Journal articles on the topic 'Food systems actions'
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Wertheim-Heck, Sigrid, and Natalia Romero Herrera. "Co-creating sustainable food systems." International Journal of Food Design 8, no. 2 (October 1, 2023): 149–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.1386/ijfd_00068_2.
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This Special Issue is preoccupied with the question: ‘How can citizens play an active role in co-creating sustainable food systems?’. The issue presents four distinct empirical research studies that explore participatory actions, co-creation and citizen science in moving towards more sustainable urban food systems at the intersection of design and sustainability. The various contributions explore the role of co-design with citizens to create sustainable food systems by addressing issues related to food production, processing, transportation and consumption. The issue covers diverse topics in distinct settings, from co-creation with agri-food smallholders in Vietnam to a design-led systemic action against homelessness-related food poverty in Turin, Italy.
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Loboguerrero, Ana Maria, Philip Thornton, Jonathan Wadsworth, Bruce M. Campbell, Mario Herrero, Daniel Mason-D’Croz, Dhanush Dinesh, et al. "Perspective article: Actions to reconfigure food systems." Global Food Security 26 (September 2020): 100432. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gfs.2020.100432.
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Oniang'o, Ruth. "Very simply, what do we mean by Food Systems?" African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development 21, no. 7 (September 2, 2021): 1. http://dx.doi.org/10.18697/ajfand.102.cy040.
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The September 2021 Food Systems Summit to be convened by the UN Secretary-General António Guterres will be part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030. The Summit will launch bold new actions to deliver progress on all 17 SDGs, each of which relies to some degree on healthier, more sustainable and equitable food systems.To better understand what is meant here by Food Systems, and how different the actions from this summit are likely to be from past summits, visit a brief by Hanh Nguyen (Value Chain Development Consultant of the Sustainable Markets, Agribusiness and Rural Transformations Team, FAO), whose concept and “why the summit?” are both very well captured.
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Cleveland, David A., Allison Carruth, and Daniella Niki Mazaroli. "Operationalizing local food: goals, actions, and indicators for alternative food systems." Agriculture and Human Values 32, no. 2 (September 30, 2014): 281–97. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10460-014-9556-9.
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Park, Soo Jin, Heather Yeatman, Joanna Russell, and Catherine MacPhail. "Barriers to Urban Food Action: Relevance of Food Pedagogies." Sustainability 14, no. 3 (January 24, 2022): 1300. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14031300.
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Cities strive to feed growing populations while at the same time minimize the environmental impacts of their food systems. To support cities to achieve their goals, they require systematic and practical actions, including identification of the needs and capacities of food practitioners to guide and support food-related policies and initiatives. This study aims to explore barriers to food-related actions in everyday settings and the potential of a food pedagogy framework to overcome such barriers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 39 experienced food leaders from diverse food-related areas in Australia. Thematic analysis identified six key themes related to weaknesses in food-related actions, including lack of: a broad understanding about food; acknowledgement of values of food in everyday lives; a broad pedagogical lens; a responsible entity; organizational supports; and coordination between stakeholders and communities. Existing national and global food initiatives were reviewed using a pedagogical framework to identify presence of these barriers to actions, together with strategies that aimed to avoid or diminish such barriers. The findings confirm that a pedagogical approach has potential to enhance the roles and capacities of food practitioners and provide support for government and community structures to achieve a common vision of healthy and sustainable urban food systems.
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Carlsson, Liesel, Edith Callaghan, and Göran Broman. "How Can Dietitians Leverage Change for Sustainable Food Systems in Canada?" Canadian Journal of Dietetic Practice and Research 80, no. 4 (December 1, 2019): 164–71. http://dx.doi.org/10.3148/cjdpr-2019-005.
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Purpose: In this paper, we begin to set out language defining sustainable food systems (SFS) in Canada, through the voices of dietitians, and identify leverage points where dietitians can affect change. Methods: Dietitians of Canada members were invited to a Delphi Inquiry process; questions explored a vision of SFS in Canada, barriers to that vision, and actions. Results were independently analysed by 2 members of the research team who used the Framework for Strategic Sustainable Development to structure the data. Results: Fifty-eight members participated. The resultant vision describes a future food system in 15 thematic areas of the social and ecological systems. Barriers are described according to how they undermine sustainability. High-leverage actions areas included: (i) facilitating knowledge development within the profession and public, (ii) influencing organizational policy to support SFS, and (iii) and influencing public policy. Approaches to such action included: (i) facilitating cross-sectoral collaboration and (ii) applying reflexive approaches. Conclusions: This research suggests a multidimensional understanding of food systems sustainability among dietitians. The vision provides some language to describe what dietitians mean by SFS and can be used as a compass point to orient action. Action areas and approaches have the potential to drive systemic change while avoiding unintended consequences.
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Iyengar, Venkatesh, and Ibrahim Elmadfa. "Food Safety Security: A new Concept for Enhancing Food Safety Measures." International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research 82, no. 3 (June 1, 2012): 216–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1024/0300-9831/a000114.
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The food safety security (FSS) concept is perceived as an early warning system for minimizing food safety (FS) breaches, and it functions in conjunction with existing FS measures. Essentially, the function of FS and FSS measures can be visualized in two parts: (i) the FS preventive measures as actions taken at the stem level, and (ii) the FSS interventions as actions taken at the root level, to enhance the impact of the implemented safety steps. In practice, along with FS, FSS also draws its support from (i) legislative directives and regulatory measures for enforcing verifiable, timely, and effective compliance; (ii) measurement systems in place for sustained quality assurance; and (iii) shared responsibility to ensure cohesion among all the stakeholders namely, policy makers, regulators, food producers, processors and distributors, and consumers. However, the functional framework of FSS differs from that of FS by way of: (i) retooling the vulnerable segments of the preventive features of existing FS measures; (ii) fine-tuning response systems to efficiently preempt the FS breaches; (iii) building a long-term nutrient and toxicant surveillance network based on validated measurement systems functioning in real time; (iv) focusing on crisp, clear, and correct communication that resonates among all the stakeholders; and (v) developing inter-disciplinary human resources to meet ever-increasing FS challenges. Important determinants of FSS include: (i) strengthening international dialogue for refining regulatory reforms and addressing emerging risks; (ii) developing innovative and strategic action points for intervention {in addition to Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) procedures]; and (iii) introducing additional science-based tools such as metrology-based measurement systems.
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Barrett, Christopher B. "Actions now can curb food systems fallout from COVID-19." Nature Food 1, no. 6 (May 7, 2020): 319–20. http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s43016-020-0085-y.
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Xue, Huidan, Yujia Zhai, Wen-Hao Su, and Ziling He. "Governance and Actions for Resilient Urban Food Systems in the Era of COVID-19: Lessons and Challenges in China." Agriculture 13, no. 9 (August 25, 2023): 1681. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/agriculture13091681.
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The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically challenged urban food systems, has hurt the resilience and fundamental function of urban food systems and also accelerated the trends of digitization and changing preferences of consumers in cities. This research conducted a qualitative analysis of the discourses, actions and interactions of different actors in the urban food systems in China during COVID-19 using an actor-oriented approach and discourse analysis. This research finds that stricter regulations and policies have been implemented by governments to regulate the food supply chain and ensure human health. Local community service personnel, volunteers, stakeholders along the food supply chain and consumers formulated collective actions during the pandemic yet chaos and discourse distortions also emerged at different stages. The pandemic is a preamble to changes in consumers’ preferences and food supply chains in urban communities. There were significant structural changes and a dual structure of urban and rural food systems, where unbalanced supply and demand existed. Collective actions with community governance and an innovative food business model to digitize flows and easily adapt to shocks in food systems are required.
