Food politics: Who makes our food choices? Marion Nestle at the Nobel Week Dialogue 2016

Summary

The speaker discusses the complex food system, emphasizing the advocacy's role in shaping what we eat. They highlight the irony between the USDA's nutritional advice and its agricultural subsidies, which favor corn and soybeans over fruits and vegetables. The food industry's aggressive marketing, especially of unhealthy processed foods and large portion sizes, complicates individual food choices. The speaker advocates for systemic changes and policies that make healthy choices easier, citing recent soda tax initiatives as a positive step towards social justice and healthier diets.

Takeaways

• 🍽️ The speaker discusses food systems, which encompass science, agriculture, nutrition, public health, and advocacy.
• 🌍 Global public health issues such as food insecurity, obesity, and environmental damage are closely linked to our food choices.
• 🥗 The American dietary guidelines recommend a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and unprocessed foods, while discouraging the consumption of highly processed 'junk foods'.
• 🚫 The food industry's profits often come from the sale of foods that are least recommended by health professionals.
• 🌾 There's a contradiction between the USDA's nutritional advice and its agricultural subsidies, which favor crops like corn and soybeans over fruits and vegetables.
• 📈 The food industry in the U.S. produces a surplus, leading to aggressive marketing and larger portion sizes to increase consumption.
• 📊 Coca-Cola's investment in Africa to promote its products highlights the industry's global marketing strategies and their potential impact on public health.
• 🏗️ The food industry faces challenges due to overproduction and intense competition, which drives the push for increased consumption.
• 🗳️ Advocacy and activism play a crucial role in shaping food policies and influencing corporate practices.
• 🗣️ The speaker emphasizes the importance of individuals voting with their forks and supporting policies that make healthy choices more accessible.

Q & A

What does the speaker mean by 'food systems'?

The speaker refers to 'food systems' as encompassing everything from science to agriculture, nutrition, public health, and advocacy, which are all interconnected aspects that influence what we eat.

What are the three major public health problems related to food systems mentioned in the script?

The three major public health problems related to food systems mentioned are food insecurity, obesity, and the environmental damage caused by our diets, particularly those heavily dependent on meat.

According to the American dietary guidelines from 2015 to 2020, what types of foods are recommended and which are discouraged?

The guidelines recommend consuming fruits, vegetables, and unprocessed meats, while discouraging the consumption of highly processed 'junk foods' that are high in calories, salt, and sugar.

How does the speaker describe the contradiction in the US Department of Agriculture's policies?

The speaker points out a contradiction where the USDA's nutrition policy advises making half of one's plate fruits and vegetables, but its agricultural policy heavily subsidizes corn and soybeans, which are mostly used for animal feed, promoting a diet higher in meat.

What is the issue the food industry faces regarding the amount of food produced in the United States?

The food industry in the United States produces roughly twice as much food as the population needs, leading to aggressive marketing and the development of larger portion sizes to increase consumption.

Why does the speaker emphasize the importance of advocacy in the food system?

The speaker emphasizes advocacy because it can influence food system policies to make the healthy choice the easy choice, which is crucial given the difficulty individuals face in making healthy food choices in the current food environment.

What is the significance of the soda tax initiatives mentioned in the script?

The soda tax initiatives are significant because they represent a victory for the food movement, framing the issue as a social justice matter aimed at improving health and benefiting both people and the planet.

How does the speaker suggest individuals can influence the food system?

The speaker suggests that individuals can influence the food system by voting with their fork, meaning they should make choices that align with their values and promote a healthier food system.

What is the role of portion sizes in the food industry's strategy, according to the speaker?

The speaker indicates that the food industry has increased portion sizes as a strategy to get people to consume more calories and, consequently, more of their products.

What is the speaker's view on the effectiveness of food activists and the food movement?

The speaker views food activists and the food movement as having a significant impact, particularly in influencing policy changes like soda taxes, which are seen as steps towards making healthier choices easier.

Outlines

00:00

🍽️ The Influence of Food Systems on Dietary Choices

The speaker discusses the complexity of food systems, which encompass everything from science and agriculture to nutrition, public health, and advocacy. They emphasize the importance of advocacy in shaping food choices and highlight the global public health issues related to food systems, such as food insecurity, obesity, and environmental damage. The speaker points out the irony in the American dietary guidelines which recommend eating less processed foods, while the food industry profits from the opposite. They also discuss the contradiction in the US Department of Agriculture's policies, which promote a diet high in meat through agricultural subsidies, despite the health guidelines advocating for more fruits and vegetables. The speaker concludes by noting the food industry's aggressive marketing strategies to sell more food, leading to larger portion sizes and increased consumption.

