Food systems are failing to sustainably feed many people. Current diets and food production contribute significantly to environmental degradation and health issues like obesity and disease. While some policies promote softer measures, there is no agreement on defining sustainable food systems or diets. Stronger policy action is needed to address tensions between consumerism, health, and environmental sustainability.

1. Sustainable food
for sustainable diets?
The challenge of ecological public health
Tim Lang
Centre for Food Policy, City University London, UK.
e: t.lang@city.ac.uk
Paper to Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon, April 11, 2012

2. WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?
The Evidence
2

3. Food systems are already failing many:
1.02 billion people hungry in 2009
Developed
15m
NENA 42m
Asia & Pac
642m
SSA
LAC
265m
53m

4. Food and NCDs (a familiar story)
(WHO Global Status Rep 2010)
• Tobacco • Blood pressure
• Alcohol • Overweight
• Salt • Social gradient
• Saturated fats • Raised cholesterol
• Trans fats • etc
• etc
4

5. Diet-related results (serious)
Health outcomes: Associated with:
• Cancers • Physical activity
• CHD • Fruit and
• Diabetes vegetables
• etc • Fat
• etc
5

6. Diet and cancers: factors advice
WCRF/AIRC 2007 report
• Body fatness
– Be as lean as possible within the normal range of body weight.
• Physical activity
– Be physically active as part of everyday life.
• Foods and drink that promote weight gain
– Limit consumption of energy-dense foods. Avoid sugary drinks.
• Eat mostly foods of plant origin
– Eat mostly foods of plant origin.
• Animal foods
– Limit intake of red meat and avoid processed meat.
• Alcoholic drinks
– Limit alcoholic drinks.
• Preservation, processing, preparation
– Limit consumption of salt. Avoid mouldy cereals (grains) or pulses (legumes).
• Dietary supplements
– Aim to meet nutritional needs through diet alone.
• Breastfeeding
– Mothers to breastfeed; children to be breastfed.
• Cancer survivors
– Follow the recommendations for cancer prevention.
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7. Planetary Boundaries already exceeded?
Source: Rockström, Steffen et al. 2009
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8. Food’s environmental impact
sources: Rayner & Lang World Nutrition April 2012
• Modern agriculture = c14% greenhouse gas (GHG) (UN)
• Of agriculture-related GHGs (Stern 2007)
– animals are responsible for 31%
– fertilizers (nitrous oxide: N2O) for 38%.
• Meat &dairy = 24% of EU consumers’ impact (EIPRO 2009)
• C50% cereals fed to animals. (Steinfeld/FAO 2008)
• 15 / 24 world ecosystem services = degraded or
unsustainably used
– Food is a major source of this degradation (MEA 2005)
• Global agriculture uses 70% of all freshwater extracted for
human use (WWF Thirsty Crops)
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9. More....
• “Intensive livestock production is probably the
largest sector-specific source of water pollution”
(UN World Economic and Social Survey 2011)
• Intensive water use for food products:
(Chapagain Hoekstra 2007):
– 200 litres water to produce 200ml milk
– 2400 litres water to produce a 150g hamburger
• C20th lost c75% genetic diversity of domestic
agricultural crops (FAO 1995)
• 52% of global wild fish stocks ‘fully exploited’
FAO SOFA 2007
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10. The Global shift in diet 1970-2000
source: Defra Fd Sec Assessment Jan 2010 p19
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11. This is a cultural transition!
• What we eat
• How it is made
• Where we buy it
• How and where we consume
• Food’s meanings not just nutritional impact
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12. But the economics are fragile
The 2007-08 prices spike
Is the long drop in prices halted?
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13. FAO food price index today
http://www.fao.org/worldfoodsituation/wfs-home/foodpricesindex/en/ [accessed April 6 2012]

14. FAO food price index 1990-2012
http://www.fao.org/worldfoodsituation/wfs-home/foodpricesindex/en/ [accessed April 6 2012]

15. Volatility ahead? OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook
2019 prices will be lower than 2008 but higher than before
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Source: OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook 2010-2019

16. WHAT IS GOING ON?
Is this a policy failure?
Or the result of policy?
Certainly, an evidence-policy MISMATCH
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17. The legacy of Productionism
Science + Technology +
Distribution  cut Waste 
Output rise  Prices fall 
Affordability rise = Health +
Progress
17

18. An old debate: the 3 M’s
Fr Gregor Mendel
Dr Karl Marx Rev. Thomas Malthus (1822-1884)
(1818-1883) (1766-1834) Monk, gardener,
Political economist An Essay on the Principle of geneticist 18
Population (1798)

19. C19th Agricultural progressives
Sir John Bennet Lawes Justus von Liebig
(1803-1873) (1803-1873)
agricultural research chemist
Rothamsted Giessen

