scholarly journals Understanding the Political Challenge of Red and Processed Meat Reduction for Healthy and Sustainable Food Systems: A Narrative Review of the Literature

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katherine Sievert ◽  
Mark Lawrence ◽  
Christine Parker ◽  
Phillip Baker
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Narrative Review ◽  
Processed Meat ◽  
Meat Industry ◽  
Systems Research ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Political Challenge ◽  
Red And Processed Meat

Background: Diets high in red and processed meat (RPM) contribute substantially to environmental degradation, greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and the global burden of chronic disease. Recent high-profile reports from international expert bodies have called for a significant reduction in global dietary meat intake, particularly RPM, especially in high-income settings, while acknowledging the importance of animal-sourced foods to population nutrition in many lower-income countries. However, this presents a major yet under-investigated political challenge given strong cultural preferences for meat and the economic importance and power of the meat industry. Methods: A theoretically-guided narrative review was undertaken. The theoretical framework used to guide the review considered the interests, ideas and institutions that constitute food systems in relation to meat reduction; and the instrumental, discursive and structural forms of power that actors deploy in relation to others within the food system. Results: High production and consumption levels of RPM are promoted and sustained by a number of factors. Actors with an interest in RPM included business and industry groups, governments, intergovernmental organisations, and civil society. Asymmetries of power between these actors exist, with institutional barriers recognised in the form of government-industry dependence, trade agreement conflicts, and policy incoherence. Industry lobbying, shaping of evidence and knowledge, and highly concentrated markets are key issues. Furthermore, prevailing ideologies like carnism and neoliberalism present embedded difficulties for RPM reduction. The literature noted the power of actors to resist meat reduction efforts exists in varying forms, including the use of lobbying, shaping of evidence and knowledge, and highly concentrated markets. Conclusion: There are a number of political challenges related to RPM reduction that contribute to policy inertia, and hence are likely to impede the transformation of food systems. Research on policy efforts to reduce RPM production and consumption should incorporate the role of power and political feasibility.

scholarly journals Assessing Sustainable Food and Nutrition Security of the EU Food System—An Integrated Approach

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4271 ◽  
Author(s):  
Monika Zurek ◽  
Aniek Hebinck ◽  
Adrian Leip ◽  
Joost Vervoort ◽  
Marijke Kuiper ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Science Communication ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Sustainable Food ◽  
Food And Nutrition Security ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
Systems Research ◽  
Nutrition And Diet ◽  
Food And Nutrition ◽  
The Eu

Steering the EU food system towards a sustainability transformation requires a vast and actionable knowledge base available to a range of public and private actors. Few have captured this complexity by assessing food systems from a multi-dimensional and multi-level perspective, which would include (1) nutrition and diet, environmental and economic outcomes together with social equity dimensions and (2) system interactions across country, EU and global scales. This paper addresses this gap in food systems research and science communication by providing an integrated analytical approach and new ways to communicate this complexity outside science. Based on a transdisciplinary science approach with continuous stakeholder input, the EU Horizon2020 project ‘Metrics, Models and Foresight for European SUStainable Food And Nutrition Security’ (SUSFANS) developed a five-step process: Creating a participatory space; designing a conceptual framework of the EU food system; developing food system performance metrics; designing a modelling toolbox and developing a visualization tool. The Sustainable Food and Nutrition-Visualizer, designed to communicate complex policy change-impacts and trade-off questions, enables an informed debate about trade-offs associated with options for change among food system actors as well as in the policy making arena. The discussion highlights points for further research related to indicator development, reach of assessment models, participatory processes and obstacles in science communication.

scholarly journals “When We Stand up, They Have to Negotiate with Us”: Power Relations in and between an Agroindustrial and an Indigenous Food System in Bolivia

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. 4001 ◽  
Author(s):  
Johanna Jacobi ◽  
Aymara Llanque
Keyword(s):  
Political Ecology ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Food System ◽  
Real Life ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Scientific Culture ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Production And Consumption

