Reports – Sustainability

HEAL Food Alliance (website)

The Health, Environment, Agriculture, and Labor (HEAL) Food Alliance was born out of the understanding that no single individual, organization, or sector can transform food and farm systems in isolation. HEAL Food Alliance believes that true transformation requires diverse skills, roles, resources, and collective organizing for real and lasting change.

Today, HEAL is a national, multi-sector, multi-racial coalition of 55 member organizations that collectively represent more than 2 million people — including rural and urban farmers, ranchers, fishers, farm and food chain workers, Indigenous groups, scientists, public health advocates, policy experts, community organizers, and activists.

Together, these members are building a powerful movement to transform food and farm systems away from extractive economic models and toward community control, care for the land, thriving local economies, dignified labor, and healthy communities nationwide. In doing so, HEAL advances the sovereignty and well-being of all living beings.

HEAL’s mission is to build collective power to create food and farm systems that are healthy for families, accessible and affordable for all communities, and fair to the working people who grow, distribute, prepare, and serve food — while protecting the air, water, and land on which everyone depends.

HEAL’s vision is that all people and all communities have the right and the means to produce, procure, prepare, share, and eat food that is both nutritionally and culturally appropriate, free from exploitation of themselves or others, and aligned with a harmonious relationship with the rest of the natural world.

HEAL’s 10-Point Platform for Real Food expresses the belief that food is humanity’s most intimate and powerful connection to one another, to culture, and to the earth. To transform the food system is to take a powerful step toward healing bodies, economies, and the environment.

Crafted by HEAL members, the Platform serves as both a call to action and a political compass for transformation. The 10-Point Platform represents the bedrock of HEAL’s principles and the policy goals it actively pursues. It is a roadmap — a shared path toward a future that truly nourishes health, economies, and the environment.

For more details, you can download the whole document on their website.

Economy

1 – Dignity for Food Workers

2 – Opportunity for All Producers

3 – Fair & Competitive Markets

4 – Resilient Regional Economies

Health

5 – Dump the junk

6 – Increase Food Literacy & Transparency

7 – Real Food in Every Hood

Environment

8 – Phase Out Factory Farming

9 – Promote Sustainable Farming, Fishing, & Ranching

10 – Close the Loop on Waste, Runoff, & Energy

updated 2026 January

Responding to urgent calls for fit-for-purpose planetary health curricula: an examination of nutrition and dietetics tertiary education

Barbour L, McCartan J (2025), “Responding to urgent calls for fit-for-purpose planetary health curricula: an examination of nutrition and dietetics tertiary education”. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol. 26 No. 9 pp. 112–130, doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-07-2024-0465

Purpose
Health professionals play a crucial role in addressing the climate crisis and contributing to sustainable development. However, despite urgent calls from experts and health professions students, tertiary education currently lacks fit-for-purpose planetary health curricula. This study aims to provide a comprehensive, Australia-wide examination of planetary health curricula offered within two health professions: nutrition and dietetics.

*Figure 4: Curriculum concepts, as described in relevant learning outcomes of eligible units*

Design/methodology/approach
This mixed-method study involved two phases. Firstly, content analysis of publicly available unit titles and descriptions to determine the frequency and distribution of relevant curricula. Secondly, content and inductive thematic analysis of relevant learning outcomes, guided by Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy to assess the level of cognitive learning and the subject matter being prioritised.

Findings
Examination of 104 degrees offered by 41 Australian universities identified relevant curricula in 71 nutrition degrees (84%) and 18 dietetics degrees (95%). Majority of relevant learning outcomes (n = 137) focus on lower-order cognitive learning, with 11 themes of subject matter identified; planetary health, critiquing the status quo, innovation and disruption, equity, values-based practice and evidence-based practice, (dietary modification, food service in health-care settings, food and nutrition policy, food system drivers and elements of the food supply chain.

Originality/value
This study identified an increase in coverage of planetary health curricula in Australian nutrition and dietetics degrees compared to previous examinations and the need for higher-order learning to adequately equip the future health workforce.

