Table Of ContentENVIRONMENTAL
NUTRITION
ENVIRONMENTAL
NUTRITION
Connecting Health and
Nutrition with
Environmentally
Sustainable Diets
Edited by
JOAN SABATE(cid:1)
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Contributors
HarryAiking
InstituteforEnvironmentalStudies,VUUniversity,Amsterdam,TheNetherlands
AndrewBerardy
ArizonaStateUniversity,Tempe,AZ,UnitedStates
ClaireFitchBowdren
TheBetterFoodFoundation,Washington,DC,UnitedStates
MichaelClark
OxfordMartinSchoolandNuffieldDepartmentofPopulationHealth,
UniversityofOxford,Oxford,UnitedKingdom
StephenClune
S-RAD,SustainabilityResearchandDesign,Canberra,Australia
JanDeckers
SchoolofMedicalEducation,NewcastleUniversity,Newcastle,UnitedKingdom
TrentGrassian
SSPSSR,UniversityofKent,Canterbury,UnitedKingdom
HelenHarwatt
AnimalLawandPolicyFellow,HarvardLawSchool,HarvardUniversity,Cambridge,MA,
UnitedStates
IranaW.Hawkins
WaldenUniversity,Minneapolis,MN,UnitedStates
PatrikHenriksson
BeijerInstituteofEcologicalEconomicsandStockholmResilienceCentre,Stockholm,
Sweden
TonyJehi
CenterforNutrition,HealthyLifestyleandDiseasePrevention,SchoolofPublicHealth,
LomaLindaUniversity,LomaLinda,CA,UnitedStates
LinneaI.Laestadius
JosephJ.ZilberSchoolofPublicHealth,UniversityofWisconsin,Milwaukee,WI,
UnitedStates
HeidiLynch
PointLomaNazareneUniversity,SanDiego,CA,UnitedStates
D.L.Marrin
WaterSciences&Insights,Encinitas,CA,USA
RobertParker
InstitutefortheOceansandFisheries,UniversityofBritishColumbia,Kelowna,BC,Canada
xi
xii Contributors
NathanPelletier
UniversityofBritishColumbia—Okanagan,Kelowna,BC,Canada
JoanSabat(cid:1)e
CenterforNutrition,HealthyLifestyleandDiseasePrevention,SchoolofPublicHealth,
LomaLindaUniversity,LomaLinda,CA,UnitedStates
RaychelSanto
JohnsHopkinsCenterforaLivableFuture,DepartmentofEnvironmentalHealth&
Engineering,JohnsHopkinsUniversity,Baltimore,MD,UnitedStates
MarcoSpringmann
OxfordMartinProgrammeontheFutureofFood,CentreonPopulationApproaches
forNon-CommunicableDiseasePrevention,NuffieldDepartmentofPopulationHealth,
UniversityofOxford,Oxford,UnitedKingdom
ChristopherWharton
ArizonaStateUniversity,Phoenix,AZ,UnitedStates
ArizonaStateUniversity,Tempe,AZ,UnitedStates
JuliaA.Wolfson
UniversityofMichigan,SchoolofPublicHealth,AnnArbor,MI,UnitedStates
Preface
Environmental nutrition emerges from the recognition of the complex
interactionsofthefoodsystemswiththehealthoftheplanetandthepopu-
lations that share its resources. In this book, we explore the connection
betweendiet,environmentalsustainability,andhumanhealth.Currentfood
systemsandthefoodchoicesofmanyculturesaremajorcontributorstoour
most pressing health and environmental issues. This book addresses the
growingenvironmentalandhealthconcernsthatappeartobelinkedtofood
production and consumption.
The environmental impacts attributed to the production of food are
formidable. Agriculture, husbandry and fishing are responsible for about a
quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions, and the use of 70% of all fresh
water resources. The over-application of fertilizers, other chemicals, and
antibiotics has led to the pollution of surface and ground water, soil, and
air,andtoantibiotic-resistantbacteria,soilerosion,andlossofbiodiversity.
NourishingagrowingworldpopulationwhilebalancingwhattheEarth
can provide and absorb is increasingly recognized as a major global chal-
lenge. Yet, the environmental and health problems associated with food
productionareforeseentoincrease,sinceinmanyregionsoftheworldfood
consumptionisshiftingtowardthe“western”patternofhighanimalprod-
uctsandmoreprocessedfoods.Suchfoodpatternscontributetoarangeof
costlyhealthproblems,includingoverweightandobesity,diabetes,cardio-
vasculardisease,andvariouskindsofcancer.Consequently,thepopulation
disease burden is expected to worsen. Yet, changes in land use and global
warming are contributing to food insecurity and malnutrition in some
regions of the world.
By definition, a “sustainable” diet should use the Earth’s natural
resources withoutexhausting or destroyingthem,and should bemaintain-
able in the long term. This includes staying within the Earth’s biophysical
capacity (i.e., what the planet can sustain in terms of resource provision
and absorption of wastes). The Food and Agricultural Organization of the
United Nations defined sustainable diets as “those diets with low environ-
mental impacts which contribute to food and nutrition security and to
healthy life for present and future generations.”
