Diet-related Greenhouse Gas Emissions Research Articles

Dietary quality and dietary greenhouse gas emissions in the USA: a comparison of the planetary health diet index, healthy eating index-2015, and dietary approaches to stop hypertension

BackgroundThe Planetary Health Diet Index (PHDI) measures adherence to the dietary pattern presented by the EAT-Lancet Commission, which aligns health and sustainability targets. There is a need to understand how PHDI scores correlate with dietary greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and how this differs from the carbon footprints of scores on established dietary recommendations. The objectives of this study were to compare how the PHDI, Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015) and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) relate to (a) dietary GHGE and (b) to examine the influence of PHDI food components on dietary GHGE.MethodsWe used life cycle assessment data from the Database of Food Recall Impacts on the Environment for Nutrition and Dietary Studies to calculate the mean dietary GHGE of 8,128 adult participants in the 2015–2016 and 2017–2018 cycles of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Poisson regression was used to estimate the association of (a) quintiles of diet score and (b) standardized dietary index Z-scores with dietary GHGE for PHDI, HEI-2015, and DASH scores. In secondary analyses, we used Poisson regression to assess the influence of individual PHDI component scores on dietary GHGE.ResultsWe found that higher dietary quality on all three indices was correlated with lower dietary GHGE. The magnitude of the dietary quality-dietary GHGE relationship was larger for PHDI [-0.4, 95% CI (-0.5, -0.3) kg CO2 equivalents per one standard deviation change] and for DASH [-0.5, (-0.4, -0.6) kg CO2-equivalents] than for HEI-2015 [-0.2, (-0.2, -0.3) kg CO2-equivalents]. When examining PHDI component scores, we found that diet-related GHGE were driven largely by red and processed meat intake.ConclusionsImproved dietary quality has the potential to lower the emissions impacts of US diets. Future efforts to promote healthy, sustainable diets could apply the recommendations of the established DASH guidelines as well as the new guidance provided by the PHDI to increase their environmental benefits.

Development of the iOTA Model®; a dietary optimisation tool for assessing nutrient adequacy, environmental impact and acceptability of diets in New Zealand

Based on the World Health Organization’s definition(1), sustainable healthy diets are “dietary patterns that promote all dimensions of an individuals’ health and well-being; have low environmental pressure and impact; are accessible, affordable, safe and equitable; and are culturally acceptable”. Over the past decade, there has been an increasing interest in the environmental sustainability of diets, but little attention has been paid to the nutrient adequacy, consumer acceptability and affordability of such diets. Such knowledge is particularly scarce in New Zealand where approximately 40% of adults and 20% of children may live under severe to moderate food insecurity(2,3). The iOTA Model® is a dietary optimisation tool designed to fill this gap by bringing the various aspects of diet sustainability together and providing evidence-based knowledge on not just the environmental impact of food but also its economic and nutritional sustainability at a national level. The iOTA Model® was constructed using mixed integer linear programming by integrating New Zealand-specific dietary data. This underlying data was obtained from various open-access sources including but not limited to New Zealand’s Food Composition Database, New Zealand Total Diet Study and the nutrient reference values published by the Ministry of Health. Diet-related greenhouse gas emissions were also incorporated into the model based on the data obtained from the scientific literature. Results derived from the preliminary development of the iOTA Model® suggest that meeting nutrient adequacy is possible with minimal dietary pattern changes in New Zealand. It is also evident that adhering to dietary guidelines may provide 26% reduction in dietary greenhouse gas emissions. This is consistent with the findings of previous studies showing that following dietary guidelines alone assists reduction of dietary greenhouse gas emissions. Further features such as digestibility and bioavailability considerations have also been incorporated as part of the iOTA Model®, allowing for a more accurate estimation of nutrient supply. The model will be available as an open-access tool and will allow users to explore various sustainability implications of their diet.

Partial substitutions of animal with plant protein foods in Canadian diets have synergies and trade-offs among nutrition, health and climate outcomes.