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Ali, Zeeshan, Chuanxiang Zhang, Junchen Zhu, Gang Jin, Zhifei Wang, Yanqi Wu, Muhammad Ammar Khan, Jianguo Dai, and Yongjun Tang. "The Role of Nanotechnology in Food Safety: Current Status and Future Perspective." Journal of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology 18, no. 12 (December 1, 2018): 7983–8002. http://dx.doi.org/10.1166/jnn.2018.16395.
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Nanotechnology is an emerging science in food production and processing sector, yet the role of nanotechnology in food safety has not been comprehensively reviewed. This study reviewed the types, sources and mode of actions of the nanoparticles used in the food systems. Additionally, the effect of nanoparticles on animal health and safety of the products of animal origin was evaluated. Moreover, retention of nutritionally important nanoparticle minerals in the animal systems and foods of animal origins was analyzed. Furthermore, food safety was critically evaluated in terms of antioxidative ability, antibacterial properties, and toxicological studies. Finally, the scope of nanoparticle-based functional foods and shelf-life enhancement using active packaging was discussed. The article concluded that although significant research has been done on the use of nanoparticles in food systems, yet commercialization of nanoparticle-based foods needs further investigation.
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Zurcher, Kathleen A., Linda Jo Doctor, and Gail L. Imig. "Food & Fitness: Lessons Learned for Funders." Health Promotion Practice 19, no. 1_suppl (September 2018): 9S—14S. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1524839918783974.
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Communities face issues that are complex, affect diverse stakeholders who hold conflicting perspectives, involve historical systems, and have long delays between the time action is taken and results of the actions become obvious. In order to improve outcomes some funders have begun to shift their priorities to support systems change, rather than activities or programs that address discrete short-term needs and problems. In 2007, W.K. Kellogg Foundation funded Food & Fitness, a 9-year initiative designed to address the then-emerging concerns about childhood obesity and health inequities from a system perspective. Funded partnerships in communities with inequities across the United States created community-based approaches to increase access to locally grown food and healthy places for physical activity. This 9-year systems change initiative provided a unique opportunity to document lessons that can inform funders and communities seeking to create places that will support the health of children and families, as well as those leading other systems change initiatives.
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Rampalli, Krystal K., Christine E. Blake, Edward A. Frongillo, and Joseph Montoya. "Why understanding food choice is crucial to transform food systems for human and planetary health." BMJ Global Health 8, no. 5 (May 2023): e010876. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2022-010876.
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What, how and why people eat has long been understood to be important for human health, but until recently, has not been recognised as an essential facet of climate change and its effects on planetary health. The global climate change and diet-related health crises occurring are connected to food systems, food environments and consumer food choices. Calls to transform food systems for human and planetary health highlight the importance of understanding individual food choice. Understanding what, how and why people eat the way they do is crucial to successful food systems transformations that achieve both human and planetary health goals. Little is known about how food choice relates to climate. To clarify potential paths for action, we propose that individual food choice relates to climate change through three key mechanisms. First, the sum of individual food choices influences the supply and demand of foods produced and sold in the marketplace. Second, individual food decisions affect type and quantity of food waste at the retail and household level. Third, individual food choices serve as a symbolic expression of concern for human and planetary health, which can individually and collectively stimulate social movements and behaviour change. To meet the dietary needs of the 2050 global population projection of 10 billion, food systems must transform. Understanding what, how and why people eat the way they do, as well as the mechanisms by which these choices affect climate change, is essential for designing actions conducive to the protection of both human and planetary health.
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Béné, Christophe, Peter Oosterveer, Lea Lamotte, Inge D. Brouwer, Stef de Haan, Steve D. Prager, Elise F. Talsma, and Colin K. Khoury. "When food systems meet sustainability – Current narratives and implications for actions." World Development 113 (January 2019): 116–30. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.08.011.
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Saliu, Kashmir, Vlado Velkovski, and Shaban Saliu. "MANAGEMENT METHODS, FUNCTIONS AND ACTIVITIES INCORPORATED IN FOOD SAFETY SYSTEMS AND STANDARDS." Knowledge International Journal 28, no. 4 (December 10, 2018): 1317–28. http://dx.doi.org/10.35120/kij28041317k.
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Studying the management process is fundamental to global and partial research, as well as the functioning and development of business systems, sub processes, and individual endeavors that are realized within the system. In general terms, the term management means a continuous action of management actions that, under the influence of changes in the system, transforms it or organizes it from one state to another. Management relates to the achievement of the objectives of the system, and in that sense it is defined as a continuous process aimed at the realization of those goals, that is, as a set of actions that act on the system in order to achieve the defined goals. Basically, the objectives of the systems represent a future state to which the system wants to come. In order to achieve the set goals or in order to achieve the defined development, the functioning of the system must be guided and directed towards the goals, which is the core of the management process. The design and implementation of food safety management systems is influenced by a variety of factors, in particular from the hazards associated with food safety, food provision, production provision, process utilization, and so on. Bearing in mind that the danger to food safety can occur at any stage in the production chain of the ions, it is necessary to effectively control it and to eliminate or reduce the risk of hazards at a certain acceptable level. In addition to health risks, diseases caused by spoiled foods can significantly increase economic costs, including medical treatments, insurance payments, absenteeism and legal compensation. As a result, several countries have developed national standards for the supply of safe food, and individual companies and groups in the food production area have developed their own standards, programs or systems that control suppliers. In the scientific paper titled "Management methods, functions and activities incorporated in food safety systems and standards", a more detailed review is given on the planning and organization as management functions, with special emphasies on planning and organization as the main activities in implementing the food safety systems and standards.
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Boucher, Beatrice A., Elizabeth Manafò, Meaghan R. Boddy, Lynn Roblin, and Rebecca Truscott. "The Ontario Food and Nutrition Strategy: identifying indicators of food access and food literacy for early monitoring of the food environment." Health Promotion and Chronic Disease Prevention in Canada 37, no. 9 (September 2017): 313–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.24095/hpcdp.37.9.06.
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Introduction To address challenges Canadians face within their food environments, a comprehensive, multistakeholder, intergovernmental approach to policy development is essential. Food environment indicators are needed to assess population status and change. The Ontario Food and Nutrition Strategy (OFNS) integrates the food, agriculture and nutrition sectors, and aims to improve the health of Ontarians through actions that promote healthy food systems and environments. This report describes the process of identifying indicators for 11 OFNS action areas in two strategic directions (SDs): Healthy Food Access, and Food Literacy and Skills. Methods The OFNS Indicators Advisory Group used a five-step process to select indicators: (1) potential indicators from national and provincial data sources were identified; (2) indicators were organized by SD, action area and data type; (3) selection criteria were identified, pilot tested and finalized; (4) final criteria were applied to refine the indicator list; and (5) indicators were prioritized after reapplication of selection criteria. Results Sixty-nine potential indicators were initially identified; however, many were individual-level rather than system-level measures. After final application of the selection criteria, one individual-level indicator and six system-level indicators were prioritized in five action areas; for six of the action areas, no indicators were available. Conclusion Data limitations suggest that available data may not measure important aspects of the food environment, highlighting the need for action and resources to improve system-level indicators and support monitoring of the food environment and health in Ontario and across Canada.
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Bhattacharjee, Lalita, Richemont Seki, Md Musharraf Ashraf, and Kraisid Tontisirin. "Nutrition-sensitive Food Systems: Brief Perspectives." Bangladesh Journal of Nutrition 34, no. 1 (December 31, 2021): 25–39. http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/bjnut.v34i1.69993.
