The environmental impact of beef and ultra-processed food consumption in Brazil

OBJECTIVE

This study evaluated the independent and combined environmental impacts of the consumption of beef and ultra-processed foods in Brazil.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study.

SETTING

Brazil.

PARTICIPANTS

We used food purchases data from a national household budget survey conducted between July 2017 and July 2018, representing all Brazilian households. Food purchases were converted into energy, carbon footprints and water footprints. Multiple linear regression models were used to assess the association between quintiles of beef and ultra-processed foods in total energy purchases and the environmental footprints, controlling for sociodemographic variables.

RESULTS

Both beef and ultra-processed foods had a significant linear association with carbon and water footprints (P < 0·01) in crude and adjusted models. In the crude upper quintile of beef purchases, carbon and water footprints were 47·7 % and 30·8 % higher, respectively, compared to the lower quintile. The upper quintile of ultra-processed food purchases showed carbon and water footprints 14·4 % and 22·8 % higher, respectively, than the lower quintile. The greatest reduction in environmental footprints would occur when both beef and ultra-processed food purchases are decreased, resulting in a 21·1 % reduction in carbon footprint and a 20·0 % reduction in water footprint.

CONCLUSIONS

Although the environmental footprints associated with beef consumption are higher, dietary patterns with lower consumption of beef and ultra-processed foods combined showed the greatest reduction in carbon and water footprints in Brazil. The high consumption of beef and ultra-processed foods is harmful to human health, as well as to the environment; thus, their reduction is beneficial to both.

The role of aeroponic container farms in sustainable food systems - The environmental credentials

Sustainable food production and consumption are key to face the current climate and environmental crisis, hence innovation to produce food with lower impacts are taking more attention. Controlled environment agriculture, also known as vertical farming, is seen as one innovative approach to reduce impacts of producing food while also improving food security. Aeroponic is one of such innovations, which environmental impacts have not been well understood yet. Therefore, this study assesses the environmental impacts of aeroponic farm container system in the UK, including a full set of 19 indicators. The results show that energy requirements drive all the impacts, with climate change estimated at 1.52 kg CO₂eq. per 1 kg of microgreens (pea shoots) using 2021 UK grid. Renewable powered systems improve almost all the impacts, with climate change reduced by up to 80 %, making this system competitive with conventional agricultural systems. This study proves that aeroponic farm container could offer lower impact food than equivalent imported to the UK, and that also could improve food security in terms of availability, stability, and access to food. Affordability issues need to be assessed in future work.

Greenhouse gas emissions, water footprint, and ecological footprint of food purchases according to their degree of processing in Brazilian metropolitan areas: a time-series study from 1987 to 2018

BACKGROUND

The consumption of ultra-processed foods has increased worldwide and has been related to the occurrence of obesity and other non-communicable diseases. However, little is known about the environmental effects of ultra-processed foods. We aimed to assess the temporal trends in greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE), water footprint, and ecological footprint of food purchases in Brazilian metropolitan areas, and how these are affected by the amount of food processing.

METHODS

In this time-series study, we used data from five Brazilian Household Budget Surveys (1987-88, 1995-96, 2002-03, 2008-09, 2017-18) to calculate GHGE, water footprint, and ecological footprint per 1000 kcal of food and beverages purchased. Food items were classified into NOVA food groups: unprocessed or minimally processed foods (G1); processed culinary ingredients (G2); processed foods (G3); and ultra-processed foods (G4). We calculated the proportion each NOVA food group contributes to daily kcal per person. Linear regression was performed to evaluate trends of the environmental impacts across the years.

FINDINGS

Between 1987-88 and 2017-18, diet-related GHGE increased by 21% (from 1538·6 g CO₂ equivalent [CO₂e] per 1000 kcal [95% CI 1473·3-1604·0] to 1866·0 g CO₂e per 1000 kcal [1788·0-1944·0]; p_trend<0·0001), diet-related water footprint increased by 22% (from 1447·2 L/1000 kcal [95% CI 1400·7-1493·8] to 1769·1 L/1000 kcal [1714·5-1823·7]; p_trend<0·0001), and diet-related ecological footprint increased by 17% (from 9·69 m²/1000 kcal [95% CI 9·33-10·05] to 11·36 m²/1000 kcal [10·91-11·81]; p_trend<0·0001). We found that the change in the environmental indicators over time varied between NOVA food groups. We did not find evidence of a change in the environmental indicators for G1 foods over time. GHGE from G2 foods decreased by 18% (p_trend<0·0001), whereas GHGE from G4 foods increased by 245% (p_trend<0·0001). The water footprint from G2 foods decreased by 17% (p_trend<0·0001) whereas the water footprint from G4 foods increased by 233% (p_trend<0·0001). The ecological footprint from G2 foods decreased by 13% (p_trend<0·0001), whereas the ecological footprint from G3 foods increased by 49% (p_trend<0·0001) and from G4 foods increased by 183% (p_trend<0·0001). We found no significant change in contribution by any other NOVA food groups to any of the three environmental indicators over the study period.

INTERPRETATION

The environmental effects of the Brazilian diet have increased over the past three decades along with increased effects from ultra-processed foods. This means that dietary patterns in Brazil are becoming potentially more harmful to human and planetary health. Therefore, a shift in the current trend would be needed to enhance sustainable healthy food systems.

FUNDING

Science and Technologies Facilities Council-Global Challenges Research Fund.