Sustainable food systems education in nutrition and dietetics: an appraisal of the tertiary landscape in multiple countries (2025)

Wegener J, Carlsson L, Barbour L, Everitt T, Pettinger C, Reguant-Closa A, Meyer N, Svette S, Hassan D, Platnar J (2025), “Sustainable food systems education in nutrition and dietetics: an appraisal of the tertiary landscape in multiple countries”. International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol. 26 No. 3 pp. 558–574, doi: https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-09-2023-0449 (Pay Wall)

Purpose
Despite a growing awareness of the gap between professional expectations and competence, there has been no comprehensive appraisal of sustainable food systems (SFS) education within dietetics and nutrition programs to date. Dietitians and nutritionists play important roles in promoting sustainability yet many perceive themselves to be inadequately trained. The purpose of this study was to explore how, and to what degree, SFS education is incorporated into accredited nutrition and dietetics programs in the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada.

**V. Supplementary Figure 3: Word Cloud of Courses Identified with Full SFS Content Integration in the United Kingdom/Ireland, Australia, and Canada (top 150 words)**
*Source: Authors’ own creation/work*

Design/methodology/approach
A content analysis of course descriptions from program websites was conducted between 2021 and 2022. Courses were reviewed, analyzed and evaluated using a novel sustainability metric.

Findings
SFS is integrated into the education environment of some, but not all, dietetics and nutrition programs to varying degrees (no, partial and full). Partial and full integration was present in a small percentage of courses, with a larger percentage in nutrition programs. SFS education was offered more often through a single unit than a dedicated course. Twelve best practice examples of courses dedicated to SFS were identified. In the UK, their focus was nutrition and diet, contrasting food and food systems in Australia and Canada.

Originality/value
These findings provide insight into SFS education for professional societies, instructors and program directors. Through intentional curricular design considerations supported by this study, program leads can take small conscious reorganizational steps to integrate SFS. This study offers a sound methodology to initiate and benchmark further assessment and a novel approach for other professions looking to equip their future workforce through SFS education.

Rikolto (Website)

Rikolto, which means harvest, is an international NGO with more than 50 years’ experience in partnering with farmer organisations and food chain stakeholders across Africa, Asia, Europe, and Latin America.

Their work is structured around three global programmes: our international Rice, Cocoa & Coffee and Good Food 4 Cities programmes.

‍Inclusive business is at their core. They promote long-term business relationships, fulfilling farmers’ and buyers’ needs alike. They ensure the sustainability of our actions through a holistic sustainable food systems approach, facilitating collective action among all food system actors.

Mission:

A sustainable income for farmers and nutritious, affordable food for everyone.

Good Food for Cities: Healthy, sustainable, and nutritious food in Latin American cities

Rikolto collaborates with local food system actors (governments, farmers, food retailers and distributors, citizens and their organisations, thematic experts, financial institutions, civil society organisations) to make urban food environments and food supply chains more conducive to healthy, sustainable, and nutritious diets in 11 cities. With diverse stakeholders, they collaborate and promote full participation (all represented), so that no one is left behind.

Contributed by Christine McCullum-Gomez, PhD, RDN

updated 2025 December

Collaborative co-design for local blue food system transformation: the practicalities and challenges of the UK’s (FoodSEqual) ‘Plymouth Fish Finger’ pilot study (2025, Accepted Manuscript)

Hunt, L., Pettinger, C., Tsikritzi, R., & Wagstaff, C. (2025). Collaborative co-design for local blue food system transformation: The practicalities and challenges of the UK’s (FoodSEqual) “Plymouth Fish Finger” pilot study. Environmental Research: Food Systems. https://doi.org/10.1088/2976-601X/ae1f1c (Open Access, Accepted Manuscript)

Abstract

Purpose: UK food system transformation is urgently needed but blue foods (e.g. fish) have been only minimally part of this discourse. Informed by community action research in a UK southwest coastal city, fish was identified as a food commodity for food system innovation, leading to local collaborative ‘co-design’ of an iconic British food. The ‘Plymouth Fish Finger’ pilot assessed the practicalities and challenges of this social innovation and its provision into the school meal system.

Design: Exploratory creative mixed methods mapped the journey of the Fish Finger as a social innovation. Methods drew on ‘co-production’ approaches, involving Community Food Researchers (CFR), co-design with secondary school students, expert fish/school stakeholder consultations, educational pop-up taste tests in primary schools, processual observations and fieldnote reflections. Descriptive statistics and participatory analyses provided quantitative and qualitative insights respectively.

Findings: Taste testing with schools and communities showed positive sensory and educational attributes. Participatory analyses resulted in five core themes:
i) ‘Supply’ – disrupting traditional supply chains;
ii) ‘Environmental benefits’ – reduced impact of small vessels;
iii) ‘Processing’ – making an appealing product;
iv) ‘Education’ – the value of educational input; and
v) ‘Upscaling and legacy’ – routes to possible future expansion.
An underpinning category was also constructed – ‘Pride and identity meets reality’, which illuminates pride in the product and the imperative of its economic viability.