Dietary guidelines emphasize the consumption of plant protein foods, but the implications of replacing animal with plant sources on a combination of diet sustainability dimensions are unknown. Using a combination of data from a national nutrition survey, greenhouse gas emissions from dataFIELD and relative risks from the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017, we assess the impact of partially substituting red and processed meat or dairy with plant protein foods in Canadian self-selected diets on nutrition, health and climate outcomes. The substitutions induced minor changes to the percentage of the population below requirements for nutrients of concern, but increased calcium inadequacy by up to 14% when dairy was replaced. Replacing red and processed meat or dairy increased life expectancy by up to 8.7 months or 7.6 months, respectively. Diet-related greenhouse gas emissions decreased by up to 25% for red and processed meat and by up to 5% for dairy replacements. Co-benefits of partially substituting red and processed meat with plant protein foods among nutrition, health and climate outcomes are relevant for reshaping consumer food choices in addressing human and planetary health.

Potential unexpected effects of meat reduction in diet: Could educational attainment influence meat substitution strategies?

Regulation of meat consumption appears to be a relevant public policy to limit diet-related greenhouse gas emissions. However, the real impact of such a policy (e.g., tax) on human health and nutrition remains uncertain, especially for underprivileged individuals. Based on representative data from France, we estimate potential trend differences in the association between meat consumption and nutritional outcomes, such as body mass index (BMI) and unhealthy food intake, according to individual educational attainment. We reveal that among adults with low education levels, reduced meat consumption was significantly associated with a higher BMI, a higher risk of being overweight, and greater intake of ultra-processed foods, sweet drinks, and sugar. By contrast, reduced meat consumption was associated with healthier nutritional status for the most educated individuals. These results are robust to several measurements of socioeconomic status (SES) such as household income, occupation, and financial insecurity perception. In summary, high-SES individuals may be more prone to replace meat with healthy alternatives, whereas low-SES individuals may tend to replace meat with energy-dense foods and beverages, including ultra-processed foods. In terms of the contribution to science and society, this study is the first to show that SES changes the relationship between meat consumption and nutritional outcomes. Our findings call for future research on this topic to provide actionable recommendations to implement a fair and healthy food transition.

Geographic variability in the Chilean dietary carbon footprint: Major food contributors and associated factors

Anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) are behind climate change. In Chile, food system is the second source of GHGE. Changing Chileans dietary patterns is key to reducing such emissions. There is geographic variability in terms of dietary patterns within the country. Here we investigated the dietary GHGE in five different geographical zones, along with the main contributing food groups and socio-demographic variables. Data for 4676 individuals were obtained from the 2010–2011 National Survey of Food Consumption. The carbon footprint value of each food was obtained from studies using life cycle assessment methodology. Median and percentiles of dietary GHGE were calculated, expressed in kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalent per person per day (kgCO2eq/person/d) and compared among zones by Kruskal-Wallis and Dunn's tests. Logistic regression models were fitted to analyzed associations among the variables of interest and quartiles of GHGE. Diet-related GHGE ranged from 3.50 (2.34–5.12) in the North-Central Zone to 4.66 (2.89–6.69) kgCO2eq/person/d in the South zone. Meat accounted for 53–58% of the GHGE in all the zones, followed by dairy products with 12–13%. Higher GHGE were significantly associated with energy intake (kcal/d) in all of the zones, with high socioeconomic level in the North-Central, South and Metropolitan zones, and with urban residence in the South-Central zone. Tailored policies considering geographic variability are warranted to promote healthy and sustainable diets among the Chilean population.

