WWF’s Livewell report recommends a balanced way of eating that is sustainable and eco-friendly, says Mark Driscoll
This week at WWF we took the slightly unusual step of releasing some recommendations on diets.
WWF's new report Livewell, on the balance of healthy and sustainable food choices, produces recommendations for dietary changes that are both healthy and sustainable for people and the planet. The report demonstrates how small changes to people's eating choices can improve health, reduce the impact of food consumption on the environment and cut greenhouse gas emissions which affect key ecosystems.
WWF research shows that, in terms of the resources we consume and the waste we produce, we're currently using the equivalent of one-and-a-half planets to support our activities. And if everyone lived like we do in the UK, we would need more than two-and-a-half planets' worth of resources.
This is why addressing consumer behaviour is a vital part of the work we do at WWF. Our report produced a recommended diet that is surprisingly similar to the government's own nutritional guidelines, which were used as a starting point for the research. In other words, it turns out that what's good for people is good for the planet, too.
Livewell outlines simple principles for people to follow, such as: eating more fruit, vegetables and cereals; eating less meat; and eating less highly processed food all of which avoid big diet changes. What it doesn't do is tell people to stop eating any types of food it's more about balancing food choices.
We believe that the argument has to be framed in terms of a debate about sustainable versus unsustainable food choices. The recent report by Foresight, led by Professor Sir John Beddington, the government's chief scientific adviser (see above), highlighted the urgent need to take action across the food chain to make the global food system sustainable. People's food choices are clearly integral to this.
We all have to play our part producers, retailers, government and organisations in promoting sustainable food choices. If we do nothing it won't just cost people their health; it will cost us the planet.
Mark Driscoll is head of sustainable consumption policy and lead for One Planet Food at WWF.
This week at WWF we took the slightly unusual step of releasing some recommendations on diets.
WWF's new report Livewell, on the balance of healthy and sustainable food choices, produces recommendations for dietary changes that are both healthy and sustainable for people and the planet. The report demonstrates how small changes to people's eating choices can improve health, reduce the impact of food consumption on the environment and cut greenhouse gas emissions which affect key ecosystems.
WWF research shows that, in terms of the resources we consume and the waste we produce, we're currently using the equivalent of one-and-a-half planets to support our activities. And if everyone lived like we do in the UK, we would need more than two-and-a-half planets' worth of resources.
This is why addressing consumer behaviour is a vital part of the work we do at WWF. Our report produced a recommended diet that is surprisingly similar to the government's own nutritional guidelines, which were used as a starting point for the research. In other words, it turns out that what's good for people is good for the planet, too.
Livewell outlines simple principles for people to follow, such as: eating more fruit, vegetables and cereals; eating less meat; and eating less highly processed food all of which avoid big diet changes. What it doesn't do is tell people to stop eating any types of food it's more about balancing food choices.
We believe that the argument has to be framed in terms of a debate about sustainable versus unsustainable food choices. The recent report by Foresight, led by Professor Sir John Beddington, the government's chief scientific adviser (see above), highlighted the urgent need to take action across the food chain to make the global food system sustainable. People's food choices are clearly integral to this.
We all have to play our part producers, retailers, government and organisations in promoting sustainable food choices. If we do nothing it won't just cost people their health; it will cost us the planet.
Mark Driscoll is head of sustainable consumption policy and lead for One Planet Food at WWF.
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