The Importance of Citizen Scientists in the Move Towards Sustainable Diets and a Sustainable Food System

To enhance sustainability, the food system requires significant shifts in the production, processing and supply of food. Ideally, a sustainable food system should operate, not only to protect the biosphere, but also to provide nutritious, high-quality food, and to support social values, an equitable economy, and human and animal health. It should also be governed responsibly within a supportive policy environment. Implementing these shifts is a task of immense scale; but citizen participation/engagement has the potential to help make sustainability a reality through distributed learning, dynamic sensing, and knowledge generation. Technological advancements in sensing and data processing have enabled new forms of citizen participation in research. When food system research is embedded within society it can help us to understand which changes towards sustainability work and which do not. Indeed, citizen engagement in food systems research has the potential to help bring citizens on side, supporting the growth of a food culture of resilience and of sustainable practises (including dietary change). This commentary provides examples of how existing research and alternative food production systems and agroecological practises may provide possible frameworks for citizen participation in food system studies. We highlight potential future food and citizen science approaches. Widening citizen participation and encouraging the involvement of other food system actors, including those in local, national and international governance, is essential to capture the full potential of citizen science in enabling transition to a sustainable food system. For the research community citizen science offers engagement and empowerment of wider communities with science; collecting and analysing data; and creating viable solutions to food system and diet issues.

Using Natural Language Processing and Artificial Intelligence to Explore the Nutrition and Sustainability of Recipes and Food

In this paper, we discuss the use of natural language processing and artificial intelligence to analyze nutritional and sustainability aspects of recipes and food. We present the state-of-the-art and some use cases, followed by a discussion of challenges. Our perspective on addressing these is that while they typically have a technical nature, they nevertheless require an interdisciplinary approach combining natural language processing and artificial intelligence with expert domain knowledge to create practical tools and comprehensive analysis for the food domain.

How Does Citizen Science Compare to Online Survey Panels? A Comparison of Food Knowledge and Perceptions Between the Zooniverse, Prolific and Qualtrics UK Panels

With an increasing focus on the uptake of healthy and sustainable diets, a growing body of research has explored consumer perceptions and understanding of the environmental impacts and safety of foods. However, this body of research has used a wide range of methods to recruit participants, which can influence the results obtained. The current research explores the impact of different recruitment methods upon observed estimations of the carbon footprint (gCO2e), energy content (Kcal), food safety and animal using three different online recruitment platforms; Qualtrics (N = 397), Prolific (N = 407), Zooniverse (N~601, based on unique IP addresses). Qualtrics and Prolific participants rated the carbon footprint, energy content, food safety and animal welfare of all foods in the survey. Zooniverse citizens rated the carbon footprint or energy content then food safety or animal welfare of all foods in the survey. Kruskal-Wallis and Chi-square analyses compared the energy content and carbon footprint estimations with validated values, and differences in estimate accuracy and perceptions between recruitment methods. Participants were unable to accurately estimate the carbon footprint and energy content of foods. The carbon footprint of all foods were overestimated, with the exception of beef and lamb which was underestimated. The calorie content of fruits and vegetables are typically overestimated. Perceptions of animal welfare and food safety differed by recruitment method. Zooniverse citizens rated animal welfare standards to be lower for meat products and eggs, compared to Qualtrics and Prolific participants. Overall, Qualtrics participants typically held the highest food risk perceptions, however this varied by food type. The lack of knowledge about the carbon footprint and energy content of foods demonstrates the need for consumer education and communication to enable the move toward healthier and more sustainable diets. Perceptions of food safety and animal welfare demonstrate a baseline from which to develop consumer focused communications and governance. We have shown that different recruitment tools can result in differences in observed perceptions. This highlights the need to carefully consider the recruitment tool being used in research when assessing participant knowledge and perceptions.

Impacts of home cooking methods and appliances on the GHG emissions of food

Food is widely acknowledged as a major contributor to climate change but estimates of food-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions frequently consider supply chain stages only up to the farm gate or regional distribution centres. Here we estimate GHG emissions associated with different cooking methods and appliances in the UK. Data on current cooking practices were collected through a survey with more than 700 respondents. Our results reveal that home cooking accounts for as much as 61% of total emissions associated with specific foods, and that this can be substantially reduced through alternative, readily available cooking practices.

Interacting with Members of the Public to Discuss the Impact of Food Choices on Climate Change-Experiences from Two UK Public Engagement Events

Food systems contribute to up to 37% of global greenhouse gas emissions, and emissions are increasing. Since the emissions vary greatly between different foods, citizens’ choices can make a big difference to climate change. Public engagement events are opportunities to communicate these complex issues: to raise awareness about the impact of citizens’ own food choices on climate change and to generate support for changes in all food system activities, the food environment and food policy. This article summarises findings from our ‘Take a Bite Out of Climate Change’ stand at two UK outreach activities during July 2019. We collected engagement information in three main ways: (1) individuals were invited to complete a qualitative evaluation questionnaire comprising of four questions that gauged the person’s interests, perceptions of food choices and attitudes towards climate change; (2) an online multiple-choice questionnaire asking about eating habits and awareness/concerns; and (3) a token drop voting activity where visitors answered the question: ‘Do you consider greenhouse gases when choosing food?’ Our results indicate whether or not people learnt about the environmental impacts of food (effectiveness), how likely they are to move towards a more climate-friendly diet (behavioural change), and how to gather information more effectively at this type of event.