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Food systems – covering the ‘production to the plate’ chain – comprise food production, processing, marketing, utilization, and consumption. It facilitates peoples’ access to nutritious food in an adequate amount and variety necessary for maintaining a healthy life, irrespective of age, gender, culture, and social stratum. Food systems also address people’s access to information to facilitate their informed choice of food. To this end, food system elements and nutrition have linkages that offer opportunities for policy priorities, programs, and strategies. The trends in hunger and food insecurity, dietary consumption, and malnutrition appear to vary across the globe amidst the recurrent effects of global warming and socio-political crises which pose challenges for many developing countries to achieve the SDG 2.1 target. There is a need for strengthening the linkages between sustainable healthy diets for nutrition and between food systems and nutrition along with addressing the alterations in food systems amidst urbanization and diet changes. Policy actions should leverage nutrition sensitive agriculture and food systems with prospects for women, small holder farmers, and communities to improve diets and nutrition. Bangladesh J. Nutr. Vol. 34, December 2020, P: 25-39
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Mackay, Sally, Ana Renker-Darby, Ella Robinson, Grace Shaw, and Gary Sacks. "Development of a Proposed Set of Indicators for Assessing Food Company Commitments and Practices Regarding Environmental Sustainability." Sustainability 14, no. 16 (August 19, 2022): 10315. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su141610315.
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There is widespread recognition that a transformation of food systems is needed to improve environmental sustainability. As part of efforts to hold food companies accountable for their role in improving the environmental sustainability of food systems, there is a critical role for monitoring and benchmarking of company actions. This study aimed to develop a proposed set of metrics for assessing the commitments and practices of food companies regarding environmental sustainability. Guided by an inventory of existing sustainability reporting frameworks and benchmarking initiatives, we proposed 37 indicators for assessment, categorised into ten domains, covering strategy, packaging, greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, water, biodiversity, food waste, compliance and reducing animal-sourced foods. We refined the indicators after consultation with academic experts. We discussed implementation feasibility with sustainability managers from three major food companies in New Zealand. Feedback highlighted the need to pilot test methods for applying the indicators in practice, including assessment of a company’s impact across the supply chain, refining indicator scoring criteria, and weighting indicators based on company- and sector-specific priority areas of focus. Assessment of food companies using the proposed set of metrics can improve accountability for action and inform government regulatory responses.
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Sclafani, Anthony, and Karen Ackroff. "Role of gut nutrient sensing in stimulating appetite and conditioning food preferences." American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 302, no. 10 (May 15, 2012): R1119—R1133. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.00038.2012.
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The discovery of taste and nutrient receptors (chemosensors) in the gut has led to intensive research on their functions. Whereas oral sugar, fat, and umami taste receptors stimulate nutrient appetite, these and other chemosensors in the gut have been linked to digestive, metabolic, and satiating effects that influence nutrient utilization and inhibit appetite. Gut chemosensors may have an additional function as well: to provide positive feedback signals that condition food preferences and stimulate appetite. The postoral stimulatory actions of nutrients are documented by flavor preference conditioning and appetite stimulation produced by gastric and intestinal infusions of carbohydrate, fat, and protein. Recent findings suggest an upper intestinal site of action, although postabsorptive nutrient actions may contribute to flavor preference learning. The gut chemosensors that generate nutrient conditioning signals remain to be identified; some have been excluded, including sweet (T1R3) and fatty acid (CD36) sensors. The gut-brain signaling pathways (neural, hormonal) are incompletely understood, although vagal afferents are implicated in glutamate conditioning but not carbohydrate or fat conditioning. Brain dopamine reward systems are involved in postoral carbohydrate and fat conditioning but less is known about the reward systems mediating protein/glutamate conditioning. Continued research on the postoral stimulatory actions of nutrients may enhance our understanding of human food preference learning.
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Hanson, Margaret. "The “P's and Q's” of Quality Systems." Archives of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine 123, no. 7 (July 1, 1999): 576–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.5858/1999-123-0576-tpsaqs.
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Abstract Quality improvement in blood collection centers has been a priority of regulatory and accrediting agencies for the past several years. The Food and Drug Administration and the American Association of Blood Banks have developed guidelines for quality assurance activities. Inspection programs have focused on evaluation of processes and how they are controlled to assure the safety and efficacy of blood components. A review of Food and Drug Administration enforcement actions shows that all such actions cite similar deficiencies related to management control, personnel training, error, and record management policies. A quality program that includes management commitment to compliance and continuous improvement, defined personnel training, internal audit, and error management policies provides documented evidence to management and regulatory agencies that operations are in control.
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Raub, Kristin B., Kristine F. Stepenuck, Bindu Panikkar, and Jennie C. Stephens. "An Analysis of Resilience Planning at the Nexus of Food, Energy, Water, and Transportation in Coastal US Cities." Sustainability 13, no. 11 (June 2, 2021): 6316. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su13116316.
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Climate change poses increased risks to coastal communities and the interconnected infrastructure they rely on, including food, energy, water, and transportation (FEWT) systems. Most coastal communities in the US are ill-prepared to address these risks, and resilience planning is inconsistently prioritized and not federally mandated. This study examined the resilience plans of 11 coastal US cities to understand 1. How FEWT systems were considered within resilience plans and, 2. How nexus principles or elements critical to a nexus approach were incorporated within resilience plans. A “Nexus Index” was created to examine the incorporation of nexus principles, which included partnerships and collaborations, reference to other plans or reports, discussion of co-benefits, cascading impacts, and inclusion of interdisciplinary or cross-silo principles. These principles were used to score each action within the resilience plans. Results showed that only eight actions (1% of all actions across the 11 plans) focused on the connections among FEWT systems within the resilience plans. The transportation system was associated with the most actions, followed by the energy system, water system, and the food system. While FEWT systems were not consistently included, there was evidence from the Nexus Index that the plans included elements critical to a nexus approach, such as the inclusion of partnerships and reference to co-benefits with the actions they designed to build resilience. The heterogeneity among the systems that each plan emphasized reflects the heterogeneity among the challenges that each city faces. While context-specific differences in resilience plans across cities are expected, some consistency in addressing certain infrastructural needs and their nexus interactions may greatly benefit and improve the implementation of resilience planning.
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Marshall, Quinn, Alexandra L. Bellows, Rebecca McLaren, Andrew D. Jones, and Jessica Fanzo. "You Say You Want a Data Revolution? Taking on Food Systems Accountability." Agriculture 11, no. 5 (May 7, 2021): 422. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11050422.
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Dramatic improvements in data availability and quality are needed to meet the challenge of monitoring and analyzing food systems, so that appropriate policies and actions to improve human and planetary health can be identified and data-informed accountability mechanisms put in place to strengthen food systems governance. Studying food systems is complex due to diverse actors and interlinking processes that operate on multiple spatial and temporal scales, and their multiple outcomes, which may be subject to hidden feedback mechanisms and tradeoffs. However, descriptive research to characterize food system components and make comparisons across geography, income groups, and population groups is an important foundation. The first part of this article details a series of critical data gaps and limitations that are currently hindering food systems learning and accountability, also comparing these gaps across regions and income groups. The second part of the article introduces the Food Systems Dashboard, a new data visualization tool that aims to improve access to and usage of food systems-related data, thus strengthening the data value chain and better informing policies and actions intended to improve diets, nutrition, livelihoods, and environmental sustainability.
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Domingo, Ashleigh, Kerry-Ann Charles, Michael Jacobs, Deborah Brooker, and Rhona M. Hanning. "Indigenous Community Perspectives of Food Security, Sustainable Food Systems and Strategies to Enhance Access to Local and Traditional Healthy Food for Partnering Williams Treaties First Nations (Ontario, Canada)." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 9 (April 21, 2021): 4404. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18094404.
