5766_NHLS_Behtash_Bahador

BCFN Young Earth Solutions YES!

HourFood: It's Time to Eat Well!

Abstract: In Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity (2012), FAO nutrition expert Barbara Burlingame warns that despite the recent successes of agriculture, food systems, and diets, are not sustainableh and a shift toward more sustainable diets would trigger upstream effects on the food production (e.g. diversification), processing chain and food consumption (FAO and Biodiversity International 2012).

While information about sustainable diets is easily accessible in the United States it can be difficult to make sense of it all, with conflicting claims in advertisement and media, and what seems to be a situation of information overload. HourFood is a web-based application available for use on mobile devices that guides choices in the United States about healthy and environmentally sustainable food consumption.

Why "HourFood"? Because the time has come for individuals to re-assume democratic control over the nation's food system and build networks of local communities promoting changes in the Western diet. HourFood application provides individuals with easily accessible nutrition information to direct and transform the model of food consumption in the U.S. with positive outcomes for health and environmental sustainability.

Author

Behtash Bahador Linnea Kennison

HourFood: IT’S TIME TO EAT WELL!

Behtash Bahador Linnea Kennison Bridgewater State University, USA August 8th 2012

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Can one person stop world hunger and save the planet, just by eating well? At the risk of simplifying the most complex issues facing humanity today, we say yes! Of course, one individual’s choices and behaviors cannot possibly provide the ultimate solution for reducing our impact on the environment while securing health and access to food for all, but the collective actions of a network of communities can. The HourFood application provides a resource to direct consumers on healthy and sustainable food choices as well as a social networking tool to promote similar decision making among friends, family and the population as a whole. In the United States, the culture of food consumption is a problem that has reached a critical juncture where the guidelines for healthy and sustainable living continue to be released and are in direct opposition to the diets of the population at large. Still, these recommendations are not tailored for easy use by the public and therefore, no changes are observed in the prevailing consumption patterns.

In Eating Planet 2012, a book from the Barilla Center for Food and Nutrition, the spread of the Western diet with its emphasis on the consumption of meat and foods with empty calories is considered a contributing factor to the dichotomy between the estimated 1.3 billion people who are obese or overweight while 1.1 billion are undernourished in the world (Rubinelli 2012). U.S. Census Bureau statistics show 2009 per capita consumption of meats and dairy products exceeded that of vegetables and fruits combined. Only half those fruits and vegetables were fresh, levels comparable to the consumption of caloric sweeteners such as high fructose corn syrup. HourFood makes nutritional and sustainable food consumption easy, while creating networks of local communities that can change the culture of food consumption in the U.S. HourFood is a web-based application that helps users make quick, easy decisions about which nutritional foods they consume when they are on the go, or when planning meals from any device with internet access. HourFood employs a simple interface with six choices on the home screen; “places”, “calendar”, “Barilla Double Pyramid”, “HourFood profile”, “resources” and “HourFood community”.

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The Barilla Double Pyramid, which includes both the food and environmental pyramids, supplies an easily understandable visual about healthiest choices for the individual and the relative impact on the environment.

Additionally under this tab other easy to understand instructions are available such as suggested daily meal plans. Descriptions of guidelines and visuals are included for clarification. GPS services allows users to easily mark locations, dates, and times where they have purchased their food products and add them to a calendar to store upcoming local food markets, restaurant deals etc. The “HourFood profile” stores personal information and acts as a tracking tool that can log information about how much time and money the user has spent on their food or meal preparations, and the corresponding nutritional values.

Recommendations for personal nutrition needs are found under the resources tab, which directs consumers to accredited sites and tools such as the USDA’s ChooseMyPlate SuperTracker and the Organic Center’s Nutritional Quality Index.

These resources guide timely decisions on which foods to consume, what meals to prepare, and how to maximize nutritional content.

Another function of the application is local community building and networking. The community does notoinly include consumer, rather producers, researchers, nutrition experts, food policy groups, schools, food vendors, markets and any other member of the food chain can utilize HourFood. Each of these components can create profiles under their respective categories i.e. Suzy Q. (Consumer), HomeGrown (Vendor), which can be searched under the places tab, allowing users to locate locally grown foods quickly. The feature of HourFood that drives the formation of local communities and larger networks is easy interfacing with social networking sites such as Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

Using the “HourFood community” feature HourFood profiles, calendars, places, and resources are embedded onto social networks.

As the HourFood community grows, the ability to connect to other communities fosters networks of consumers who are also changing the culture of food consumption through sponsorship, coupon and rewards programs, and local events. Communities have and will continue to push for greater accountability

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and action from local governments and schools to implement formal education on sustainable food consumption. The majority of people in the U.S. can access the web through a number of mediums but for those who cannot, informal media education is important. Communities connected through HourFood can create and push their own trans-media campaigns to reach other audiences.

Advancements in the application creation field have made developing and supporting a simple, user-friendly interface easier than ever. Because this idea employs a web-based tool, there will be greater availability for mobile users; however, this does not restrict the use of a native app which can also be created using the same model. Sponsorship and funding can be secured to ensure quality functioning where communities sprout; this could include support from municipal or state sources. The feasibility of changing food consumption will be made possible though the easily understandable and accessible guidelines.

Sustainable eating habits can be made simple by HourFood, spreading much needed directives to people and aiming to create a model for teaching and community networking, that promotes sustainable diet choices and can be used in other places of the world. For the poorest areas in the world, traditional mediums can still be utilized in trans-media campaigns within this model.

HourFood can change the pattern of food consumption in the U.S., and thereby reduce our impact on the environment while helping to secure health and access to food for all, locally and globally.

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References:

Burlingame, B., & Dernini, S. (Eds.).(2012). Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity (7). Viale delle Terme di Caracalla, Rome, Italy : FAO. Rubinelli, L. (Ed.).(2012). Eating Planet: Nutrition today: A challenge for mankind and for the planet. Citta di Castello, Italy: Genesi Gruppo Editoriale.

U.S. Department of Commerce. (2012) . Health & nutrition: Food consumption and nutrition (141,142). Washington, DC: United States Census Bureau.

Retrieved from http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/cats/health_nutrition/food_consu mption_and_nutrition.html