Our global food system is characterized by an increasing concentration and imbalance of power, with trade-offs between hunger, inequality, unsustainable production and consumption, and profit. A systematic analysis of power imbalances in food systems is required if we are to meet the 2030 Agenda vision of promoting sustainable production and consumption patterns and ending hunger and poverty. Such an analysis, with a view to a transformation to more sustainable and just food systems, requires tools to be developed and tested in real-life case studies of food systems. To better understand the structures and mechanisms around power in food systems, this study applies a political ecology lens. We adapted the “power cube” analysis framework that was proposed by the Institute of Development Studies for the analysis of spaces, forms, and levels of power. We apply the analysis of these three dimensions of power to two food systems in the tropical lowlands of Bolivia: one agroindustrial and one indigenous. After identifying food system actors, the food system spaces in which they interact, and what forms of power they use at what levels, we discuss some implications for an emerging scientific culture of power analyses in critical sustainability assessments. Mechanisms of hidden power undermine visible legislative power in both case studies, but in our example of an indigenous food system of the Guaraní people, visible power stays with a local community through their legally recognized and communally owned and governed territory, with important implications for the realization of the right to food.

scholarly journals Assessing Energy and Environmental Efficiency of the Spanish Agri-Food System Using the LCA/DEA Methodology

Energies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. 3395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jara Laso ◽  
Daniel Hoehn ◽  
María Margallo ◽  
Isabel García-Herrero ◽  
Laura Batlle-Bayer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Current Trend ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Average Energy ◽  
Development Cooperation ◽  
Policy Framework ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Resource Exploitation

Feeding the world’s population sustainably is a major challenge of our society, and was stated as one of the key priorities for development cooperation by the European Union (EU) policy framework on food security. However, with the current trend of natural resource exploitation, food systems consume around 30% of final energy use, generating up to 30% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Given the expected increase of global population (nine billion people by 2050) and the amount of food losses and waste generated (one-third of global food production), improving the efficiency of food systems along the supply chain is essential to ensure food security. This study combines life-cycle assessment (LCA) and data envelopment analysis (DEA) to assess the efficiency of Spanish agri-food system and to propose improvement actions in order to reduce energy usage and GHG emissions. An average energy saving of approximately 70% is estimated for the Spanish agri-food system in order to be efficient. This study highlights the importance of the DEA method as a tool for energy optimization, identifying efficient and inefficient food systems. This approach could be adopted by administrations, policy-makers, and producers as a helpful instrument to support decision-making and improve the sustainability of agri-food systems.

scholarly journals Food Systems Resilience: Towards an Interdisciplinary Research Agenda

2019 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bob Doherty ◽  
Jonathan Ensor ◽  
Tony Heron ◽  
Patricia Prado
Keyword(s):  
Value Chain ◽  
Interdisciplinary Research ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Food Studies ◽  
General Concept ◽  
Systems Research ◽  
Analytical Potential ◽  
The Uk

In this article, we offer a contribution to the ongoing study of food by advancing a conceptual framework and interdisciplinary research agenda – what we term ‘food system resilience’. In recent years, the concept of resilience has been extensively used in a variety of fields, but not always consistently or holistically. Here we aim to theorise systematically resilience as ananalyticalconcept as it applies to food systems research.  To do this, we engage with and seek to extend current understandings of resilience across different disciplines. Accordingly, we begin by exploring the different ways in which the concept of resilience is understood and used in current academic and practitioner literatures - both as a general concept and as applied specifically to food systems research. We show that the social-ecological perspective, rooted in an appreciation of the complexity of systems, carries significant analytical potential. We first underline what we mean by the food system and relate our understanding of this term to those commonly found in the extant food studies literature. We then apply our conception to the specific case of the UK. Here we distinguish between four subsystems at which our ‘resilient food systems’ can be applied. These are, namely, the agro-food system; the value chain; the retail-consumption nexus; and the governance and regulatory framework. On the basis of this conceptualisation we provide an interdisciplinary research agenda, using the case of the UK to illustrate the sorts of research questions and innovative methodologies that our food systems resilience approach is designed to promote.

scholarly journals Climate change mitigation beyond agriculture: a review of food system opportunities and implications

