Championing evidence‐based nutrition science in the next decade

The challenges of defining a healthy and ‘sustainable’ diet

“…For example, UK livestock emissions make a smaller contribution to overall GHGE than elsewhere in Europe, or globally, and animals are farmed to high welfare standards on grassland that also acts a natural ‘carbon sink’ (NFU 2020), land that in some cases ( e.g. Welsh upland‐grazed lamb) has limited potential for other agricultural uses (Buttriss 2020). This is one of many considerations for future research on healthy and sustainable diets and food systems, alongside issues of cost (particularly for lower income groups) and cultural acceptability.…”

Is a vitamin D fortification strategy needed?

“…Low vitamin D status is not a problem peculiar to the UK, concentrations of 25(OH)D below 30 nmol/l are relatively common in Europe and there is a several‐fold higher risk of low vitamin D status among some ethnic minority groups. The first option on the WHO/FAO list is increasing the diversity of foods consumed but this has its challenges because there are very few food sources naturally rich in vitamin D. These are mainly of animal origin, which is highly relevant in the context of the recent calls for a radical transformation of the global food system, with emphasis on increased consumption of plant‐based foods and reductions in animal‐derived foods for many, as part of a more sustainable flexitarian‐type diet (see Buttriss 2020; Steenson & Buttriss 2020).…”