20. Mid C20th change agents:
food, health, income & farm
Sir John Boyd Orr Sir George Stapledon
(1880-1971) Elsie Widdowson CH
(1882-1960)
public health (1908-2000)
soil scientist
1st D-G of FAO nutritionist
Aberystwyth
Cambridge

21. How is current policy addressing
the problem?
Mainly soft measures
But there are emerging discourses
21

22. There is no agreement yet on....
• What a sustainable lifestyle is
• What sustainable consumption is
• What sustainable production is
• What sustainable food systems are
• What a sustainable diet is
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23. Measures to address change
• Generally ‘soft’
– Labels
– Education
– Information
– Appeals to consumers
– Corporate Responsibility
• Not working
– Fast enough
– Deep enough
– Even within health, let alone environment
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24. From the policy perspective, we have:
• Tensions between:
– Consumerism / environment / market economics
– Health / food supply
• Nervous politicians
BUT...
• Some emerging policy frameworks
– EU: SCP, climate change commitments,
• Growing recognition by companies and NGOs
of need for change
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25. Agreement on...
• Food is a central issue
• Sustainability is a real problem
• Current lifestyles not sustainable (however
measured)
• Inaction will increase negative impacts:
– Climate change
– Water stress/shortage
– Natural resource damage
– Eco-systems damage.
– Human Ill-health
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26. Some policy responses
Level of action Policy action Limitations
Global High Level Task Force (2008ff); Tends to suffer from LDC focus (little
Committee on World Food about the rich and powerful DCs);
Security (CFS); Rio+20 (June marginalised by financial crisis
2012)
Regional / EU CAP reform CAP2020; Not joined up with health;
Sustainable Consumption & marginalised by eurozone crisis;
Production (SCP) programme locked into intra-CAP dynamics
National / UK Food Matters (2008); Food 2030; Emerging structural reviews not
Food Business Plan 2011-15; followed up or consolidated into
Green Food Project (2011-12) action
Sub-national Scotland: SDAP review (2007)  More holistic than England /UK but
SNP Food & Drink Scotland. some sector ‘myopia’ (eg alcohol and
/Scotland, Wales: Rural + public purchasing sheep)
Wales
Local Community food actions; Food Build networks but little influence on
Policy Councils; powerful corporate interests
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27. Sustainable Food: some EU
developments 2008-12
• Sustainable Consumption-Production & Sustainable Industrial
Policy Action Plan (2008)
• Suitability of the potential extension of the Ecolabel to food
products
• European Food Sustainable Consumption Production (SCP)
Roundtable (2009-) co-chairs DG Environment & European
Food & Feed Trade Associations. Based in FoodDrinkEurope) &
supported by JRC.
• DG Environment & JRC (2011 -2012): Harmonised framework
methodology for the calculation of the environmental
footprint of products.
• Roadmap to a Resource Efficient Europe (2011) part of the
actions form Europe 2020: A strategy for smart, sustainable
and inclusive growth (2010)
•
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28. Sustainable food consumption and production –
emerging Govt policy advice in Europe (North)
UK 2006 Sustainable Development Commission Sustainable Consumption “I
(SDC) & National Consumer Council will if you will” – generic
Germany German Council for Sustainable Sustainable Shopping Basket :
1990s Development includes food – lists labels and
(2008) schemes
EU 2008 Sustainable Consumption-Production & Voluntary initiatives – but little
Sustainable Industrial Policy Action Plan food focus
Netherlands LNV Ministry – Policy outline for achieving Sustainable food production &
2009 Sustainable Food consumer educ. campaigns
Sweden National Food Administration (& Swedish Environmentally friendly food
2009 EPA) – notification to EU (withdrawn 2011) choices
UK 2009 SDC, Council of Food Policy Advisors  Recommend defining low
Dept Environment Food Rural Affairs (Defra) impact (sustainable) healthy
diet
Netherlands Health Council for Ministry Economic Affairs, Guidelines Healthy Diet:
2011 Agriculture & Innovation Ecological Perspective
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29. Companies meanwhile are engaging
• International companies:
– 2002: SAI launched Groupe Danone, Nestlé, Unilever
– 2009 (Oct 16): G30 top TNCs initiative Coca-Cola, Tesco, Unilever,
News International
– 2010: World Economic Forum process (out 2011)
• UK companies:
– 2007: IGD Food Industry Sustainability Strategy
Champions Group focus on low carbon + ethics
– 2008: Tesco gives £25m Manchester SCI
– 3 retailers’ choice-edit M&S Plan A, Co-operative Group, Waitrose
• A product specific approach, not overall diet
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30. What is meant by Sustainability
in policy?
It is used by bankers, too!
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31. Current approach to food sustainability
• A tendency to focus on climate change
– CO2 is very important ...but....
• Downplays biodiversity, water, soil, land, etc
• Repeats Productionist emphasis on supply
• Downplays culture, consumption ie demand
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32. Key hotspots show food is more than
an environmental challenge
• Meat & dairy:
– Aspirational (rises + €) but high impact (health + enviro)
• Waste:
– 30% after consumers buy it (rich countries)
– c40% globally at farm level (poor countries)
• Inequalities:
– Within / between countries (even in EU
• Prices:
– Failure to internalise full costs
– But would consumers pay more?
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33. Sustainability: an unclear term?
• Brundtland report 1987
• Triple focus: enviro + society + econ
• “meeting needs now without compromising
the ability of future generations to meet
needs”
BUT IS THIS NOW DETAILED ENOUGH?
• I think not
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34. UK Sustainable Development Commission 2011 report
proposed sustainability as a complex set of ‘poly-values’
http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/publications.php?id=1187
Quality Social values
• Taste • Pleasure
• Seasonality • Identity
• Cosmetic • Animal welfare
• Fresh (where appropriate) • Equality & justice
• Authenticity • Trust
• Choice
• Skills (citizenship)
Environment Health
• Climate change • Safety
• Energy use • Nutrition
• Water • Equal access
• Land use • Availability
• Soil • Social status/ affordability
• Biodiversity • Information & education
• Waste reduction
Economy Governance
• Food security & resilience • Science & technology evidence base
• Affordability (price) • Transparency
• Efficiency • Democratic accountability
• True competition & fair returns • Ethical values (fairness)
• Jobs & decent working conditions • International aid & development 34
• Fully internalised costs

