What is a Good Food System?
A healthy food system ensures that everyone has access to a healthy diet and does not deplete natural resources. It promotes sustainable livelihoods. Its ultimate goal is to ensure community food security for all its residents. A good food system must be community-based and locally integrated. These systems can use sustainable technology to extend growing season and include local food sources. Local farms can be sourced for food, which can create local jobs.
Sustainability
A sustainable food system is essential for good health. Sustainability is about pursuing social equity, creating welfare for people, and protecting the integrity of the environment. These factors can be considered holistically and cannot be achieved at the expense of the other two. Sustainability in the food industry can be described as an ongoing process that involves many stakeholders.
The first step to a sustainable food system is to reduce your meat and dairy consumption and to eat more plant-based foods. To achieve this, you might consider adopting a vegan or vegetarian diet. Another important concept to consider when buying food is the “true cost.” The “true price” of food refers not only to the unobserved social and environmental effects of food production, but also to the actual cost of producing it. Unsustainable foods are more expensive in the supermarket, but have a greater impact on the environment and people. It is better to choose sustainable options whenever possible.
Adopting a new conceptual framework is another crucial step in creating a sustainable food system. This framework is based on the idea that the food system is complex, multi-layered, and multi-causal. It emphasizes the multi-scale nature food systems and the importance of information, communication governance, and cultural dynamics. It also highlights the fact that decisions made today can have long-term consequences. It is impossible to predict how a future decision will affect the food system.
Diversity
A healthy food system provides a wide variety of nutritious and healthy foods for a wide range population. This diversity is important for two reasons. It supports human health as well as the health of the planet. In the world of nutrition, diversity is often referred to as a “food basket.” The food system must provide enough calories to feed a growing population. However, it must also produce a wide variety that is both healthy and sustainable for the environment.
In addition to producing diverse foods, a good food system also promotes the diversity of food producers. Supporting the growth of informal food systems is crucial because they are the cheapest source of food for those with low incomes. Therefore, governments should not restrict informal markets for food but should work with food sellers to develop policies that preserve and sustain these systems. Multi-stakeholder strategies can ensure that all parties are heard. This is especially important for women and those from marginalized groups as they play an important role in ensuring diverse diets, agrobiodiversity, and other societal benefits.
Diversifying food systems is a key step in improving direct interactions between food producers and consumers and improving our diets for improved health. Researchers and stakeholders at all levels must work together to create a diverse food system. The SCAR FOOD SSYSTEMS SWG organized three workshops with stakeholders to achieve this goal. At these workshops, the participants discussed and developed concrete recommendations for policymakers.
Education
Education is necessary to tackle the problem of food sustainability. While sustainability often refers to environmental issues, it often neglects the importance food has on people’s welfare, economic opportunities, and social needs. Several U.S. agencies have created resources for educators to help students understand the systemic effects of food production and distribution.
Mass media play an important role in education. It is crucial to create educational content for mass media. This content should be varied, entertaining, and always available. Educational programs should include more advertisements for healthy foods and documentaries about food production. Educational competitions for students are also a great way to make nutrition more appealing to students.
Education programs should also be focused on the relationship between agriculture and cooking. For example, in Oregon, state agriculture has worked to get Oregon-grown food into schools. The state legislature has allocated almost $10.4 million to school gardens and farm-to-school initiatives. New York State has also committed $1 million to 12 farm programs throughout the state. Education should emphasize the benefits of buying local and supporting small-scale farms.