The effect of an app-based dietary intervention on diet-related greenhouse gas emissions – results from a randomized controlled trial

BackgroundDietary change towards a diet low in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) can reduce climate impact and improve individual-level health. However, there is a lack of understanding if diet interventions can achieve low-GHGE diets.MethodsA randomized controlled trial was conducted to assess the effects of an app-based intervention. The intervention was designed to improve dietary intake of people with Type 2 diabetes, and was delivered via an app over 12 weeks, with each week covering one diet-related topic. Dietary intake was assessed at baseline and 3-month follow up by a 95-item food frequency questionnaire and linked to GHGE values. A total of n = 93 participants (n = 46 and n = 47 for the intervention and control group, respectively) were included in the analysis. Changes to GHGEs within and between the groups were analysed with inferential statistics.ResultsThe majority (60%) of participants were male, with a mean age of 63.2 years and body mass index of 30 kg/m2. At baseline, diet-related GHGEs were 4.8 and 4.9 kg CO2-eq/day in the intervention and control group, respectively. At 3-month follow up the corresponding GHGEs were 4.7 and 4.9 kg CO2-eq/day. We found no statistically significant changes to diet-related GHGEs within or between groups, or within food categories, from baseline to 3-month follow up.ConclusionNo evidence was found for the effectiveness of the app-based intervention to generate changes to diet-related GHGEs in a population of people with Type 2 diabetes. However, future interventions that target reducing meat consumption specifically may have the potential to result in a reduction of individual-level diet-related GHGEs.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov, NCT03784612. Registered 24 December 2018. www.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03784612.

Greater adherence to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans is associated with lower diet-related greenhouse gas emissions but higher costs.

Few studies have evaluated the sustainability of popular diet patterns in the US, which limits policy action and impedes consumer efficacy to make sustainable dietary changes. This study filled this gap by evaluating the relationship between diet quality, greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), and diet cost for plant-based, restricted carbohydrate, low grain, low fat, and time restricted diet patterns. Dietary data were retrieved from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2011-2018, n = 8,146) and linked with data on GHGE and food prices from publicly available databases. Diet quality was measured using the Healthy Eating Index-2015. The present study (1) compared the mean diet quality, GHGE, and diet cost between diet patterns, (2) evaluated the association of diet quality to GHGE and diet cost for each diet pattern, and (3) estimated the contribution of food sources to GHGE and diet cost for each diet pattern. Higher diet quality was associated with lower GHGE for the general population and for most diet patterns (p < 0.01) except for the plant-based and time restricted diet patterns (p > 0.05). Higher diet quality was associated with higher cost for the general population and for all dietary patterns (p < 0.01) except the time restricted diet pattern (p > 0.05). Protein foods, mostly beef, accounted for the largest share of GHGE (29-40%) and diet cost (28-47%) for all diet patterns except plant-based. Higher diet quality was associated with lower GHGE but was often accompanied by higher diet cost. These sustainability trade-offs can help inform major policy discussions in the US and shed light on further research needs in the area of food systems transformation.

P02-003-23 The Impact of Substituting Animal With Plant Protein Foods on Diet-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Nutrition, and Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review of Modeling Studies

P02-003-23 The Impact of Substituting Animal With Plant Protein Foods on Diet-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions, Nutrition, and Health Outcomes: A Systematic Review of Modeling Studies

Greenhouse Gas Emission and Water Footprint of the National Diet in Turkey: Results from Turkey Nutrition and Health Survey 2017

The study aimed to assess and characterize the sustainability of the national diet in Turkey and its association with diet quality, dietary requirements, and sociodemographic factors. Dietary intake was assessed using 24 h recalls from the Turkey Nutrition and Health Survey 2017 (TNHS-2017) (n = 12,527). The environmental footprints were assessed with two environmental indicators: greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) and water footprint (WF). Diet quality was assessed using the diet quality index (DQI) and dietary diversity score (DDS). The dietary GHGEs was 3.21 ± 2.07 kg CO2-eq/person/day and the dietary total WF was 2832 ± 1378 L/person/day. The DQI and DDS were 62.26 ± 8.28 and 6.66 ± 1.31, respectively. Total energy intake was significantly higher in the highest GHGEs and total WF tertiles (2238 ± 722 and 2383 ± 701 kcal, respectively) compared to lower GHGEs and total WF tertiles. Individuals with higher diet-related GHGEs and total WF had a higher daily intake of nutrients with the exception of the percentages of energy supplied from carbohydrates, percentages of meeting nutrients according to the recommended dietary allowance (RDA), DQI (excluding DQI total, moderation, and overall balance score), and DDS scores (p &lt; 0.001). GHGEs and total WF value of the national diet in Turkey are lower than the world average. The results would help develop dietary guidelines to encourage sustainable dietary choices.