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 297-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meredith T. Niles ◽  
Richie Ahuja ◽  
Todd Barker ◽  
Jimena Esquivel ◽  
Sophie Gutterman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Mitigation Strategies ◽  
Climate Mitigation ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Agricultural Systems ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Systems Research

AbstractA large body of research has explored opportunities to mitigate climate change in agricultural systems; however, less research has explored opportunities across the food system. Here we expand the existing research with a review of potential mitigation opportunities across the entire food system, including in pre-production, production, processing, transport, consumption and loss and waste. We detail and synthesize recent research on the topic, and explore the applicability of different climate mitigation strategies in varying country contexts with different economic and agricultural systems. Further, we highlight some potential adaptation co-benefits of food system mitigation strategies and explore the potential implications of such strategies on food systems as a whole. We suggest that a food systems research approach is greatly needed to capture such potential synergies, and highlight key areas of additional research including a greater focus on low- and middle-income countries in particular. We conclude by discussing the policy and finance opportunities needed to advance mitigation strategies in food systems.

scholarly journals Closing Research Investment Gaps for a Global Food Transformation

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Bollington ◽  
Marcia DeLonge ◽  
Dhara Mungra ◽  
Matthew Hayek ◽  
Mustafa Saifuddin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Grain Legumes ◽  
Environmental Benefits ◽  
Farmer Adoption ◽  
Research Investment ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Global Food

Recent calls for a global food transformation have centered on simultaneously improving human and environmental health, recognizing that food and nutrient diversity have declined over time while food systems have exacted a heavy climate and ecological toll. Grain legumes and coarse grain crops provide important human nutrition and environmental benefits, but the production and consumption of many of these crops remains relatively low compared to major commodities, such as maize, wheat, rice, and soy. Outstanding hurdles to scaling up these “minor commodity” crops include (among other things) their relatively lower yields, and lower farmer adoption, based partly on actual or perceived profitability and marketability. We hypothesize that these limitations are attributable in part to unequal funding for these crops' research and development (R&D) both on a national and global scale. In the United States, we show that investment patterns for a snapshot of USDA-funded research grants from 2008 to 2019 consistently favor major commodity crops, which received 3 to 4.5 times more funding and 3 to 5 times as many grants than the minor commodity crop groups. This current USDA funding allocation poses a barrier to food system transformations. Achieving nutritious diets for planetary health requires more public agricultural investment toward minor commodity crops and increased collaboration between public health, nutrition, agriculture, and environmental sectors.

The Greenhouse Gas Emissions of Various Dietary Practices and Intervention Possibilities to Reduce This Impact

2016 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
Celia Green ◽  
Andrew Joyce ◽  
Jonathan Hallett ◽  
Toni Hannelly ◽  
Gemma Carey
Keyword(s):  
Greenhouse Gas ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Ghg Emissions ◽  
Systems Science ◽  
Dietary Practices ◽  
Animal Products ◽  
Dietary Choices ◽  
The Impact

This chapter examines the link between dietary choices and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and possible interventions to reduce this impact. The connections between climate change, food systems and public health are explored. It is shown that there is variance in the impact of different food types on GHG emissions, with animal products having the greatest impact. The role of food system activities in the production of GHG emissions is also explored. Dietary choices and GHG emissions are examined using case studies from a variety of countries. Results show that reduced animal food production has increased potential to reduce GHG emissions compared to technological mitigation or increased productivity measures. Finally, a systems science approach is used to explore possible interventions aimed at reducing consumption of animal products.

