A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System

445 Pages·2015·11.1 MB·English

THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
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A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
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444 pages | 6 x 9 | PAPERBACK
ISBN 978-0-309-30780-2 | DOI 10.17226/18846
AUTHORS
BUY THIS BOOK Malden C. Nesheim, Maria Oria, and Peggy Tsai Yih, Editors; Committee on a
Framework for Assessing the Health, Environmental, and Social Effects of the
Food System; Food and Nutrition Board; Board on Agriculture and Natural
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A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
A Framework for Assessing
Effects of the Food System
Committee on a Framework for Assessing the Health,
Environmental, and Social Effects of the Food System
Food and Nutrition Board
Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources
Malden C. Nesheim, Maria Oria, and Peggy Tsai Yih, Editors
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
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and the JPB Foundation. Any opinions, fndings, conclusions, or recommendations
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the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-30780-2
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Suggested citation: IOM (Institute of Medicine) and NRC (National Research Coun-
cil). 2015. A framework for assessing effects of the food system. Washington, DC:
The National Academies Press.
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
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Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
COMMITTEE ON A FRAMEWORK FOR ASSESSING
THE HEALTH, ENVIRONMENTAL, AND SOCIAL
EFFECTS OF THE FOOD SYSTEM
MALDEN C. NESHEIM (Chair), Provost Emeritus, Professor of
Nutrition Emeritus, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
KATHERINE (KATE) CLANCY, Food Systems Consultant, Visiting
Scholar, Center for a Livable Future, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg
School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
JAMES K. HAMMITT, Professor of Economics and Decision Sciences,
Harvard University School of Public Health, Boston, MA
ROSS A. HAMMOND, Director, Center on Social Dynamics and Policy,
Senior Fellow, Economic Studies, Brookings Institution, Washington, DC
DARREN L. HAVER, Director and Advisor, Division of Agriculture and
Natural Resources, University of California Cooperative Extension,
Orange County
DOUGLAS JACKSON-SMITH, Professor, Department of Sociology,
Social Work, and Anthropology, Utah State University, Logan
ROBBIN S. JOHNSON, Senior Advisor, Global Policy Studies,
Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota,
Minneapolis
JEAN D. KINSEY, Professor Emeritus, Department of Applied
Economics, Director Emeritus, The Food Industry Center, University
of Minnesota, St. Paul
SUSAN M. KREBS-SMITH, Chief, Risk Factor Monitoring and Methods
Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD
MATTHEW LIEBMAN, Professor of Agronomy, Henry A. Wallace Chair
for Sustainable Agriculture, Iowa State University, Ames
FRANK MITLOEHNER, Professor, Department of Animal Science,
University of California, Davis
KESHIA M. POLLACK, Associate Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg
School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
PATRICK J. STOVER, Professor and Director, Division of Nutritional
Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
KATHERINE M. J. SWANSON, President, KMJ Swanson Food Safety,
Inc., Mendota Heights, MN
SCOTT M. SWINTON, Professor, Department of Agricultural, Food,
and Resource Economics, Michigan State University, East Lansing
v
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
IOM and NRC Study Staff
MARIA ORIA, Study Director
PEGGY TSAI YIH, Senior Program Offcer
ALLISON BERGER, Senior Program Assistant
ALICE VOROSMARTI, Research Associate
FAYE HILLMAN, Financial Associate
GERALDINE KENNEDO, Administrative Assistant
ANA VELASQUEZ, Intern (until August 2013)
WILLIAM HALL, Mirzayan Science & Technology Policy Fellow (until
April 2014)
ANN L. YAKTINE, Director, Food and Nutrition Board
ROBIN SCHOEN, Director, Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources
vi
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
Reviewers
his report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for
their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with
Tprocedures approved by the National Research Council’s Report
Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide
candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its
published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets
institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the
study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confden-
tial to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the
following individuals for their review of this report:
William H. Dietz, The George Washington University
George M. Gray, The George Washington University
Michael W. Hamm, Michigan State University
Shiriki K. Kumanyika, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of
Medicine
Paul J. Lioy, UMDNJ–Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Piscataway
Stephen Polasky, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis
Mark A. Rasmussen, Iowa State University, Leopold Center for
Sustainable Agriculture
Angela Tagtow, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Center for Nutrition
Policy and Promotion
Lori Ann Thrupp, University of California, Berkeley
vii
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
viii REVIEWERS
Wallace E. Tyner, Purdue University
Laurian J. Unnevehr, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
John H. Vandermeer, University of Michigan
Patricia Verduin, Colgate-Palmolive Company
Rick Welsh, Syracuse University
Parke E. Wilde, Tufts University
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive
comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions
or recommendations nor did they see the fnal draft of the report before its
release. The review of this report was overseen by Diane Birt, Iowa State
University, and Mark R. Cullen, Stanford University. Appointed by the
National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine, they were respon-
sible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was
carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review
comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the fnal content of
this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
A Framework for Assessing Effects of the Food System
Preface
ood is a topic that has become central to practically all aspects of
modern life. Its centrality raises questions as to what constitutes a
Fhealthy diet, how is food produced, and what kind of food produc-
tion is best for the environment. Will there be suffcient food in response
to rising world population? Are there segments of the U.S. population that
are food insecure? Are food animals raised humanely? Who is involved
in food production? Are workers treated fairly and do they earn a decent
living? Today, chefs are celebrities and our society increasingly outsources
food preparation and service. Food studies has become a part of diverse
academic curricula from the sciences to the humanities and has produced an
expanding literature about the food system and its relationship to modern
life. Health professionals and the public have come to realize that food is
not merely a source of nourishment, it also refects individual values and
culture.
This increased interest in food follows a time of intense change in how
food is produced, who produces it, and where it is produced. Over the past
century, the United States has gone from being an overwhelmingly agrarian
nation to a highly industrialized, urban nation where only a small portion
of the population is involved in the actual production of food. The U.S.
food system provides a remarkably varied food supply to the U.S. consumer
at lower cost than nearly anywhere else in the world. Many are concerned,
however, that the cost of food in the marketplace may not refect its true
cost. Some of the costs of food production and distribution are not refected
in the marketplace price of food but are “externalized,” borne by other
aspects of the health, environmental, and social domains of our society.
ix
Copyright National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.