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In partnership with communities of the Williams Treaties First Nations in southern Ontario (Canada), we describe an approach to work with communities, and highlight perspectives of food security and sustainability, including priorities and opportunities to revitalize local food systems as a pathway to food security and food sovereignty. The objectives of our project were: (1) to build a shared understanding of food security and sustainability; and (2) to document community priorities, challenges and opportunities to enhance local food access. Utilizing an Indigenous methodology, the conversational method, within the framework of community-based participatory research, formative work undertaken helped to conceptualize food security and sustainability from a community perspective and solidify interests within the four participating communities to inform community-led action planning. Knowledge generated from our project will inform development of initiatives, programs or projects that promote sustainable food systems. The community-based actions identified support a path towards holistic wellbeing and, ultimately, Indigenous peoples’ right to food security and food sovereignty.
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Sacande, Moctar, and Giulia Muir. "Restoring Food Systems with Nutritious Native Plants: Experiences from the African Drylands." Food and Nutrition Bulletin 44, no. 2_suppl (October 18, 2023): S58—S68. http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/03795721231190779.
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Background: Twenty-seven African countries have committed to restore more than 100 million hectares of degraded land by 2030 as part of the African Forest Landscape Restoration Initiative (AFR100). In addition, for the same period of time, the African-led Great Green Wall initiative seeks to restore 100 million hectares of degraded agro-sylvo-pastoral lands in the Sahel. The current UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration (2021-2030) moreover marks an unprecedented opportunity to shape future landscapes, and forge more biodiverse and nutritious food systems. Yet most large-scale restoration actions continue to be largely isolated from socioeconomic challenges facing dryland communities, not least food security and acute malnutrition. Such isolations contribute to low restoration successes and outcomes in Africa’s drylands. At the same time, international interventions aimed at improving acute malnutrition in the drylands have not adequately considered the agriculture-nutrition linkages, particularly “pre-farm gate”—including consumption pathways which optimize the use of native plant diversity. Objectives: This article identifies priority action areas emerging from experiences over 5 years of restoration activities carried out in the Sahel through Food and Agriculture Organization’s (FAO) Action Against Desertification Programme supporting the implementation of Africa’s Great Green Wall. These actions aim to inform development and humanitarian interventions on the ground to render restoration interventions nutrition-sensitive and hence more effective in practice. Results: Recognizing the symbiotic relationship between landscapes and livelihoods, FAO developed a blueprint for large-scale restoration that combines biophysical and socioeconomic aspects for the benefit of rural communities. The approach builds climate and nutritional resilience into its restoration interventions as a preventative approach to reverse land degradation and ultimately improve livelihoods, food security, and nutrition. Conclusions: FAO’s experience demonstrated that what is planted and when has the potential to not only significantly improve biodiversity and reverse land degradation, but also positively influence nutrition outcomes. Future interventions in the drylands must involve joint efforts between nutritionists and natural resource managem prove both human and planetary health.
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Loboguerrero, Ana, Bruce Campbell, Peter Cooper, James Hansen, Todd Rosenstock, and Eva Wollenberg. "Food and Earth Systems: Priorities for Climate Change Adaptation and Mitigation for Agriculture and Food Systems." Sustainability 11, no. 5 (March 5, 2019): 1372. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su11051372.
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Human activities and their relation with land, through agriculture and forestry, are significantly impacting Earth system functioning. Specifically, agriculture has increasingly become a key sector for adaptation and mitigation initiatives that address climate change and help ensure food security for a growing global population. Climate change and agricultural outcomes influence our ability to reach targets for at least seven of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals. By 2015, 103 nations had committed themselves to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture, while 102 countries had prioritized agriculture in their adaptation agenda. Adaptation and mitigation actions within agriculture still receive insufficient support across scales, from local to international level. This paper reviews a series of climate change adaptation and mitigation options that can support increased production, production efficiency and greater food security for 9 billion people by 2050. Climate-smart agriculture can help foster synergies between productivity, adaptation, and mitigation, although trade-offs may be equally apparent. This study highlights the importance of identifying and exploiting those synergies in the context of Nationally Determined Contributions. Finally, the paper points out that keeping global warming to 2 °C above pre-industrial levels by 2100 requires going beyond the agriculture sector and exploring possibilities with respect to reduced emissions from deforestation, food loss, and waste, as well as from rethinking human diets.
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Parodi, Alejandro, Sara Valencia-Salazar, Ana María Loboguerrero, Deissy Martínez-Barón, Enrique Murgueitio, and Ian Vázquez-Rowe. "The sustainable transformation of the Colombian cattle sector: Assessing its circularity." PLOS Climate 1, no. 10 (October 12, 2022): e0000074. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pclm.0000074.
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Circular food systems are increasingly acknowledged for their potential to contribute to the transition towards sustainable futures. In a circular food system, the use of finite and limited resources is minimized, and nutrients in residual streams and inedible biomass for humans are reused as inputs in the bioeconomy. Livestock has become relevant in this narrative for upcycling nutrients contained in food by-products and grass resources into nutritious food for humans without using human-edible resources. Evaluating on-going national sustainability initiatives in the livestock sector is key to determine if circularity elements are already represented and to identify new opportunities and pathways for the future. In this paper we synthetize the environmental actions promoted by different initiatives driving the sustainable transformation of Colombian cattle production systems and assess the inclusion of circularity elements in these actions. The proposed environmental actions were concentrated in the conservation of remaining natural ecosystems, zero-deforestation and the sustainable intensification of cattle production through silvopastoral and paddock rotational systems. Circularity was addressed by some initiatives via the use organic fertilizers and the use of manure as fertilizers or feedstock for bioenergy generation. However, given that cattle farming is often practiced in low-input systems where the collection of by-products for reutilization (e.g., manure) is not always feasible, these actions are expected to have limited impact in the sector. Silvopastoral systems can positively promote circularity by creating the conditions for internal nutrient recycling via litterfall, biological nitrogen fixation, phosphorus solubilization, and presence of beneficial insects. However, to avoid food-feed competition and to remain circular, these should only be installed in agricultural areas unsuitable for crop production. In areas where crops can grow, other production systems that prioritize the production of plant biomass for human consumption (i.e., agrosilvopastoral systems, mixed crop-livestock systems or forms of crop intercropping) should be considered.
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Browne, Jennifer, Mark Lock, Troy Walker, Mikaela Egan, and Kathryn Backholer. "Effects of food policy actions on Indigenous Peoples’ nutrition-related outcomes: a systematic review." BMJ Global Health 5, no. 8 (August 2020): e002442. http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2020-002442.
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IntroductionIndigenous Peoples worldwide endure unacceptable health disparities with undernutrition and food insecurity often coexisting with obesity and chronic diseases. Policy-level actions are required to eliminate malnutrition in all its forms. However, there has been no systematic synthesis of the evidence of effectiveness of food and nutrition policies for Indigenous Peoples around the world. This review fills that gap.MethodsEight databases were searched for peer-reviewed literature, published between 2000 and 2019. Relevant websites were searched for grey literature. Articles were included if they were original studies, published in English and included data from Indigenous Peoples from Western colonised countries, evaluated a food or nutrition policy (or intervention), and provided quantitative impact/outcome data. Study screening, data extraction and quality assessment were undertaken independently by two authors, at least one of whom was Indigenous. A narrative synthesis was undertaken with studies grouped according to the NOURISHING food policy framework.ResultsWe identified 78 studies from Canada, Australia, Aotearoa/New Zealand and the USA. Most studies evaluated targeted interventions, focused on rural or remote Indigenous communities. The most effective interventions combined educational strategies with policies targeting food price, composition and/or availability, particularly in retail and school environments. Interventions to reduce exposure to unhealthy food advertising was the only area of the NOURISHING framework not represented in the literature. Few studies examined the impact of universal food policies on Indigenous Peoples’ diets, health or well-being.ConclusionBoth targeted and universal policy action can be effective for Indigenous Peoples. Actions that modify the structures and systems governing food supply through improved availability, access and affordability of healthy foods should be prioritised. More high-quality evidence on the impact of universal food and nutrition policy actions for Indigenous Peoples is required, particularly in urban areas and in the area of food marketing.
