Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 3 — Observational / field trialPeer-reviewed

Options for keeping the food system within environmental limits

Marco Springmann, Michael Clark, Daniel Mason-D’Croz, Keith Wiebe, Benjamin Leon Bodirsky, Luis Lassaletta, W. de Vries, Sonja Vermeulen, Mario Herrero, Kimberly M. Carlson, Malin Jonell, Max Troell, Fabrice DeClerck, Line Gordon, Rami Zurayk, Peter Scarborough, Mike Rayner, Brent Loken, Jessica Fanzo, H. Charles J. Godfray, David Tilman, Johan Rockström, Walter C. Willett

Nature · 2018

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Summary

This comprehensive systems analysis, published in Nature by a large international consortium, assessed options for restructuring global food systems to remain within planetary environmental boundaries whilst maintaining nutritional adequacy. The work modelled multiple pathways involving changes to agricultural practices, food waste reduction, and dietary shift, suggesting that no single intervention is sufficient and that coordinated transformation across production and consumption is required by mid-century.

UK applicability

The findings are relevant to UK policy on food security, net-zero targets, and agricultural reform post-Brexit; the modelled dietary recommendations and agricultural efficiency improvements align with emerging UK food strategy frameworks, though the global-scale analysis requires contextualisation for temperate, high-income food systems.

Key measures

Greenhouse gas emissions, land use, freshwater use, nitrogen and phosphorus application rates, dietary patterns, food availability and nutritional adequacy across regions and scenarios

Outcomes reported

The study examined pathways to align global food production and consumption with planetary boundaries on climate, land use, freshwater, and nutrient cycling. It modelled dietary and agricultural scenarios required to feed a growing global population within these environmental limits.

Theme
Climate & resilience
Subject
Food security & global nutrition
Study type
Research
Study design
Policy report
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
Global
System type
Food supply chain
DOI
10.1038/s41586-018-0594-0
Catalogue ID
BFmovi2bj3-azld27

Topic tags

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