Meat, rice, and dairy production will push the planet past the 1.5C Paris Climate Agreement target: New study

Greenhouse gas emissions that are produced from the way humans produce and consume food could add nearly 1 degree of warming to the Earth’s climate by 2100, according to a new study published in the journal Nature Climate Change. Continuing the dietary patterns of today will push the planet past the 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7Continue reading “Meat, rice, and dairy production will push the planet past the 1.5C Paris Climate Agreement target: New study”

Economic impact of overweight and obesity to surpass $4 trillion by 2035: World Obesity Federation

Today, March 4, 2023 is World Obesity Day. The theme for this year’s World Obesity Day is ‘Changing Perspectives: Let’s Talk About Obesity.’ The World Obesity Atlas 2023, published by World Obesity Federation, predicts that the global economic impact of overweight and obesity will reach $4.32 trillion annually by 2035 if prevention and treatment measures do notContinue reading “Economic impact of overweight and obesity to surpass $4 trillion by 2035: World Obesity Federation”

A recipe for change: The Cookbook In Support of The United Nations – For People and Planet

“Earlene Cruz is on a mission to make people hungry for climate action every time they sit down to eat. Cruz is the Founder and Executive Director of Kitchen Connection Alliance, an entity that seeks to improve systems for growing and distributing food worldwide. She was at COP27 last November to launch the Cookbook in SupportContinue reading “A recipe for change: The Cookbook In Support of The United Nations – For People and Planet”

New evidence that ultra-processed foods may increase cancer risk: research

“A study funded by the World Cancer Research Fund and Cancer Research UK and published in eClinicalMedicine, a Lancet open access clinical journal, provides new evidence of a link between ultra-processed foods (UPFs) and an increased risk of developing cancer.” (Chang et al., 2023; Ewing-Chow, 2023). “A team from Imperial College London used UK Biobank dataContinue reading “New evidence that ultra-processed foods may increase cancer risk: research”

Climate impact labels could help promote sustainable food choices: New study

Labels placed on fast food items highlighting their high climate impact may sway consumers to make more sustainable food choices, according to a new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) (Wolfson et al., 2022).  “Food accounts for around one-third of all human-made greenhouse gas emissions, with animal-based foods such as red meatContinue reading “Climate impact labels could help promote sustainable food choices: New study”

Healthy plant-based diets are better for health and the environment than unhealthy plant-based diets: New research

In a new study published in the journal Lancet Planetary Health, researchers characterized the health and environmental impacts associated with high versus low scores on various plant-rich dietary indices in a U.S. cohort study. These researchers found that participants in the highest alternative healthy eating index-2010 (AHEI) and healthy plant-based diet index (PDI) score quintilesContinue reading “Healthy plant-based diets are better for health and the environment than unhealthy plant-based diets: New research”

Plant-based animal product alternatives are healthier and more environmentally sustainable than animal products: Review

A new paper published in the journal Future Foods concludes that plant-based meat and dairy alternatives offer a healthier and more environmentally sustainable solution when compared with the animal products they are designed to replace (University of Bath, 2022). The review analyzed the results of 43 studies. In completing the review, the author evaluated theContinue reading “Plant-based animal product alternatives are healthier and more environmentally sustainable than animal products: Review”

Do carbon footprint labels promote climatarian diets? Evidence from a large-scale field experiment

In a recent study published in the Journal of Environmental Economics & Management, researchers from the United Kingdom (UK) assessed the causal effect of carbon footprint labelling on individual meal choices in a university cafeteria setting using a large-scale field experiment. The study allowed the scientists explicitly explore whether carbon footprint labels can induce moreContinue reading Do carbon footprint labels promote climatarian diets? Evidence from a large-scale field experiment

Eat more fish: new research identifies several marine species that are more nutritious and better for the planet than beef, pork, or chicken

Replacing meat with certain types of sustainably sourced seafood could help people to reduce their carbon footprints without compromising on nutrition, finds an analysis of dozens of marine species that are consumed worldwide. The study, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment  (Bianchi et al., 2022), “suggests that farmed bivalves — shellfish such as mussels,Continue reading “Eat more fish: new research identifies several marine species that are more nutritious and better for the planet than beef, pork, or chicken”

Ultra-processed foods should be central to global food systems dialogue and action on biodiversity

A recent commentary article published BMJ Global Health (2022) points out that, “The global industrial food system and consequent rapid rise of ultra-processed foods is severely impairing biodiversity. Yet although the impacts of existing land use and food production practices on biodiversity have received much attention, the role of ultra-processed foods has been largely ignored.Continue reading Ultra-processed foods should be central to global food systems dialogue and action on biodiversity