Associations of daily diet-related greenhouse gas emissions with the incidence and mortality of chronic diseases: a systematic review and meta-analysis of epidemiological studies.

Although the entire process extending from food production to dietary consumption makes a large contribution to total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, little and inconsistent evidence exists on the epidemiological associations of daily diet-related GHG emissions with chronic disease risk or all-cause mortality. This systematic review and meta-analysis explored the observational epidemiological relationship between daily diet-related GHG emissions and health outcomes, including the risk of chronic diseases and all-cause mortality. Original articles published in English until May 2022 were identified by searching PubMed, Ovid-Embase, Web of Science, CINAHL, and Google Scholar. The extracted data were pooled using both fixed-effects and random-effects meta-analyses and presented as hazard and risk ratios (RRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). In total, 7 cohort studies (21 study arms) were included for qualitative synthesis and meta-analysis. The GHG emissions of dietary consumption showed a significant positive association with the risk of chronic disease incidence and mortality in both fixed-effects and random-effects models (fixed: RR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.03 to 1.05; random: RR, 1.04; 95% CI, 1.02 to 1.06). This positive association was robust regardless of how daily diet-related GHG emissions were grouped. More strongly animal- based diets showed higher GHG emissions. However, there were only a few studies on specific chronic diseases, and the subgroup analysis showed insignificant results. There was no evidence of publication bias among the studies (Egger test: p=0.79). A higher GHG-emission diet was found to be associated with a greater risk of all-cause mortality.

The Role of Income and Food Prices in Diet-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions in China: A Path towards a Sustainable Diet.

China has undergone rapid economic growth and diet transition over the past decades, along with environmental challenges. To help to achieve carbon peaking by 2030, this study investigates the time-variable diet-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) from 2000 to 2020 and examines the responses of food demands and diet-related GHGEs to an increase in per capita income and animal-based food prices. Based on the Almost Ideal Demand System model, addressing the problem of the endogeneity of food expenditure, we estimate the demand elasticities for six food groups and analyze their changing trends with time. Then, we perform two projections. One is to project the impacts of income growth on food demands and diet-related GHGEs, taking into consideration dynamic income elasticities as per capita income increases; the other is to project the effects of an increase in prices of different animal-based foods on food demands and diet-related GHGEs. Our results reveal that diet-related agricultural GHGEs show a continued increase in the short term, but the increased effect tends to decline gradually. The dominant driver of increased diet-related GHGEs is the increased consumption of beef, mutton, and pork. However, an increase in prices of beef and mutton; pork; and poultry and eggs can reduce diet-related GHGEs, while a decrease in the prices of aquatic products can also deliver a significant decrease in GHGEs. The results imply that policymakers should take an interest in the environmental impacts of diet transition and promote a more sustainable diet structure.

Greenhouse gas emissions in the food system: Current and alternative dietary scenarios

BACKGROUND: There is a growing interest in diets due to the high contribution to greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE). OBJECTIVE: The study was aimed to estimate the impact on GHGE of replacing the current diet with eight alternative diets, which would be associated with GHGE, to contribute to the discussion of how dietary changes affect the GHGE. METHODS: The latest National Nutrition and Health Survey was utilized to determine the nutrient composition of Turkey’s current diet, with eight dietary scenarios designed to meet the National Dietary Guidelines. RESULTS: The current diet had the highest GHGE with 3254.50 g CO2eq/person/day with beef, lamb, and cheese products accounting for the majority of emissions (18.61%, 17.15%, and 10.89%, respectively). The Model diet had a GHGE of 2994.18 g CO2eq/person/day, whereas vegetarian diets had the lowest (lacto-ovo vegetarian diet with 1944.95 g CO2eq/person/day and vegan diet with 1166.80 g CO2eq/person/day). Low energy efficiencies were associated with high diet-related GHGE levels. CONCLUSION: When evaluating future dietary guidelines for a sustainable diet, our study highlighted the need of integrating both health and environmental aspects. The present study found that dietary changes would significantly contribute to lowering GHGE. These findings will be beneficial in informing Turkey’s nutrition, agriculture, and public policymakers.