Originality: This small-scale exploratory pilot study forged relationships between academics, communities, fishing industry stakeholders, schools, and school meal providers. It successfully built the concept of a community-led fish finger social innovation, advocating for collaborative action towards (blue) food system transformation. This paper offers insights and recommendations for research, policy, and practice, which exemplify the complex interplay between factors driving distortions in access to and availability of fish within the local food system

2025 December: When the Accepted Manuscript is finalized this figure will be updated.

updated 2025 December

Mainstreaming agrobiodiversity in planet-friendly school meals for children: a scoping review (2025 Nov)

*Distribution of evidence from the 124 articles on home grown school meals or school garden interventions, or both, with labels showing the number of articles per country.*

Estrada-Carmona, N., Hunter, D., Samrat, S., & Research Consortium for School Health and Nutrition. (2025). Mainstreaming agrobiodiversity in planet-friendly school meals for children: A scoping review. The Lancet Planetary Health, 9(11), 101374. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2542-5196(25)00252-9[1]

The global shift away from healthy, diverse, and sustainable diets threatens children’s health and futures. Although school gardens and home-grown school meals can reconnect children with nutritious, sustainably produced food, these interventions are often implemented separately and with little attention to agrobiodiversity, which is a cornerstone for sustainability and healthy diets.

Via a scoping review of 124 articles from 35 countries, we identified wide-ranging and complementary benefits of these interventions beyond health and education. The benchmark of the species used in these interventions against cultivated, predicted, and listed edible plants shows that agrobiodiversity is underused.

Despite fragmented and incomplete evidence, our research shows that these interventions can jointly drive profound transformation. Realising this potential demands systemic shifts toward holistic, rights-based approaches that overcome surmountable barriers and build objective, sustainable, and resilient food systems delivering planet-friendly school meals.

Contributed by Christine McCullum-Gomez, PhD, RDN

updated 2025 December

Sustainable diets: where from and where to? (2025)

Macheka L, Kanter R, Lawrence M, Dernini S, Naja F, Oenema S. Sustainable diets: where from and where to? Journal of Nutritional Science. 2025;14:e78. doi:10.1017/jns.2025.10049 (Open access)

Abstract

The multilevel dimensions of sustainable diets associating food systems, public health, environmental sustainability, and culture are presented in this paper. It begins by defining sustainable diets as those that are healthful, have low environmental impacts, are affordable, and culturally acceptable.

The discussion includes the history of research on sustainable diets, from initial studies focused on environmental impacts to more recent, comprehensive frameworks that integrate affordability, cultural relevance, and nutritional adequacy as key dimensions of diet sustainability. In addition, the paper highlights recent innovations, such as the Planetary Health Diet of EAT–Lancet and the SHARP model, and the conflicts and optimum trade-offs between sustainability and nutrition, particularly within low- and middle-income countries.

Case descriptions of Mediterranean Diet with a focus on Traditional Lebanese Diet, and African Indigenous Foods demonstrate culturally confined dietary patterns associated with sustainability objectives. These examples show that sustainable diets are not a single set of prescriptions, but a series of multiple pathways that are shaped by local food environments, ecological belts, and sociocultural heritages.

The paper also describes major policy and governance activities necessary to promote sustainable diets. Finally, the paper addresses measurement challenges and advocates for better indicator options to measure sustainable food systems in all their facets and for participatory and context-specific approaches.

The discussion concludes that fairer and culturally diverse inclusion strategies, system change, and political determination are imperative in achieving sustainable diets. Diets able to sustain are posited as agents capable of driving the 2030 agenda, enhancing planetary health, and social integrity.

Contributed by Christine McCullum-Gomez, PhD, RDN

updated 2025 December

Switzerland’s National Pathway for Food Systems Transformation in Support of the 2030 Agenda (2025 July)

In response to the UN Food Systems Summit in 2021, Switzerland developed its first National Pathway for Food Systems Transformation as part of global efforts to advance the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Grounded in Switzerland’s 2030 Sustainable Development Strategy (SDS 2030) and its initial Action Plan, the Pathway outlines national priorities and actions toward more sustainable consumption and production, both domestically and internationally.