Balancing the requirements of food supply, health, and the physical
environment—the health-environment-diet trilemma—is of great
xiii
xiv Preface
importance and requires new priorities for agriculture, environmental sci-
ences, and public health. There are a range of solution-orientated
approaches that can concurrently address the diet-health-environment
trilemma.Amongtheseisthedevelopmentoffoodproductionmethodsthat
areresourceefficientandhavelessenvironmentalimpact.Drasticallyreduc-
ing food losses and waste along the supply chain, and shifting food choices
and diet patterns of individuals and populations are also vital.
Changingthewayfoodisproducedisnotsufficienttoaddressglobalsus-
tainability goals. While current work in this area mainly focuses on supply
side measures, this book largely focuses on demand side solutions as this
holds a significant potential for change. Addressing food consumption
patterns, food losses, and waste, along with agricultural technology
improvements,isconsideredcrucialforenablingwide-scaleadoptionofsus-
tainablediets.Thisbookpresentsallthreecomponents,butexploresinmore
detail consumption patterns and food waste, as these are determined by
individuals and communities. This book not only seeks to increase our
understanding of the interrelatedness of the issues but also intends to aid
in the creation of new solutions.
The book has four sections: introduction, challenges, tools, and
solutions.Tobeginweprovideanoverviewandexplorehowthecomplex
relationshipswithinfoodsystemscanbebetterunderstoodthroughanenvi-
ronmental nutrition model (Chapters 1–3). The challenges of inputs,
drivers,andoutputsoftheindustrializedfoodsystemaredescribedinChap-
ters4–7.Thelifecycleassessmentoffoodsanddietsfollows(Chapters8and
9) and is of importance for research and selecting food choices. Chapters
10 and 11 report the evidence on healthy and sustainable diets. Chapters
12–16addressthesocial,ethical,cultural,andpolicychallengesandsolutions
that would be needed to implement a large-scale shift toward sustainable
diets. We suggest that these changes would reduce the environmental
impacts of food systems, and concomitantly contribute to food availability
andfoodsecurity,fosteradequatenutrientprovision,andimprovepopula-
tion health outcomes.
This book is intended primarily for professionals in food, nutrition,
agricultural, and environmental sciences; for researchers, and those inter-
estedinfoodpolicy;andforacademicswhoteachgraduatecoursesonthese
topics.Nonprofessionalsmayalsofindthisbookofinterestaswehavemade
the effort to keep the language relatively nontechnical.
Joan Sabat(cid:1)e
Acknowledgments
The publication of a book is hardly ever the effort of a single person. And
this book is no exception. The work and strength of multiple individuals
produced this book. The book’s conceptual framework was developed in
collegiate conversations with Helen Harwatt and the late Sam Soret. I am
verygratefulforthededicationofHelenHarwattwhoidentifiedanumber
of potential contributors.
Iexpressmysincereappreciationtoallthechapterauthors.Theirexper-
tise across scientific disciplines has expanded the content and rigor of this
volume.
AndIwouldliketothankUjueFresan,AbigailClarke,andJaniceHilton
for providing helpful comments and edits to some chapters. Special thanks
goes to Laura Moore for administrative support. I gratefully acknowledge
the support from the editorial managers at Elsevier assigned to this project.
Joan Sabat(cid:1)e
xv
Prologue
Hippocratesmighthavebeenonlypartiallycorrectagesagowhenhealleg-
edlysaid,“Letfoodbethymedicineandmedicinebethyfood.”Societyhas
entered an era in which food production, processing, and consumption
mightnotbethemedicineheenvisioned.Asageneralruletoday,theoppo-
sitecouldbeclosertothetruth.What’snotdebatableisthatfoodproduction
and processing systems affect human health and the environment. There
is an urgent need to understand and work in the space between food,
nutrition, health, and the environment. The evidence is abundant and
compelling.
Thefoodindustrywritlargeisacentralandinfluentialfeatureofmodern
life.Roughly50%oftheworld’sassets,50%ofallemployment,and50%of
consumer expenditures are related to the food system in some form or
fashion. At the same time, one in five deaths worldwide is linked to poor
diet. Clearly, we all have a vested interest in ecologically sustainable and
nutritionallysoundfoodsystems,whichinturnsupporthouseholdincome,
quality of life, and our collective health status.
Emerging information on the ecological cost of contemporary food
production is consistent and the trends are sobering. Aquatic dead zones
inthenorthernGulfofMexicofisheriesarelinkedtoexcessivenutrientfarm
runofffromtheMississippiwatershed.Poorlyconceivedaquacultureplaces
entireecosystemsatrisk.Greenhousegasemissionsfromdairyandbeefcat-
tleoperationsexacerbateclimatechange.Industrialhogfarmwastelagoons
foul local communities. There is conflict in almost every country where
reportsareavailableamongandbetweenindustry,agriculture,andsuburban
residentsallthirstingforwater.Industrializedandtransitioncountriessuffer
from an increasingincidencerate of chronic diseasessuch as diabetes, obe-
sity, and metabolic conditions, which are largely a result from processed
foods. These challenges and others are mainly rooted in the modern food
enterpriseandconsumerpreferences.Let’sbeclear,thesechallengesarepre-
dictableandamenabletointervention.Ourcollectivefutureironicallyliesin
thechoicesmadebyindividualconsumers.Sadly,takenasawhole,weare
largelyuninformedandignoranttoourpotentialaspositivechangeagents.
EveryparentIknowoptimizesthehealthandfutureoftheirchildrenasa
sacred responsibility. Why would anyone knowingly compromise a child’s
future?Forthisreason,Iadmirethisbookandtheevidenceitshares.Ourjob
xvii