How Compatible Are Western European Dietary Patterns to Climate Targets? Accounting for Uncertainty of Life Cycle Assessments by Applying a Probabilistic Approach

The food system plays a crucial role in mitigating climate change. Even if fossil fuel emissions are halted immediately, current trends in global food systems may prevent the achieving of the Paris Agreement’s climate targets. The high degree of variability and uncertainty involved in calculating diet-related greenhouse gas emissions limits the ability to evaluate reduction potentials to remain below a global warming of 1.5 or 2 degrees. This study assessed Western European dietary patterns while accounting for uncertainty and variability. An extensive literature review provided value ranges for climate impacts of animal-based foods to conduct an uncertainty analysis via Monte Carlo simulation. The resulting carbon footprints were assessed against food system-specific greenhouse gas emission thresholds. The range and absolute value of a diet carbon footprint become larger the higher the amount of products with highly varying emission values in the diet. All dietary pattern carbon footprints overshoot the 1.5 degrees threshold. The vegan, vegetarian, and diet with low animal-based food intake were predominantly below the 2 degrees threshold. Omnivorous diets with more animal-based product content trespassed them. Reducing animal-based foods is a powerful strategy to decrease emissions. However, further mitigation strategies are required to achieve climate goals.

Assessing the Health and Environmental Benefits of a New Zealand Diet Optimised for Health and Climate Protection

Population diets have impacts on both human and planetary health. This research aims to optimise a New Zealand (NZ) version of the EAT-Lancet diet and to model the impact of this diet on population health if it was adopted in NZ. The optimisation methods used mathematical equations in Excel to ensure: population diets met the nutritional recommendations; diet-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions did not exceed the NZ GHG boundary; and diet costs did not exceed baseline costs of the average diet. The EAT-Lancet diet was also directly mapped onto the NZ adult nutrition survey food groups, as another estimate of a NZ EAT-Lancet diet. Both diets were modelled using a DIET multi-state life-table model to estimate lifetime impacts on quality adjusted life years (QALYs), ethnic health inequities and health system costs. The optimised diet differed greatly from baseline intake with large amounts of fruits and vegetables, some fish but no beef, lamb, pork or poultry. Modelling nationwide adoption of the NZ EAT-Lancet diets generated large health savings (approximately 1.4 million QALYs), and health system cost savings (around NZD 20 billion). A healthy, climate-friendly, cost-neutral diet is possible for NZ and, if adopted, could provide large health gain, cost savings and reductions in ethnic health inequities.

Plant-Based Dietary Patterns for Human and Planetary Health.

The coronavirus pandemic has acted as a reset on global economies, providing us with the opportunity to build back greener and ensure global warming does not surpass 1.5 °C. It is time for developed nations to commit to red meat reduction targets and shift to plant-based dietary patterns. Transitioning to plant-based diets (PBDs) has the potential to reduce diet-related land use by 76%, diet-related greenhouse gas emissions by 49%, eutrophication by 49%, and green and blue water use by 21% and 14%, respectively, whilst garnering substantial health co-benefits. An extensive body of data from prospective cohort studies and controlled trials supports the implementation of PBDs for obesity and chronic disease prevention. The consumption of diets high in fruits, vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts, fish, and unsaturated vegetable oils, and low in animal products, refined grains, and added sugars are associated with a lower risk of all-cause mortality. Meat appreciation, health concerns, convenience, and expense are prominent barriers to PBDs. Strategic policy action is required to overcome these barriers and promote the implementation of healthy and sustainable PBDs.

