systems, the concept of “healthy and sustainable diets,” and the ethical considerations to achieving healthy and sustainable diets for sustainable development.

scholarly journals Proceedings of a Workshop on Characterizing and Defining the Social and Economic Domains of Sustainable Diets

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (10) ◽  
pp. 4163
Author(s):  
Kevin Comerford ◽  
Channing Arndt ◽  
Adam Drewnowski ◽  
Polly Ericksen ◽  
Tim Griffin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Research Literature ◽  
Environmental Cost ◽  
Systems Science ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
Food And Agriculture ◽  
Global Challenges ◽  
The Social

Global challenges associated with a growing demand for food in the face of finite natural resources and climate change have prompted concerns about the sustainability of our current food systems. As formulated by the Food and Agriculture Organization, the four principal domains of sustainable diets are health, economics, society, and the environment. While emphasizing the environmental cost and health impacts of current diets, the research literature has virtually ignored the vital economic and social aspects of sustainability. Without these components, critical inputs for decision-making about global challenges related to climate change and a growing demand for food are missing. National Dairy Council convened experts in sociology, economics, human nutrition, food systems science, food security, environmental health, and sustainable agriculture for a one-day workshop to define the social and economic domains of sustainability in service of better characterizing food-based dietary guidance that is both healthy and sustainable. The consensus recommendations were to (1) select social and economic indicators to complement the existing environmental and health ones, (2) better define appropriate concepts, terms, and measures to foster discussion across scientific disciplines, (3) reframe the focus on sustainable diets towards the goal of “achieving healthy dietary patterns from sustainable food systems”, and (4) complement the four domains, and incorporate the notions of geography, time, and cross-cutting considerations into sustainability frameworks. This publication summarizes the presentations, discussions, and findings from the 2019 workshop, and aims to catalyze further action to advance sustainability research and practice in the context of food-based dietary guidance and the Sustainable Development Goals.

scholarly journals Exploring External Factors Affecting the Intention-Behavior Gap When Trying to Adopt a Sustainable Diet: A Think Aloud Study

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leonie Fink ◽  
Carola Strassner ◽  
Angelika Ploeger
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
External Factors ◽  
Think Aloud ◽  
Complex Activity ◽  
Sustainable Food Systems ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Factors Affecting ◽  
Sustainable Diets ◽  
Sustainable Diet ◽  
Internal And External Factors

Not least from an ecological and health perspective, it can be posited that a broader part of consumers should practice sustainable diets. People who are already willing to do so are often confronted with the intention-behavior gap, caused by a range of internal and external factors. To eliminate these barriers requires a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of these factors and their interplay. Therefore, a think aloud study with 20 adult German participants was conducted to explore the four chosen external factors of availability, education, advertising and price. Furthermore, questionnaires for all four factors were handed out and a follow-up interview was conducted to gain additional qualitative data. Results show that these four external factors seem to have a major impact on the intention-behavior relation. According to the participants all factors interact in some way with other internal and external factors, making practicing sustainable diets a complex activity. In conclusion, the four external factors availability, education, advertising and price need to be addressed by various stakeholders within our food systems in order to move forward in the process of making sustainable diets practicable and sustainable food systems firmly established.

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