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

Bundled measures for China’s food system transformation reveal social and environmental co-benefits

Xiaoxi Wang; Hao Cai; Jiaqi Xuan; Ruiying Du; Bin Lin; Benjamin Leon Bodirsky; Miodrag Stevanović; Quitterie Collignon; Changzheng Yuan; Lu Yu; Michael Crawford; Felicitas Beier; Meng Xu; Hui Chen; Marco Springmann; Debbora Leip; David M. Chen; Florian Humpenöder; Patrick von Jeetze; Shenggen Fan; Bjoern Soergel; Jan Philipp Dietrich; Christoph Müller; Alexander Popp; Hermann Lotze‐Campen

Nature Food · 2025

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Summary

This modelling study, published in Nature Food, evaluates the potential co-benefits of combining multiple food system interventions in China, rather than applying them in isolation. Using integrated assessment modelling frameworks, the authors likely demonstrate that bundled measures — such as dietary change towards more plant-based foods, reductions in food loss and waste, and improvements in agricultural production efficiency — yield greater environmental and public health gains than any single intervention alone. The paper contributes to the evidence base on food system transformation pathways for a major global food producer and consumer.

UK applicability

The findings are specific to China's food system context, including its scale, dietary patterns, and agricultural structure; however, the methodological approach of evaluating bundled interventions offers transferable insights for UK food system policy, particularly in designing integrated strategies that simultaneously address climate, land use, and public health targets.

Key measures

Greenhouse gas emissions (CO2-equivalent); land use (Mha); dietary health metrics (e.g. diet-related mortality or disease burden); nitrogen pollution; food system resource efficiency indicators

Outcomes reported

The study assessed the combined social and environmental co-benefits of multiple integrated measures applied to China's food system, likely including reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, land use, and improvements in population health outcomes. It examined how bundled interventions — spanning dietary shifts, agricultural efficiency, and food waste reduction — compare with single-measure approaches.

Theme
Farming systems, soils & land use
Subject
Food systems & sustainability policy
Study type
Research
Study design
Modelling study
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
Status
Published
Geography
China
System type
Food supply chain
DOI
10.1038/s43016-024-01100-z
Catalogue ID
NRmo3f02hq-092

Topic tags

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