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Transcript - Episode 63

Is Global Food Security a Solvable Puzzle? (Part 1)

Podcast episode

500 experts, 60 countries, 1 Global Food Security Conference

GFSC

Nature Knows Best? Naturalness in the Ultra-Processed Foods Debate

The idea that more natural food – food which hasn’t been transformed by human and industrial intervention – is best for us is a powerful one. Psychologists have found a strong preference for that which is “natural”, even when people differ in what they understand that term to mean. But naturalness is a muddle – we are often signalled by advertising to see heavily manufactured foods as “natural”; the pioneers of cereal manufacturing were the greatest advocates of “natural” food in the early 20th century; and it’s rare that crops, which have been manipulated by human breeding over millennia, are seen as “unnatural”.If naturalness is a slippery idea, though, it is still undeniably compelling. At the moment, nowhere is the preference for naturalness when it comes to the food we eat more prevalent than in concerns expressed over ultra-processed foods (UPFs). But does the idea that naturalness is inherently best set up a misleading dichotomy between nature and technology that doesn’t serve the interests of a more sustainable and equitable food future? Does a narrow focus on processing itself misplace bigger questions of power and agency on the one hand, and unhelpfully dismiss scientific techniques on the other? We explore these questions in our latest explainer, Nature Knows Best? Naturalness in the Ultra-Processed Foods Debate.https://www.doi.org/10.56661/f76228c7

Deconstructing Weetabix: What my family farm's supply chain taught me about power

In this blog, Jack Thompson traces the supply chain of his family farm’s wheat to UK cereal manufacturer, Weetabix. In mapping every stage, he reveals where power is concentrated in arable farming: seed monopolies, fertiliser companies, machinery companies and grain merchants. He argues that this consolidation of agribusiness is driving not only environmental and social harm, but is a leading reason for the farmer protests in Europe. This article was originally published in Vittles, an online magazine based in the UK and India, publishing new food and culture writing. It was written by TABLE's research and communications officer, Jack Thompson.

Demystifying food systems transformation

Journal articles

This article examines the scholarly literature in English and Spanish to outline a series of insights related to the development and evolution of the term food system transformation. The authors find a rising use of the term in the literature but note a lack of coherent and consistent definition and an underpinning theoretical framework of change. The authors warn against the possible loss of the term’s meaning as it becomes increasingly popular and used without specific intention. The authors seek to provide insights into the complex and overlapping body of literature and offer a unique definition which attempts to fill gaps identified through the review process.

Multi-method evaluation to understand food system interventions

Journal articles

This article uses a mixed methods approach to evaluate food system interventions which aim to raise consumption of nutritious foods. The researchers assess the Marketplace for Nutritious Foods (MNF) project which was implemented by the Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN) in Kenya. The project is used as a case study to open up a broader discussion on the impact of complex food system interventions and the methods used to evaluate these interventions. The author's main call is for an expansion of methods used for similar interventions, methods which build from food systems approaches. They also call for exploration of new methodological approaches from outside traditional economic and nutrition studies

Accounting for diversity of practices in conservation agriculture

Journal articles

This article assesses the diversity of practices being implemented in Walloon, Belgium, which are considered to align with conservation agriculture’s three agronomic pillars (or principles): (i) minimum mechanical soil disturbance, (ii) permanent soil organic cover, and (iii) species diversification (FAO 2023). The authors aimed to determine the diversity of practices in a given area to understand the impacts of these practices and why farmers adopt them. They also sought to guide policy decisions and improve communication within the scientific community and between science and field actors. The authors present a novel classification method to categorise the diversity of CA practices on a regional scale that they present as applicable for comparing and assessing CA in different regions and other agricultural systems such as regenerative farming and organic farming.

The 2024 Europe report of the Lancet Countdown

This report is part of the Lancet Countdown in Europe, which is an on-going effort to assess the health impacts of climate change in Europe to reinvigorate social and political will for urgent climate mitigation and adaptation actions. The initial report, in 2022, tracked 33 indicators across five domains. This report tracks 42 indicators related to the impacts of climate change to human health, the response of European countries and the opportunities to better health and climate action attuned to health issues. It finds that whilst scientific and the corporate sector are increasingly engaging with these issues, the media, the political sector and individuals have low levels of engagement with the interplay between health and climate change in Europe. The report notes that significant political and public support is needed to stimulate further action