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Anisha, Grace Sathyanesan, Savitha Padmakumari, Anil Kumar Patel, Ashok Pandey, and Reeta Rani Singhania. "Fucoidan from Marine Macroalgae: Biological Actions and Applications in Regenerative Medicine, Drug Delivery Systems and Food Industry." Bioengineering 9, no. 9 (September 14, 2022): 472. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/bioengineering9090472.
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The marine macroalgae produce a collection of bioactive polysaccharides, of which the sulfated heteropolysaccharide fucoidan produced by brown algae of the class Phaeophyceae has received worldwide attention because of its particular biological actions that confer nutritional and health benefits to humans and animals. The biological actions of fucoidan are determined by their structure and chemical composition, which are largely influenced by the geographical location, harvest season, extraction process, etc. This review discusses the structure, chemical composition and physicochemical properties of fucoidan. The biological action of fucoidan and its applications for human health, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine and drug delivery are also addressed. The industrial scenario and prospects of research depicted would give an insight into developing fucoidan as a commercially viable and sustainable bioactive material in the nutritional and pharmacological sectors.
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Dragsted. "Antioxidant Actions of Polyphenols in Humans." International Journal for Vitamin and Nutrition Research 73, no. 2 (March 1, 2003): 112–19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1024/0300-9831.73.2.112.
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Many polyphenols are potent antioxidants in foods and model systems and they have therefore very naturally been linked with the hypothesis that their redox activities may confer them with specific health benefits. Their prevalence in plant derived foods, which are generally accepted as healthy has supported this view and inspired researchers to conduct human intervention trails with polyphenol rich food items in order to investigate their ability to counteract oxidative stress. Several biomarkers have gained widespread use to assess oxidative damage and antioxidative defence capabilities in humans. These markers pioneer our knowledge about factors related to oxidative stress in proteins, lipids and DNA and present results indicate that oxidative damage may be very localised and that refined markers may be necessary in order to disentangle the complex local factors which determine the extent of oxidative damage in different molecular structures. The present text reviews the human short-term intervention studies with polyphenol-rich foods, which address their impact on biomarkers of oxidative damage and antioxidative defence. None of the oxidative damage markers seem to be consistently affected by polyphenol-rich foods or to be consistently related to one another. The most consistent finding regarding antioxidative defence markers is a postprandial effect on plasma antioxidative capacity after ingestion of foods rich in catechins and complex procyanidins.
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Borelli, Teresa, Danny Hunter, Stefano Padulosi, Nadezda Amaya, Gennifer Meldrum, Daniela Moura de Oliveira Beltrame, Gamini Samarasinghe, et al. "Local Solutions for Sustainable Food Systems: The Contribution of Orphan Crops and Wild Edible Species." Agronomy 10, no. 2 (February 5, 2020): 231. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/agronomy10020231.
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Calls for a global food system transformation and finding more sustainable ways of producing healthier, safe and nutritious food for all have spurred production approaches such as sustainable intensification and biofortification with limited consideration of the copious amounts of orphan crops, traditional varieties and wild edible species readily available in many countries, mostly in and around smallholder farmers’ fields. This paper explores the potential role of locally available; affordable and climate-resilient orphan crops, traditional varieties and wild edible species to support local food system transformation. Evidence from Brazil, Kenya, Guatemala, India, Mali, Sri Lanka and Turkey is used to showcase a three-pronged approach that aims to: (i) increase evidence of the nutritional value and biocultural importance of these foods, (ii) better link research to policy to ensure these foods are considered in national food and nutrition security strategies and actions, and (iii) improve consumer awareness of the desirability of these alternative foods so that they may more easily be incorporated in diets, food systems and markets. In the seven countries, this approach has brought about positive changes around increasing community dietary diversity and increasing market opportunities for smallholder growers, as well as increased attention to biodiversity conservation.
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Figlewicz, Dianne P., and Stephen C. Benoit. "Insulin, leptin, and food reward: update 2008." American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology 296, no. 1 (January 2009): R9—R19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1152/ajpregu.90725.2008.
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The hormones insulin and leptin have been demonstrated to act in the central nervous system (CNS) as regulators of energy homeostasis at medial hypothalamic sites. In a previous review, we described new research demonstrating that, in addition to these direct homeostatic actions at the hypothalamus, CNS circuitry that subserves reward and motivation is also a direct and an indirect target for insulin and leptin action. Specifically, insulin and leptin can decrease food reward behaviors and modulate the function of neurotransmitter systems and neural circuitry that mediate food reward, i.e., midbrain dopamine and opioidergic pathways. Here we summarize new behavioral, systems, and cellular evidence in support of this hypothesis and in the context of research into the homeostatic roles of both hormones in the CNS. We discuss some current issues in the field that should provide additional insight into this hypothetical model. The understanding of neuroendocrine modulation of food reward, as well as food reward modulation by diet and obesity, may point to new directions for therapeutic approaches to overeating or eating disorders.
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Santilli, Alycia, Anna Lin-Schweitzer, Sofia I. Morales, Steve Werlin, Kim Hart, James Cramer, Jason A. Martinez, and Kathleen O’Connor Duffany. "Coalition Building and Food Insecurity: How an Equity and Justice Framework Guided a Viable Food Assistance Network." International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 18 (September 16, 2022): 11666. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191811666.
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Food insecurity is widespread in the United States. The COVID-19 pandemic intensified the need for food assistance and created opportunities for collaboration among historically-siloed organizations. Research has demonstrated the importance of coalition building and community organizing in Policy, Systems, and Environmental (PSE) change and its potential to address equitable access to food, ultimately improving population health outcomes. In New Haven, community partners formed a coalition to address systems-level issues in the local food assistance system through the Greater New Haven Coordinated Food Assistance Network (CFAN). Organizing the development of CFAN within the framework of Collaborating for Equity and Justice (CEJ) reveals a new way of collaborating with communities for social change with an explicit focus on equity and justice. A document review exploring the initiation and growth of the network found that 165 individuals, representing 63 organizations, participated in CFAN since its inception and collaborated on 50 actions that promote food access and overall health. Eighty-one percent of these actions advanced equitable resource distribution across the food system, with forty-five percent focused on coordinating food programs to meet the needs of underserved communities. With the goal of improving access to food while addressing overall equity within the system, the authors describe CFAN as a potential community organizing model in food assistance systems.
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BTN, Otubuah. "The World Must Put Hunger to Shame: The Hidden Story of Homowo, Ngmayem and Ngma." Food Science & Nutrition Technology 9, no. 2 (April 2, 2024): 1–8. http://dx.doi.org/10.23880/fsnt-16000337.
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This message calls our world to put hunger to shame using the revealed examples of Homowo and ngmayem, an original ethnic food systems in Ghana. The occurrence of hunger over the centuries can be understood from hunger’s proverbial mood. The results of hunger on humans due to its numerous causes and it associated lessons compelled early Ga-Adangbe settlers in Ghana to independently initiate the concepts of ‘Homowo’ (hoot at hunger) and ‘Ngmayem’ (celebrate life foods) as food systems. The hidden systems and basics in these unique food systems of ‘hoot at hunger’ and that of ‘celebrate life foods’ was studied. Some notable findings from the concept of ‘hoot at hunger’ involves a comprehensive layout of hooting at hunger using sustainable agriculture and the following principles: an appropriate food with or without therapeutic effect, applicable technology, basic knowledge in food and nutrition, building a suitable organizational system driven by skilled humans across several communities, by recalling historical records of hunger in society, a set day of remembrance, eating good foods all day, by the story of who we are and where we come from, with unity of purpose as a community lead by honest leaders, and also by proper symbols, designs and expressions. A remarkable outcome from ‘celebrate life foods’ norm was that it showed a notable historical record about a people, their decisions, actions, dealings and group effort in time during a hunger crisis. Once again, both concepts call for the establishment of specialized centers for advanced studies on unique food systems of old and hunger around the world with a museum chronicling the past stories of hunger challenges among a people, district, nation and the world, their probable causes and its impact on their health, and how they invented exceptional systems and products to solve those problems. All these concepts are intended to transform or strengthen food systems.