05:03

🌍 The Global Impact of Food Industry Marketing

The second paragraph delves into the global marketing strategies of the food industry, using Coca-Cola as an example. The speaker highlights the billions of dollars spent by Coca-Cola to promote its products worldwide, particularly in Africa between 2010 and 2020. This aggressive marketing leads to contradictory messages about health and nutrition. The speaker argues that individual food choices are difficult in such an environment and suggests that systemic changes are necessary. They discuss the role of advocacy in influencing food policies and the success of soda tax initiatives as a social justice issue. The speaker concludes by emphasizing the importance of voting with one's fork and the need for policies that make healthy choices easy and accessible.

Keywords

💡Food systems

Food systems refer to the complex network of activities, people, and resources involved in getting food from production to consumption. This includes everything from science and agriculture to nutrition, public health, and advocacy. In the video, the speaker emphasizes the importance of understanding food systems to address issues like food insecurity, obesity, and environmental damage. The concept is central to the video's theme as it sets the stage for discussing the broader implications of food choices and policies.

💡Food insecurity

Food insecurity is a situation where people lack consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life. The speaker mentions that undernutrition affects roughly a billion people worldwide, highlighting the global scale of this issue. In the context of the video, food insecurity is one of the significant problems within the food system that needs to be addressed alongside obesity and environmental concerns.

💡Obesity

Obesity is a medical condition involving excess body fat to the extent that it potentially leads to reduced health. The script points out that obesity affects possibly two billion people globally. The speaker connects obesity to the food system, suggesting that the types of foods available and promoted contribute to this public health issue, emphasizing the need for healthier food choices.

💡Environmental damage

Environmental damage in the context of the video refers to the negative impact of food production and consumption on the environment, particularly through practices that contribute to climate change and resource depletion. The speaker notes that diets heavy in meat are a significant contributor to this damage, illustrating the interconnectedness of food choices and sustainability.

💡American dietary guidelines

The American dietary guidelines are evidence-based recommendations for what constitutes a healthy diet. The speaker references these guidelines, which advise consuming more fruits, vegetables, and unprocessed foods while limiting highly processed foods high in calories, salt, and sugar. These guidelines are relevant to the video's theme as they represent the ideal dietary patterns that the speaker argues are often at odds with the food industry's interests.

💡Food industry

The food industry encompasses all businesses involved in the processing, marketing, and distribution of food products. The speaker discusses the industry's role in promoting foods that are not aligned with public health recommendations, such as highly processed foods. The industry's focus on profit often conflicts with the goals of promoting healthier diets, as illustrated by the speaker's mention of companies like Nestle and their reliance on less healthy food products for profits.

💡Agricultural subsidies

Agricultural subsidies are financial aid provided by governments to support the agricultural sector. The speaker points out the discrepancy between the US Department of Agriculture's nutritional advice and its agricultural policies, which heavily subsidize crops like corn and soybeans, often used for animal feed, rather than fruits and vegetables. This policy contributes to a food system that promotes diets higher in meat, which has environmental and health implications.

💡Portion sizes

Portion sizes refer to the quantity of food served or consumed at one time. The speaker notes the significant increase in portion sizes in the US over the past few decades, which has contributed to overconsumption and obesity. The concept is tied to the video's theme as it illustrates how the food industry's marketing strategies and product offerings influence consumer behavior and health.

💡Advocacy

Advocacy in the context of the video refers to the act of supporting or promoting a particular cause, such as healthier food systems. The speaker emphasizes the importance of advocacy in influencing food policies and industry practices to make healthier choices more accessible. Advocacy is presented as a key component in the broader effort to improve public health and environmental outcomes related to food.

💡Social justice

Social justice is the concept of fair and just relations between the individual and society. The speaker mentions soda tax initiatives as an example of social justice issues within the food movement, aiming to improve health outcomes for poorer communities. This concept is integral to the video's message, as it connects the broader food system challenges to the need for equitable policies and practices.

💡Food choice

Food choice refers to the decisions individuals make about what to eat. The speaker discusses the difficulty of making healthy food choices in the current food environment, which is heavily influenced by the food industry's marketing and product offerings. The concept is central to the video's narrative, as it underscores the need for systemic changes to support individuals in making healthier choices.

Highlights

The speaker discusses food systems from a holistic perspective, including science, agriculture, nutrition, public health, and advocacy.

Advocacy is emphasized as a crucial aspect of influencing food choices and systems.

Global public health problems such as food insecurity, obesity, and environmental damage are linked to our food systems.

Undernutrition affects approximately a billion people worldwide, while obesity impacts around two billion.

The American dietary guidelines recommend a diet rich in fruits, vegetables, and unprocessed foods.

The food industry's profits often come from foods that are not recommended by health guidelines.

The US Department of Agriculture's nutrition policy contradicts its agricultural subsidies, promoting a diet high in meat.

The food industry faces challenges due to overproduction and must market aggressively to sell surplus food.

Larger portion sizes have been a strategy by the food industry to increase consumption.

The soft drink industry, exemplified by Coca-Cola, spends billions on advertising to boost sales globally.

Coca-Cola's investment in Africa between 2010 and 2020 to promote its products is highlighted as a significant marketing strategy.