Since its adoption, Switzerland has further refined this framework through new strategic documents—including the Agriculture and Food Climate Strategy 2050, Swiss Nutrition Strategy 2025–2032, and the Action Plan against Food Waste, among others.

This updated version of the National Pathway highlights progress made during the first three years and sets out next steps toward a resilient, equitable, and sustainable food system.

By 2030, Switzerland aims to achieve key milestones: moving toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, halting biodiversity loss, and eradicating hunger and all forms of malnutrition—while ensuring that environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability are balanced and integrated.

updated 2025 December

Swiss Nutrition Strategy (2025-2032)

How we design our diet affects not only our health and well-being, but also the environment and other livelihoods. That is why the federal government promotes a balanced and sustainable diet with the Swiss Nutrition Strategy 2025-2032.

A health-promoting lifestyle, which includes, among other things, a balanced diet, normal body weight and sufficient exercise, can reduce the risk of developing non-communicable diseases (NCDs). These are a central challenge for public health and the health system. At the same time, aspects of sustainability are becoming increasingly important, as dietary habits not only affect personal health, but also the environment. Against this background, a national nutrition strategy is needed that focuses on both health promotion and environmental and social sustainability.

Vision

A balanced and sustainable diet is of central importance in all phases of life and life situations. Every person should have the opportunity to eat a balanced and sustainable diet, regardless of education, gender, age, culture, language or socioeconomic status. The Swiss Food Strategy 2025-2032 and the resulting activities are intended to benefit the entire population, taking into account equal opportunities and equal opportunities.

Goals

Swiss Nutrition Strategy 2025-2032 pursues six objectives to promote a balanced and sustainable diet:

Promoting a balanced and healthy diet with a nutrient intake that covers needs
Strengthening the nutritional competence of the population
Strengthening plant-based nutrition
Involvement of the food industry
Strengthening a health-promoting and sustainable nutritional environment
Reduction of food waste

Action plan

In the action plan, the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (BLV) specifies the measures for the implementation of the Swiss food strategy in four fields of action:

Information and education
Framework conditions
Coordination and cooperation
Monitoring and research

The action plan will be published in 2026.

updated 2025 December

Prospective association of the EAT-Lancet reference diet with body weight changes and incidence of overweight and obesity in a French cohort (2025)

Citation: Berthy, F., Toujgani, H., Duquenne, P., Fezeu, L. K., Lairon, D., Pointereau, P., Touvier, M., Hercberg, S., Galan, P., Alles, B., Baudry, J., & Kesse-Guyot, E. (2025). Prospective association of the EAT-Lancet reference diet with body weight changes and incidence of overweight and obesity in a French cohort. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 122(3), 450–459. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajcn/nqaa123

Abstract

Background: Obesity has emerged as a significant public health issue globally. In response to the dual health and environmental challenges posed by dietary patterns, the EAT-Lancet Commission recommended a planetary health diet that promotes well-being.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the association of the EAT-Lancet reference diet with body weight (BW) changes, incidences of overweight [body mass index (BMI) 25 kg/m²], and obesity (BMI 30 kg/m²), in a large French cohort.

Methods: The study analyzed data from 51,711 adults who participated in the French NutriNet-Santé cohort between 2009 and 2023. Exposure was measured by the level of adherence to the EAT-Lancet reference diet, evaluated through the EAT-Lancet Diet Index (ELD-I), categorized into sex-specific quintiles (Qs), and as a continuous variable. The relationship between ELD-I and changes in BW was examined using multivariable linear mixed models. For the incidences of overweight and obesity, multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were employed.

Results: During follow-up (median = 8.7 years), 4,250 and 1,604 persons became overweight and obese, respectively. We observed an inverse association between the level of ELD-I and gain in BW (in kg) [βQ5 time = 0.18; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.20, 0.16; P < 0.0001]. Higher level of ELD-I was associated with lower risks of reaching overweight [hazard ratio (HR) Q5 compared with Q1: 0.60; 95% CI: 0.54, 0.66; P-trend < 0.0001] and obesity status (HR Q5 compared with Q1: 0.54; 95% CI: 0.45, 0.63; P-trend < 0.0001) during follow-up.

Conclusions: This comprehensive prospective observational study revealed that a stronger adherence to the EAT-Lancet reference diet is associated with lower BW and reduced risks of overweight and obesity. Promoting a sustainable plant-based diet seems to be an effective strategy for addressing the global public health challenge of obesity.

updated 2025 November