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Tognon, Gianluca, Belen Beltramo, Rutger Schilpzand, Lauren Lissner, Annet J. C. Roodenburg, Rokiah Don, Krishnapillai Madhavan Nair, Ngozi Nnam, Bruce Hamaker, and Herbert Smorenburg. "Development of the Choices 5-Level Criteria to Support Multiple Food System Actions." Nutrients 13, no. 12 (December 16, 2021): 4509. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/nu13124509.
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In 2008, the Choices International Foundation developed its logo criteria, identifying best-in-class food products. More advanced, global and graded nutrient profiling systems (NPSs) are needed to substantiate different national nutrition policies. The objective of this work was to extend Choices NPS to identify five levels of the healthiness of food products, so that the Choices NPS can also be used to support other nutrition policies, next to front-of-pack labelling. Based on the same principles as the previous logo criteria, four sets of threshold criteria were determined using a combination of compliance levels, calculated from a large international food group-specific database, the Choices logo criteria, and WHO-NPSs developed to restrict marketing to children. Validation consisted of a comparison with indicator foods from food-based dietary guidelines from various countries. Some thresholds were adjusted after the validation, e.g., because intermediate thresholds were too lenient. This resulted in a new international NPS that can be applied to different contexts and to support a variety of health policies, to prevent both undernutrition and obesity. It can efficiently evaluate mixed food products and represents a flexible tool, applicable in various settings and populations.
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Fassio, Franco, and Chiara Chirilli. "The Circular Economy and the Food System: A Review of Principal Measuring Tools." Sustainability 15, no. 13 (June 27, 2023): 10179. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su151310179.
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With average food demand on the rise and increasing pressure on sustainability, it is essential to outline the cultural framework in which food systems are evolving, with the goal of studying solutions that target concrete actions and achieve communicable and more transparent results for the market and consumers. The objective was to analyze indicators, methods, and good practices, highlighting their positive aspects, criticalities, and possible gaps, for monitoring the impact the food system has on the environment, economy, and society from a circular economy perspective. A review of scientific literature was conducted to define the framework for implementing a circular economy in the food sector. The nations most involved in circular economy research with a focus on the food system were mapped, and circular strategies and indicators were classified according to the three different scales of implementation to which they apply: micro, meso, and macro. The literature review showed that most indicators focus on material flows and end-of-life strategies, without focusing on nutrient circularity in food systems and the circular bio-economy. This work suggests a potential and original framework for analyzing food and agriculture systems that can provide a holistic assessment of the impacts, actions, and outcomes achieved by these systems.
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Bartelmeß, Tina, and Jasmin Godemann. "Corporate Perspectives on Responsibility and Sustainability in the Food System: A (Food) Communicative-Constructivist Viewpoint." Sustainability 12, no. 5 (March 6, 2020): 2024. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su12052024.
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This study examines how corporations in the German food industry understand and perceive communication as a corporate social responsibility (CSR) dimension, how they communicate about food-related sustainability, and how this corporate food communication can lead to sustainability-oriented change in action-guiding institutions. This study takes a communicative-constructivist viewpoint that does not focus on the extent to which the communicated corresponds to the actual action but rather on how communication and communicatively constructed institutions can shape, influence, or constitute the action. A comparative qualitative case study approach reveals how two deviant cases within the producing and processing food industry assume responsibility through food communication and identifies five underlying roles of communication that, in their case-specific variations yield in two different conceptualizations of perceiving responsibility through communication. The analysis and interpretation of data, in the reference frame of communicative institutionalism, outline promising prospects on how corporate food communication can contribute to institutional changes that guide decisions and actions for sustainable development of the food system. Furthermore, the findings highlight food quality as a relevant communication resource for food-related discussions about sustainability that cross systems in the context of the food system and transforms an institution in such a way that it now also refers to aspects of sustainability.
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Bolaños-Palmieri, Carolina, María Fernanda Jiménez-Morales, Julián Rojas-Vargas, Manrique Arguedas-Camacho, and Laura Brenes-Peralta. "Food Loss and Waste Actions: Experiences of the Costa Rican Food Loss and Waste Reduction Network." Foods 10, no. 10 (October 3, 2021): 2358. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/foods10102358.
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Food Loss and Waste (FLW) reduction and prevention can be crucial entry points to achieve sustainable food systems. However, the complexity of this problem poses the need for multistakeholder and multidimensional approaches. The Costa Rican FLW Reduction Network has been working since 2014 as a collaborative platform that brings together different sectors and disciplines to promote a change through communication and awareness, alliances, and research and innovation. The purpose of our study was to share the experience of Costa Rica in regards to the applied FLW actions and its catalytic effect on FLW innovation. The study was developed through a multimethod approach that included case studies, stakeholder analysis and literacy analysis to provide an overall assessment of the strategy as input for further efforts in this matter. The main findings indicate that collaborative actions among institutions and sectors are vital in promoting FLW reduction; however, FLW innovation is still at an inception phase where financial resources and policy barriers remain as aspects to address. In conclusion, the Costa Rica FLW Network represents an asset to trigger ongoing and future actions, and approaches like an integrated innovation ecosystem must be promoted.
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Mirzabaev, Alisher, and Joachim von Braun. "True cost of food and land degradation." Russian Journal of Economics 8, no. 1 (March 25, 2022): 7–15. http://dx.doi.org/10.32609/j.ruje.8.78376.
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Achievement of Sustainable Development Goals critically depends on well-functioning food systems which can provide sufficient and healthy food for all in an environmentally sustainable, economically viable and socially equitable manner. However, current food systems are failing on all of these dimensions. In fact, food systems are generating substantial amounts of environmental, health-related, social, and economic externalities negatively affecting the well-being of present and future generations of people, particularly that of the poorest and most vulnerable. True cost accounting approaches, a research frontier in sustainability sciences, seek to comprehensively measure these so far unaccounted externalities from food systems to propose solutions for addressing their negative social welfare effects. Contributing to discussions on true costs of food, this paper traces the environmental costs of ecosystems degradation due to cropland expansion during the period of 2001 to 2009 at the global level. The results show that cropland expansion caused by growing food demands has led to the degradation of 511 million hectares of higher value forest, woodland, shrubland and grassland ecosystems globally, with the total economic costs equaling 435 billion U.S. dollars. This means that each year the global community is incurring 54 billion U.S. dollars of externality costs from food systems because of cropland expansion alone. Addressing this problem requires a flexible government regulation combining incentive mechanisms such as payments for ecosystem services and carbon pricing, with legislative deterrents, e. g., environmentally friendly cadastral planning, fines, and taxes. Current research on true cost accounting is primarily focused on identifying the extent of externalities from food systems. However, knowledge does not always automatically translate into action. The key impetus for future actions for true pricing of food would come from closing knowledge gaps on transaction costs for the implementation of true pricing and the development of innovative solutions for reducing them.
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LAND, MICHAEL F. "Vision, eye movements, and natural behavior." Visual Neuroscience 26, no. 1 (January 2009): 51–62. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0952523808080899.
