5823_MD_Francesca_Allievi

BCFN Young Earth Solutions YES!

Double Pyramid - from theory to food label Abstract: Every day people all over the world buy food. What they buy varies according to their cultural background, income and ethical values. But do they actually know if what they buy is good for them? Do they actually know how much their food choices impact on the environment? The scientific community has evidence <zx<zx concerning the effects of dietary habits on both human health and the environment.

However, it is necessary to bring this knowledge where it can actually make a difference: among common people, consumers. What people do every day is buying food and the food they buy is, in most cases, packaged: what consumers handle every day are not scientific articles or journal publications, but simply food packaging. The Double Pyramid developed by the Barilla Centre for Food and Nutrition is an effective and simple tool: it encompasses information on both nutritional values and environmental impact of different food products. The key step is to translate the Double Pyramid into an easy-to-read food label. A range of colors and two arrows would be enough to have the information you need, right where you need it: in your hands, in the moment when you are choosing what to buy.

Author

Francesca Allievi

Double Pyramid â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from theory to food label Food is fundamental to provide nutrients to humans, but its consumption is also linked to about one third of global warming potential when taking all demanded products in the economy into account.

The scientific community has produced many results concerning the environmental impact of certain foodstuffs, as well as their effect on human health. However, there is still a huge gap between the ongoing debate in conferences and journals, and the information that consumers can access daily: how can we reach many people in a quick, easy and cheap way? Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s imagine one way to do this.

Mrs. Veggiefield has been going shopping in the same supermarket since she retired 5 years ago. At least twice a week she goes there to buy supplies for the meals she cooks daily for her family. She tends to buy always the same products, keeping an eye on promotional offers and discounts, trying her best to cook healthy and hearty meals for her beloved ones. Today she is choosing beef steaks.

While looking for the packaging date something new on the plastic wrapper gets her attention: a new label with two pyramids is telling her that the beef she is buying should be eaten in small quantities, and also that it is the most harmful product for the environment. Mrs. Veggiefield stands in the supermarket aisle with the beef steaks in her hand, unsure on what she should do; then she notices that similar labels are on all products. She starts comparing them and, after some thinking, she decides to pick up a package of organic salmon fillet instead: the arrows on that Double Pyramid are lower and she understands this is a better option for both the environment and her familyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s health.

That is what I would like to see happen in supermarkets all over Italy and, why not, Europe.

Dietary habits can support or prevent diseases such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer, this is why it is so important to raise consumer awareness in this sense. Italy is one of the top-5 European consumers of meat (with 90.7 kg/capita in 2009) and the consumption is showing an increasing trend (+1.6 kg/capita between 2004 and 2009). The negative effects of a high consumption of meat are reported in different studies; for example the World Health Organization has investigated the link between nutrition and health, and developed dietary guidelines which rank the intake of meat products (in particular beef and pork) amongst those food products that are recommended to be consumed in low quantities (less than 300 g/week). The production and processing of meat and dairy products is also among the human activities which has the highest impact on the environment: greenhouse gas emissions, soil pollution, and overexploitation of natural resources are some of the consequences of animal production. Despite this, meat continues to be a desirable product and is consumed in quantities that, in the case of Italy, are higher than the average of the EU-15 countries. These are the reasons why it would be very important to start an awareness raising campaign from meat products.

Studies have pointed out that advances in technology alone will not be sufficient to lower the consumption of meat and promote the shift towards a more plant-based diet: a change in behavior and cultural approach will also be necessary. In order to reverse the current trend in food consumption and drive the market towards the consumption of healthier and more environmentally friendly products, consumers should be able to make informed choices easily.

The Double Pyramid developed by the Barilla Centre for Food and Nutrition can act as an effective tool in presenting both nutritional values and environmental impact of food. The key step that needs to be taken is to make this important information available right where it can make a difference and foster the much needed changes in consumption. Most people in Italy (and Europe in general) buy food from supermarkets and that is exactly where the information cited above should be readily available. The example I presented in the beginning shows how this could work in practice: the Double Pyramid should become part of the food labeling, starting from meat products and extending it to all food products.

In practice the appearance of the Double Pyramid should be further simplified, with only a range of colors going from green, at the bottom, and red, on top, on both sides. The captions “Food pyramid” and “Environmental pyramid” could also be inserted for further explanation. Arrows would then be added on the sides of each pyramid, indicating where that particular product can be classified in terms of nutritional values and environmental burden generated. This type of labeling would work very similarly to the European Union energy label which is used for indicating the energy classes of household appliances and cars. Providing this additional label would enable consumers to read without any additional effort simple, comprehensive and very useful information on the food products they intend to buy. In the case of products which are not sold in packages, the Double Pyramid could be displayed in full on sign boards: consumers could read the necessary information from there and do their shopping accordingly. The implementation of the Double Pyramid in standard food labels could be done gradually, starting from the products which have the most severe consequences in terms of health issues and environmental impact. Such an implementation could be carried out first through local initiatives, and then scaled up to the national level. Ideally it could be made compulsory in the whole European Union through a common directive.

People hear about climate change and all sorts of health issues every day, but many of them still do not see the link between these problems and their daily choices. Transforming the Double Pyramid into a food label has the potential to start a virtuous cycle where people think more responsibly, eat better and act better. For themselves, the planet and everyone on it.

Draft of Double Pyramid logo for food labeling

Name Francesca Surname Allievi University University of Turku â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Finland Faculty Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Department of Geography and Geology