Contradictory messages from the food industry make individual food choices difficult.

The need for advocacy in food systems is discussed as a means to counteract the influence of the food industry.

The success of soda tax initiatives in the United States is presented as a victory for the food movement.

The importance of voting with your fork and having policies that make healthy choices easy is emphasized.

The speaker shares insights from their books on how to improve food system policies for better health and environmental outcomes.

Transcripts

I'm going to talk about the I'm supposed

to answer the question who decides what

we eat and I do this from the standpoint

of somebody who thinks about food

systems and by food systems I mean

everything from science to agriculture

to nutrition and to Public Health and

then also to advocacy and I'm going to

emphasize the advocacy part because I

think it's really important one of the

things that is seems to me important and

thinking about food choice is that the

largest problems public health problems

in the world and food system problems

are related to food and these are food

insecurity obesity and the environmental

damage that is caused the undernutrition

affects roughly a billion people in the

world

obesity is said to affect maybe two

billion people in the world and

environmental damage effects absolutely

everybody and of course much of that

environmental damage comes from our

diets that are heavily dependent on meat

now what we're supposed to eat is really

pretty well defined I'm an American and

these are the American dietary

guidelines from 2015 to 2020 and they

say that what you're supposed to be

eating is fruits vegetables meat poultry

and other kinds of foods relatively

unprocessed and what you're not supposed

to be eating is what we pejoratively

call junk foods highly processed foods

that have a lot of the nutritional value

removed that are very high in calories

salt and sugar now if you the problem

with that is that if you're going to be

dealing with the question of obesity you

want to eat better and not eat the kinds

of foods that are recommended you want

to eat less in general and you want to

move more but the problem is that all of

those

are not particularly good for the food

industry and we have a food industry

that is very large Nestle very large and

makes most of its profits from the foods

the exact same foods that are least

recommended by public health nutrition

people so this brings us to a lot of

irony's in the food system and

difficulties with thinking about these

things and the particular contradiction

that I like talking about is in the

department of the US Department of

Agriculture's nutrition policy it says

make half of your plate fruits and

vegetables sounds good to me

but if you look at the other side of US

Department of Agriculture policy for

agriculture it does exactly the opposite

and from this particular formulation

which was agricultural subsidies from

2008 to 12 I think the amount of federal

subsidies that went to fruits and

vegetables a manner to less than half a

percent when all the rest of it went to

corn soybeans and other kinds of foods

that are mostly fed to animals thereby

promoting a diet that's higher in meat

so the food industry has a big problem

we produce in the United States probably

twice as much food as is actually needed

by the population and this has led the

food industry to emphasize marketing in

a way that it never has before

and to develop methods to get people to

eat more food one of which is to develop

larger portion sizes and if you look at

what's happened to portion sizes in the

u.s. diet over the last 30 to 50 years

they have gotten much much bigger and as

a nutrition educator if I had one thing

that I could teach the world it would

that larger portions have more calories

it's not intuitively obvious trust me on

this one so the food industry has a

terrible problem in in that it's very

very competitive and it has to do

everything it can to sell foods to get

people to eat more of a company's

products or to eat more in general and

one way to do that is to advertise and

the soft drink industry happens to be

particularly transparent about what it's

doing and this particular formulation

talks about the amount of money that

coca-cola is spending to build new

bottling plants and promote coca-cola

all over the world and most of the

figures that you see here are in

billions and the one that strikes me is

particularly poignant is the 17 billion

dollars that coca-cola has said that it

will spend in Africa between 2010 and

2020 in order to promote sales of its

products there these kinds of things

lead to extremely contradictory messages

this is a real sign it's real the and so

in an environment like this individual

food choice is very very difficult for

individuals faced with a food

environment that's as complicated as

this it's really hard to make healthy

food choices and so we need to look at

the environment or as this cartoon says

you need to eat out of another parking

lot and so this brings me to the whole

question of advocacy which is something

that I'm very interested in and advocacy

is the new threat to corporate food as

this Forbes magazine nor this Ford's

article says that its food activists who

are now the brand managers for major

food companies how I

wish this were true it lists as the food

influencers Public Health nutritionists

celebrity or celebrity nutritionists and

food bloggers I did are they talking

about me I wish I had that kind of power

I really did but it is clear that at

least in some places the food movement

is having a big effect in the United

States in the middle of our rather

peculiar recent election there was one

extremely bright ray and that was that

every single local soda tax initiative

that was proposed passed and the soda

taxes are being framed by food the food

movement people as a social justice

issue one that is going to make poor

people healthier and is going to be

better for people and for the planet so

when it comes to food choice it's very

important for individuals to vote with

their fork but it's also extremely

important that we have food system

policies that will make the Healthy

Choice the easy choice and these are the

kinds of things that I discuss in my

books and I'm very very happy to have

the chance to share this with you today

thank you

[Applause]