Integrating Environment, Food Systems, and Sustainability in Feeding the Growing Population in Developing Countries

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-14
Author(s):  
Abiodun Elijah Obayelu
Keyword(s):  
Developing Countries ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
World Population ◽  
Adequate Food ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
The World ◽  
Fragile Environment ◽  
Global Arena ◽  
The Impact

Food is indispensable to life. It plays an important role in the economy but what is not well known is the impact of production and consumption that food has on the environment. The nexus of food systems and the environment are complex and driven by many economic, socio-cultural, and environmental factors considered to be important in the contemporary global arena. As the world population grows, there is an increased demand on the already stretched food system and fragile environment. Processes along the food chain from agricultural production to food consumption produce outputs other than consumable food that are returned to the natural environment such as pollution or waste. This chapter sheds light on the links in food systems and environment in developing countries. A major finding is that the existing food systems that were supposed to produce adequate food for all are placing major stress on environmental assets including soil, water, fisheries, and biodiversity. For food systems to be sustainable, all hands must be on deck.

scholarly journals Nutrition transition in Vietnam: changing food supply, food prices, household expenditure, diet and nutrition outcomes

Food Security ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1141-1155 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jody Harris ◽  
Phuong Hong Nguyen ◽  
Lan Mai Tran ◽  
Phuong Nam Huynh
Keyword(s):  
Food Supply ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Vegetable Consumption ◽  
Nutrition Transition ◽  
Food Prices ◽  
Systems Research ◽  
Fresh Food ◽  
Vegetables And Fruits ◽  
Transition Issues

Abstract While literature has noted the presence of a nutrition transition in terms of changing nutrition outcomes in Vietnam, very limited evidence linking changes in upstream food system factors to downstream diet and nutrition changes exists. Combining available data from different sources and analyzing it through a conceptual food systems framework, our study examines different pathways of nutrition transition through food supply, food prices, household food expenditures, diets, and nutrition outcomes in Vietnam. Our findings show that while Vietnam is at the start of its nutrition transition, change is happening rapidly. Undernutrition is falling, obesity is rising, and nutrition-related chronic diseases account for a significant burden of diseases and death. In terms of changes in healthful foods, the supply of vegetables and fruits is plentiful, and expenditure on vegetables remains consistent and small. Notably however, vegetable consumption has dropped, and increasing meat and milk consumption have been double-edged swords for nutrition. In terms of foods associated with the negative sides of the nutrition transition, the availability of sweets and sweetened beverages has risen in recent years, with oils and fats rising less. The expenditure share on food eaten away from home, in many contexts a marker for less healthful diets, has increased over time. While these changes are typical of a nutrition transition, Vietnam is also somewhat of an outlier in some respects: wet markets and daily fresh food purchases continue to dominate food purchasing behaviour, and food eaten away from home means a different thing in a country renowned for its diverse and healthy street food and roadside restaurant culture. While this study brings together important data on the food system drivers of a nutrition transition in Vietnam, it cannot link each of these issues into a standard statistical model of change due to data gaps at different levels, calling for data collection improvement in future diet and food systems research. Vietnamese health policy explicitly acknowledges nutrition transition issues, with targets for obesity reduction. This work on the food system drivers of the nutrition transition points to the need to further adapt policy in other sectors beyond health, however. At the same time as making nutrient-rich foods more accessible, nutrient-poor or ultra-processed foods need to be made less accessible and desirable if additional income is to contribute to a healthy diet in limiting Vietnam’s emerging nutrition transition.

scholarly journals Animal-based food systems are unsafe: severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) fosters the debate on meat consumption

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (17) ◽  
pp. 3250-3255 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle Cristine Medeiros Jacob ◽  
Ivanilda Soares Feitosa ◽  
Ulysses Paulino Albuquerque
Keyword(s):  
Food Systems ◽  
Food System ◽  
Meat Consumption ◽  
Zoonotic Diseases ◽  
Meat Production ◽  
Rational Analysis ◽  
Nutrition Security ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Food And Nutrition ◽  
The Status

AbstractObjective:The current pandemic restarts a debate on permanently banning wildlife consumption in an effort to prevent further public health threats. In this commentary, we offer two ideas to enhance the discussion on foodborne zoonotic diseases in food systems.Design:First, we focus on the probable consequences that the loss of access to wildlife could cause to the status of food and nutrition security of many people in developing countries that rely on bushmeat to subsist. Second, we argue that all animal-based food systems, especially the ones based on intensive husbandry, present food safety threats.Conclusion:To ban the access to bushmeat without a rational analysis of all human meat production and consumption in the global animal-based food system will not help us to prevent future outbreaks.

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