Dietary Choices Impact on Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Determinants and Correlates in a Sample of Adults from Eastern Germany

The present study estimated diet-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and land use (LU) in a sample of adults, examined main dietary contributors of GHGE, and evaluated socio demographic, lifestyle, and wellbeing factors as potential determinants of high environmental impact. A cross-sectional design based on data collected from the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC)—Potsdam cohort (2010–2012) was used. Usual diet was assessed using food frequency questionnaires. Diet-related GHGE and LU were calculated using a European-average lifecycle analyses-food-item database (SHARP-ID). Information on potential determinants were collected using self-administered questionnaires. Men (n = 404) and women (n = 401) at an average age of 66.0 ± 8.4 years were included. Dietary-related energy-adjusted GHGE in men was 6.6 ± 0.9 and in women was 7.0 ± 1.1 kg CO2 eq per 2000 kcal. LU in men was 7.8 ± 1.2 and in women was 7.7 ± 1.2 m2/year per 2000 kcal. Food groups contributing to most GHGE included dairy, meat and non-alcoholic beverages. Among women, being single, having a job, being a smoker and having higher BMI were characteristics associated with higher GHGE, whereas for men these included being married, longer sleeping duration and higher BMI. Further studies are warranted to provide insights into population-specific determinants of sustainable dietary choices.

Exploring culturally acceptable, nutritious, affordable and low climatic impact diet for Japanese diets: proof of concept of applying a new modelling approach using data envelopment analysis.

A future sustainable dietary pattern for Japanese is yet undefined. This study aimed to explore more sustainable Japanese diets that are nutritious, affordable and with low greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) and particular emphasis on cultural acceptability. A newly developed data envelopment analysis (DEA) diet model was applied to 4-d dietary record data among 184 healthy Japanese men and 185 women volunteers aged 21-69 years. Alternative diets were calculated as the linear combinations of observed diets. Firstly, for each individual, four modelled diets were calculated that maximised cultural acceptability (i.e. minimise dietary change from observed diet), maximised nutritional quality assessed by the Nutrient-Rich Food Index (NRF), minimised monetary diet costs or minimised diet-related GHGE. The final modelled diet combined all four indicators. In the first four models, the largest improvement was obtained for each targeted indicator separately, while relatively small improvements or unwanted changes were observed for other indicator. When all indicators were aimed to optimise, the NRF score and diet-related GHGE were improved by 8-13 % with the lower monetary cost than observed diets, although the percentage improvement was a bit smaller than the separate models. The final modelled diets demanded increased intakes for whole grains, fruits, milk/cream/yogurt, legumes/nuts, and decreased intakes for red and processed meat, sugar/confectioneries, alcoholic and sweetened beverages, and seasonings in both sexes. In conclusion, more sustainable dietary patterns considering several indicators are possible for Japanese, while total improvement is moderate due to trade-offs between indicators and methodological limitation of DEA diet model.

Co-benefits from sustainable dietary shifts for population and environmental health: an assessment from a large European cohort study