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AbstractHistorically, the principal function of vision has been to provide the information needed to support action. Visually mediated actions rely on three systems: the gaze system responsible for locating and fixating task-relevant objects, the motor system of the limbs to carry out the task, and the visual system to supply information to the other two. All three systems are under the control of a fourth system, the schema system, which specifies the current task and plans the overall sequence of actions. These four systems have separate but interconnected cortical representations. The way these systems interact in time and space is discussed here in relation to two studies of the gaze changes and manipulations made during two ordinary food preparation tasks. The main conclusions are that complex action sequences consist of a succession of individual object-related actions, each of which typically involve a turn toward the object (if needed), followed by fixation and finally manipulation monitored by vision. Gaze often moves on to the next object just before manipulation is complete. Task-irrelevant objects are hardly ever fixated, implying that the control of fixation comes principally from top-down instructions from the schema system, not bottom-up salience. Single fixations have identifiable functions (locating, directing, guiding, and checking) related to the action to be taken. Several variants of the basic object-related action scheme are discussed, including single-action events in ball sports involving only one anticipatory gaze shift, continuous production loops in text and music reading, and storage–action alternation in copying tasks such as portrait sketching.
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Bala, B. K., and M. A. Satter. "Modelling of Integrated Energy Systems for Food Production in Bangladesh." Journal of Agricultural Machinery and Bioresources Engineering 3, no. 1 & 2 (December 31, 1996): 27–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.61361/jambe.v3i12.59.
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Previous efforts in energy modelling have been reviewed and critically examined. A model based on system dynamics approach has been formulated for integrated energy use for food production. The model considers the integrated energy use in the form of draft power from cattle, manually operated irrigation water lifting devices and organic manure from cowdung. The model effectively takes into account of feedback loops, non-linearity and time-lag characteristics inherent in the real world system. The model structure of the system consists of basically two components, levels and rates. The model will provide greater insights and better understanding of the system and can be used to investigate the alternative policy actions and trade offs in developing countries.
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Withers, Paul J. A., Kirsty G. Forber, Christopher Lyon, Shane Rothwell, Donnacha G. Doody, Helen P. Jarvie, Julia Martin-Ortega, et al. "Towards resolving the phosphorus chaos created by food systems." Ambio 49, no. 5 (September 21, 2019): 1076–89. http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s13280-019-01255-1.
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Abstract The chaotic distribution and dispersal of phosphorus (P) used in food systems (defined here as disorderly disruptions to the P cycle) is harming our environment beyond acceptable limits. An analysis of P stores and flows across Europe in 2005 showed that high fertiliser P inputs relative to productive outputs was driving low system P efficiency (38 % overall). Regional P imbalance (P surplus) and system P losses were highly correlated to total system P inputs and animal densities, causing unnecessary P accumulation in soils and rivers. Reducing regional P surpluses to zero increased system P efficiency (+ 16 %) and decreased total P losses by 35 %, but required a reduction in system P inputs of ca. 40 %, largely as fertiliser. We discuss transdisciplinary and transformative solutions that tackle the P chaos by collective stakeholder actions across the entire food value chain. Lowering system P demand and better regional governance of P resources appear necessary for more efficient and sustainable food systems.
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Saeed, Sima, and Aliakbar Niknafs. "Artificial Bee Colony-Fuzzy Q Learning for Reinforcement Fuzzy Control (Truck Backer-Upper Control Problem)." International Journal of Uncertainty, Fuzziness and Knowledge-Based Systems 24, no. 01 (February 2016): 123–36. http://dx.doi.org/10.1142/s0218488516500070.
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A new method for reinforcement fuzzy controllers is presented by this article. The method uses Artificial Bee Colony algorithm based on Q-Value to control reinforcement fuzzy system; the algorithm is called Artificial Bee Colony-Fuzzy Q learning (ABC-FQ). In fuzzy inference system, precondition part of rules is generated by prior knowledge, but ABC-FQ algorithm is responsible to achieve the best combination of actions for the consequence part of the rules. In ABC-FQ algorithm, each combination of actions is considered a food source for consequence part of the rules and the fitness level of this food source is determined by Q-Value. ABC-FQ Algorithm selects the best food resource, which is the best combination of actions for fuzzy system, using Q criterion. This algorithm tries to generate the best reinforcement fuzzy system to control the agent. ABC-FQ algorithm is used to solve the problem of Truck Backer-Upper Control, a reinforcement fuzzy control. The results have indicated that this method arrives to a result with higher speed and fewer trials in comparison to previous methods.
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Kraak, Vivica I., and Jessica Aschemann-Witzel. "The Future of Plant-Based Diets: Aligning Healthy Marketplace Choices with Equitable, Resilient, and Sustainable Food Systems." Annual Review of Public Health 45, no. 1 (May 20, 2024): 253–75. http://dx.doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-060722-032021.
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The future of plant-based diets is a complex public health issue inextricably linked to planetary health. Shifting the world's population to consume nutrient-rich, plant-based diets is among the most impactful strategies to transition to sustainable food systems to feed 10 billion people by 2050. This review summarizes how international expert bodies define sustainable diets and food systems and describes types of sustainable dietary patterns. It also explores how the type and proportion of plant- versus animal-source foods and alternative proteins relate to sustainable diets to reduce diet-related morbidity and mortality. Thereafter, we synthesize evidence for current challenges and actions needed to achieve plant-based sustainable dietary patterns using a conceptual framework with principles to promote human health, ecological health, social equity, and economic prosperity. We recommend strategies for governments, businesses, and civil society to encourage marketplace choices that lead to plant-rich sustainable diets within healthy, equitable, and resilient agroecological food systems.
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Góralska-Walczak, Rita, Ewa Rembiałkowska, Klaudia Kopczyńska, Dominika Średnicka-Tober, Hubert Dobrowolski, and Renata Kazimierczak. "Initial Insight into the Environmental Awareness of Employees in the Catering Sector in the City of Rybnik, Silesia." Sustainability 15, no. 4 (February 16, 2023): 3620. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su15043620.
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Sustainable food systems have the potential to protect humans and planet health. Green public procurement (GPP) is a tool for the sustainable transformation. In Poland, the share of GPP is extremely low. As part of the StratKIT project, a survey-based research study was carried out in the city of Rybnik (Silesia Region). The aim of this paper is to diagnose the level of awareness in the field of sustainable development of the project stakeholders, and to propose further sustainable actions related to GPP in Poland. The survey was conducted in social care homes and two primary schools. Statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 24 software. The results show that the level of education has an impact on the assessment of the environment, and that the place of residency interferes with the level of environmental, organic and nutritional knowledge. Correlational analysis showed no statistically significant relationships between age, level of education, place of residence and willingness to introduce action connected to GPP (e.g., organic food). In conclusion, there is a need for an appropriate educational program for the public procurement and catering services (PPCS) sector, teaching about advantages of GPP for the food systems in connection to sustainable agriculture, consumption and climate actions.
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Herforth, Anna, Alexandra L. Bellows, Quinn Marshall, Rebecca McLaren, Ty Beal, Stella Nordhagen, Roseline Remans, Natalia Estrada Carmona, and Jessica Fanzo. "Diagnosing the performance of food systems to increase accountability toward healthy diets and environmental sustainability." PLOS ONE 17, no. 7 (July 29, 2022): e0270712. http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0270712.
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To reorient food systems to ensure they deliver healthy diets that protect against multiple forms of malnutrition and diet-related disease and safeguard the environment, ecosystems, and natural resources, there is a need for better governance and accountability. However, decision-makers are often in the dark on how to navigate their food systems to achieve these multiple outcomes. Even where there is sufficient data to describe various elements, drivers, and outcomes of food systems, there is a lack of tools to assess how food systems are performing. This paper presents a diagnostic methodology for 39 indicators representing food supply, food environments, nutrition outcomes, and environmental outcomes that offer cutoffs to assess performance of national food systems. For each indicator, thresholds are presented for unlikely, potential, or likely challenge areas. This information can be used to generate actions and decisions on where and how to intervene in food systems to improve human and planetary health. A global assessment and two country case studies—Greece and Tanzania—illustrate how the diagnostics could spur decision options available to countries.
