Plant-powered Planet: Building a Healthy and Sustainable Food System
Categories: Nutrition, Low Carbon Sustainable Health Systems, Net zero health systems, Action Plans for sustainable low carbon health systems, Guidance document, Global, Europe
Publisher: UK Health Alliance on Climate Change
This evidence-based policy report builds on the environmental and health impacts of food systems to underscore the need for systemic change to create healthier, more sustainable food systems that benefit people and the planet. Calling for systemic change, the report outlines policy interventions to address interlinked challenges of food insecurity, environmental degradation, and health.
The report provides several recommendations for policy development, including driving sustainable agricultural practices, halving food waste, and subsidizing plant-based choices while reducing red meat and dairy consumption by 30% by 2030. It also emphasizes how school meals can be made healthier and more sustianable with plant-based options and the importance of a national food strategy centered on sustainability.
The report also includes key actions for the health sector to make hospital food a beacon of health and sustainability, including phasing out processed meat, promoting plant-based diets, cutting food waste, and equipping health professionals with plant-based nutrition knowledge.
This report published by the UK Health Alliance on Climate Change was created with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, Plant-Based Health Professionals, and the UK Kidney Association.