SummaryBackgroundUnhealthy diets, the rise of non-communicable diseases, and the declining health of the planet are highly intertwined, where food production and consumption are major drivers of increases in greenhouse gas emissions, substantial land use, and adverse health such as cancer and mortality. To assess the potential co-benefits from shifting to more sustainable diets, we aimed to investigate the associations of dietary greenhouse gas emissions and land use with all-cause and cause-specific mortality and cancer incidence rates.MethodsUsing data from 443 991 participants in the European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition (EPIC) study, a multicentre prospective cohort, we estimated associations between dietary contributions to greenhouse gas emissions and land use and all-cause and cause-specific mortality and incident cancers using Cox proportional hazards regression models. The main exposures were modelled as quartiles. Co-benefits, encompassing the potential effects of alternative diets on all-cause mortality and cancer and potential reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and land use, were estimated with counterfactual attributable fraction intervention models, simulating potential effects of dietary shifts based on the EAT–Lancet reference diet.FindingsIn the pooled analysis, there was an association between levels of dietary greenhouse gas emissions and all-cause mortality (adjusted hazard ratio [HR] 1·13 [95% CI 1·10–1·16]) and between land use and all-cause mortality (1·18 [1·15–1·21]) when comparing the fourth quartile to the first quartile. Similar associations were observed for cause-specific mortality. Associations were also observed between all-cause cancer incidence rates and greenhouse gas emissions, when comparing the fourth quartile to the first quartile (adjusted HR 1·11 [95% CI 1·09–1·14]) and between all-cause cancer incidence rates and land use (1·13 [1·10–1·15]); however, estimates differed by cancer type. Through counterfactual attributable fraction modelling of shifts in levels of adherence to the EAT–Lancet diet, we estimated that up to 19–63% of deaths and up to 10–39% of cancers could be prevented, in a 20-year risk period, by different levels of adherence to the EAT–Lancet reference diet. Additionally, switching from lower adherence to the EAT–Lancet reference diet to higher adherence could potentially reduce food-associated greenhouse gas emissions up to 50% and land use up to 62%.InterpretationOur results indicate that shifts towards universally sustainable diets could lead to co-benefits, such as minimising diet-related greenhouse gas emissions and land use, reducing the environmental footprint, aiding in climate change mitigation, and improving population health.FundingEuropean Commission (DG-SANCO), the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), MRC Early Career Fellowship (MR/M501669/1).

Diet-Related Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Brazilian State Capital Cities

This article aims to investigate diet-related greenhouse gas emissions in Brazil concerning residents of all state capital cities, as well as examining whether the taxes for São Paulo State currently levied on food products are consistent with their social carbon costs. After sorting the individuals into groups according to income and city of residence, we estimated the number of emissions linked to the diets of each group integrating emission data with consumer expenditure survey data. Our results show that beef and dairy products are the most carbon-intensive foods, while rice is the biggest emitter among plant-based foods. Diets of low-income individuals emit less, while the diets of individuals living in Northern states, in the countryside or in small towns emit significantly more. Our findings also show that the existing food taxes levied in São Paulo State are too low for some carbon-intensive foods and too high for less carbon-intensive foods, discouraging the consumption of eco-friendly foods and boosting the consumption of foods with higher carbon footprints. We conclude that a revision of Brazil’s food taxation considering carbon intensity would be highly recommended, but this revision should also consider the impact of new taxes on peoples’ nutrition and health.

Secular trends in diet-related greenhouse gas emission estimates since 2000 - a shift towards sustainable diets in Sweden.

This study examines secular changes in diet-related greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) in younger and older Swedish adults, since the turn of this century. Two cross-sectional health examination surveys were conducted in 2001-2004 (T1) and 2014-2018 (T2). At both times, an eighty-six-item FFQ was embedded in the survey. From the food frequencies and age-standardised portion sizes, GHGE estimates (kg CO2e/year) were calculated. GHGE was modelled as a function of time period and covariates, for five distinct age groups. The municipality of Gothenburg, in western Sweden. Women and men aged 25-34, 35-44, 45-54, 55-64 and 65-75 years were randomly selected from the population registry and recruited for examinations. After exclusion of participants with incomplete dietary data, the analytic sample consisted of 2569 individuals at T1 and 2119 at T2. Lower dietary GHGE scores were observed at T2 compared with T1, in each age group, adjusting for sex, BMI and education. The largest differences in GHGE were observed in the youngest age group (approximately 30 % reduction). Decreasing trends in GHGE from animal-based foods were observed at all ages and were accompanied by smaller increases from plant-based sources in younger groups only. At all ages, GHGE from discretionary foods decreased, and prevalence of overweight remained stable. Optimal dietary trends should support both human health and planetary health. Our results suggest that Swedish adults have moved in this direction, e.g. through less intake of red meat products and stable weight status.