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Issac, Jofri, Robert Newell, Colin Dring, Charmaine White, Mohaddese Ghadiri, Stefania Pizzirani, and Lenore Newman. "Integrated Sustainability Planning and Local Food Systems: Examining Areas of and Gaps in Food Systems Integration in Community Sustainability Plans for Municipalities across British Columbia." Sustainability 14, no. 11 (May 31, 2022): 6724. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/su14116724.
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No “one size fits all” approach exists for local sustainability and food systems planning. Such planning must balance needs for being both comprehensive and place-based. The current study explores this tension by examining Integrated Community Sustainability Plans (ICSP) developed by municipalities in British Columbia (BC), Canada. The research examines items and actions related to food systems (focusing on agriculture and food production) in the ICSPs of municipalities in different regions across BC to (1) identify how municipalities “integrate” food systems with other sustainability objectives, (2) elucidate how place and geography influence integrated planning, and (3) reveal gaps in integrated approaches to developing local food systems. The study employs document analysis and thematic coding methodology. The results indicate that common areas of food systems integration in ICSPs include local economy and education. Many plans outline goals for bolstering local food economies and building local food capacity through community participation and engagement. Findings also show how foci and approaches for developing sustainable food systems vary by region. The study elucidates how food systems are integrated within place-based sustainability plans as well as reveals gaps that local governments can address when adopting and implementing integrated sustainability plans for improving food systems.
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Martindale, Wayne. "The potential of food preservation to reduce food waste." Proceedings of the Nutrition Society 76, no. 1 (June 14, 2016): 28–33. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0029665116000604.
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While we state it seems unthinkable to throw away nearly a third of the food we produce, we still continue to overlook that we are all very much part of this problem because we all consume meals. The amount of food wasted clearly has an impact on our view of what we think a sustainable meal is and our research suggests food waste is a universal function that can help us determine the sustainability of diets. Achieving sustainability in food systems depends on the utilisation of both culinary skills and knowledge of how foods make meals. These are overlooked by the current food waste debate that is concerned with communicating the problem with food waste rather than solutions to it. We aim to change this oversight with the research presented here that demonstrates the need to consider the role of food preservation to reduce food waste and the requirement for new marketing terms associated with sustainability actions that can be used to stimulate changes in consumption behaviours. We have chosen frozen food to demonstrate this because our research has shown that the use of frozen foods results in 47 % less household food waste than fresh food categories. This has created a step-change in how we view food consumption and has stimulated consumer movements that act across different products and supply chains to enable the consumption of the sustainable meal.
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Kalibata, Agnes. "Reflections on food systems transformation: an African perspective." Global Social Challenges Journal 1, no. 1 (June 2022): 138–50. http://dx.doi.org/10.1332/oyyl3696.
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The United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS) has thrust food systems transformation onto the main stage of international discourse in 2021. As recognised by UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, food systems are at the heart of delivering on all 17 Sustainable Development Goals for people, planet and prosperity. There has been a growing recognition that the global food systems, as currently constructed, are flawed due to the high levels of food and nutrition insecurity, food losses and waste, rising levels of inequalities, health-related challenges, and high levels of environmental degradation arising from unsustainable production systems. This article provides reflections from my own experience as Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the 2021 Food Systems Summit. It articulates the key drivers behind the conceptual shift towards systems thinking to addressing the world’s food challenges. The article discusses some of the challenges faced by the global food systems and highlights why a paradigm shift from the traditional narrow focus on production and self-sufficiency to a more holistic and integrated approach is urgently required. The article provides an African perspective to the food systems discourse, highlighting some of the priority actions identified by African stakeholders and articulated in the Africa Common Position to the UNFSS, which sets out Africa’s opportunity to turn adversity into opportunity through food systems transformation. The paper outlines some highlights of the Summit, with a view to emphasising the key transformative pathways and crucial next steps that are required at country and regional levels.
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Ponnampalam, Eric N., Andrew J. Sinclair, and Benjamin W. B. Holman. "The Sources, Synthesis and Biological Actions of Omega-3 and Omega-6 Fatty Acids in Red Meat: An Overview." Foods 10, no. 6 (June 11, 2021): 1358. http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/foods10061358.
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The maximisation of available resources for animal production, food security and maintenance of human–animal wellbeing is important for an economically viable, resilient and sustainable future. Pasture and forage diets are common sources of short chain omega-3 (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), while grain-based and feedlot diets are common sources of short chain omega-6 (n-6) PUFA. Animals deposit n-3 and n-6 PUFA as a result of their direct consumption, as feeds or by synthesis of longer chain PUFA from short chain FA precursors in the body via desaturation and elongation processes. Research conducted over the last three decades has determined that the consumption of n-3 PUFA can improve the health and wellbeing of humans through its biological, biochemical, pathological and pharmacological effects. n-6 PUFA also play an important role in human health, but when consumed at high levels, are potentially harmful. Research shows that current consumption of n-6 PUFA by the human population is high due to their meal choices and the supplied food types. If consumption of n-3 PUFA from land- and marine-based foods improves human health, it is likely that these same food types can improve the health and wellbeing of livestock (farm animals) by likewise enhancing the levels of the n-3 PUFA in their circulatory and tissue systems. Modern agricultural systems and advanced technologies have fostered large scale animal and crop production systems. These allow for the utilisation of plant concentrate-based diets to increase the rate of animal growth, often based on economics, and these diets are believed to contribute to unfavourable FA intakes. Knowledge of the risks associated with consuming foods that have greater concentration of n-6 PUFA may lead to health-conscious consumers avoiding or minimising their intake of animal- and plant-based foods. For this reason, there is scope to produce food from plant and animal origins that contain lesser amounts of n-6 PUFA and greater amounts of n-3 PUFA, the outcome of which could improve both animal and human health, wellbeing and resilience to disease.
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Coppola, Adele, and Sara Ianuario. "Sustainability perceptions and actions of Italian agri-food firms." International Journal of Globalisation and Small Business 7, no. 3/4 (2015): 205. http://dx.doi.org/10.1504/ijgsb.2015.072693.
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Russell, Julia, and Margot W. Parkes. "Exploring homelessness and Indigenous food Systems in northern British Columbia." Canadian Food Studies / La Revue canadienne des études sur l'alimentation 5, no. 2 (May 21, 2018): 162–79. http://dx.doi.org/10.15353/cfs-rcea.v5i2.212.
Full textAbstract:
People experiencing homelessness are known to be highly food insecure, but outside of emergency aid little is known about their overall experiences with food, particularly in Canada’s northern communities. This study examined experiences that influenced access to food for people experiencing homelessness in a small city in northern British Columbia. Early findings underscored the importance of the impacts of colonization when seeking to understand food access in this context, and the value of lived experiences (including people with experiences of homelessness) when seeking to understand Indigenous food systems and food sovereignty as part of a re-emerging food system. The research drew on ethnography and case study methodology with modified community mapping to explore the food systems of the participants, who identified as First Nations, Métis or had mixed Indigenous and European ancestry. A focus group and subsequent interviews revealed a dynamic and complex food system. The flexible research design enabled participants to creatively express the food-related issues, challenges and successes most pertinent to their lives. Key food-related themes were social connections, as well as connections to the land and to culture. Participants’ experiences, actions and desires regarding food, health and well-being highlighted Indigenous food sovereignty as an overarching concept which offers an adaptable, holistic approach that can accommodate complexity. It is a valuable direction for future research and practice seeking to improve food security and health.