Globally, enough food is produced to feed the world’s population, yet approximately 3.7 billion people, almost half of the world’s eight billion people, do not have secure access to healthy food, a clean environment or a sufficient wage to live well, writes salute.eu.
This is the alarm raised by the “Lancet-Eat” commission, in a report that also reveals that the global food system contributes 30% to greenhouse gas emissions and is the main driver of violations of planetary boundaries, affecting climate, biodiversity, freshwater consumption and land use.
Published in “Lancet”, the report also estimates that the Planetary Health Diet (PHD), which emphasizes natural plant-based foods and moderate consumption of animal products such as meat and dairy, is associated with a 27% lower risk of premature death.
Global adoption of this dietary pattern could potentially prevent approximately 15 million deaths per year and significantly reduce the risk of chronic diseases such as type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, and neurodegenerative diseases.
It could also feed the world’s population, which is expected to reach 9.6 billion by 2050.