35. FAO Sustainable Diets
International Scientific Symposium,
Rome November 3-5, 2010
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36. The difference this makes
• Changes the general policy framework
• Resolves nutrition’s intellectual split:
– life science, social, eco-nutrition (Lang et al 2009)
• Sets new challenges
• Resets moral compass
• Puts Needs not Wants as food system’s drivers
• Helps shape institutional reform
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37. 37

38. The food system, its external influences and outcomes: a flowchart
CONTEXT
Environmental ‘givens’ Socio-cultural influences, Economic drivers eg
eg climate, water, land, eg religion, gender, price, profits
biodiversity family
SHAPING FORCES
Human labour, skills &
INSTITUTIONS education
INPUTS
eg, agrichemicals, pharmaceuticals, equipment
International Organizations  Research, development,
Policy guidelines, advice, etc engineering & technology
PRIMARY PRODUCTION
Regional bodies  Regulations, farming, fishing, horticulture Social policies
law, subsidies, etc
PROCESSING & MANUFACTURE
National governments Laws, Finance capital
regulations, subsidies, etc
DISTRIBUTION & LOGISTICS
Health, hygiene controls
Local governments Laws, eg, national/international, import/export
regulations, subsidies, etc
Consciousness industries,
RETAIL CATERING eg advertising, media
eg, supermarkets, shops restaurants, public sector
Civil society organisations
DOMESTIC FOOD PREPARATION
OUTCOMES
cultural impact Social impact Health / ill-health Waste & biological outflow eg Energy & material outflow
pollutants

39. Where do we go from here?
The Ecological Public Health agenda
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40. We must....
• Champion Ecological Public Health as the
paradigm (Rayner & Lang 2012)
• Rethink diet around environmental limits:
– Fork to farm (not farm to fork)
• Begin work on EU Sustainable Dietary Guidelines
• Help redesign food systems around Sust Diets
– Not around reformed production
• Be open about the moral dimension: Health is
about social progress!
• Ask if our institutions are fit for this purpose
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41. For us professionally....
• Ask our professional bodies to engage
• Press for our Governments to produce
sustainable dietary advice (and at EU)
• From CAP Common Sustainable Food Policy
• Include all dimensions that shape conditions
on which health depends:
– Material / bio-physiological / social / cognitive
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42. To deliver Sustainable Diets means
Change from …to… …with trouble
… ahead over…
Nutrition Eco-nutrition linking calories with
guidelines guidelines carbon
Food products Total diet Eco-brand images
Control green Verifiable Advertising and
claims standards marketing
Global all year Sustainable Defining sustainability
sourcing seasonality
Low cost food as Full cost Consumer
a good accounting expectations 42

43. Conclusions
• Food system change is
– complex but not incomprehensible
– requires multi-level /-sector /-disciplinary work
– links the material, biological, cognitive and social
• The discourse needs to change
• Leadership & incentives are sorely needed
• We need to be active
• We don’t want change to be forced on us
• There is enough evidence for policy to change
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44. Thank you!
t.lang@city.ac.uk
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