Review of Healthy and Sustainable Diet vs. National Diet Analysis

This report examines the concept of a healthy and sustainable diet, emphasizing the shift away from processed foods and the environmental impact of food production. It contrasts this with the current Australian national diet, analyzing the consumption of various food groups, including animal versus plant-based foods, and discretionary food choices. The analysis delves into the gaps between recommended and actual dietary habits, identifying issues within dietary behaviors, the food supply chain, and broader public policy. The report then outlines the formulation of a national food policy, proposing policy actions to promote healthy and sustainable food systems, and discusses the potential benefits of these actions, focusing on improved public health and reduced environmental impact. The report highlights the importance of government and health sector involvement in implementing policies to improve public food habits, aiming for a more sustainable and transparent food system.

Assignment Name Student ID
Assignment Name
Student ID
21 Aug 2019
1

Assignment Name Student ID
Review of a healthy and sustainable diet and comparison with the current national diet
A heathy and sustainable diet
In the present lifestyle, most of the people are dependent on processed food, and fast food
which leads to diet-related chronic disease and obesity. The food industry produces plentiful
and inexpensive foods that are mostly unhealthy and not sustainable for the environment. As
suggested by Monteiro, Cannon, Moubarac et al (1), this is because the food industry is using
a high quantity of fertilizers and pesticides which are considered as non-renewable fossil
fuels, for maximizing the production rate. Consumption of fertilizers and pesticides based
fruits and vegetables will have a negative impact on the respiratory, neurological and
reproductive systems of human beings. According to Burlingame and Dernini (2),
considering a healthy perspective, it is assumed that sustainable eating is its major challenge
worldwide. With the increasing concern about climate change and global food security, most
of the population has shifted the focus on a healthy and environmentally sustainable. It is
inferred that an unsustainable diet results in greenhouse gas emissions, especially from the
intake of meat and dairy products. A healthy diet helps to stay in an optimal state of health
and protects against any form of malnutrition (Table 1). It minimizes the risk of non-
communicable diseases like diabetes, heart disease and certain forms of cancer. Furthermore,
it maximizes the immune system and thereby helps to protect against any kind of infection.
Thus, the government should focus on providing a healthy and diverse diet by producing it
through sustainable systems. Also, suggested by Garnett, Mathewson, Angelides and
Borthwick (3 pp520) healthy diet for an individual varies according to gender, age, physical
activity, body weight, and lifestyle. Protein is needed in a good amount and quality which is
dependent on the mix of amino acids. Carbohydrates are a necessary part of a healthy dietary
plan. In particular, the unrefined complex carbohydrates present in food is found to be rich in
vitamins, fibre, and minerals. In this context, an individual should consume fruits, vegetables,
2

Assignment Name Student ID
and whole grains to get a minimum amount of 25 grams of dietary fibre each day. Free sugars
are the form of simple carbohydrates which should provide a maximum of 10% of the total
calories. Furthermore, it is advisable to reduce the intake of sugar below to 5% of the total
calorie intake fun and healthy body weight and health benefits. Fats should be consumed in
moderate amount, which is within 30% of the total caloric intake. It should be consumed
basically in an unsaturated form which is found in avocado, nuts, sunflower oil, fish, grape-
seed oil and olive oil. However, the saturated fats found in cheese, fatty meat, coconut oil,
palm oil, and butter should be consumed below 10% of the total caloric intake per day. In
addition to this, it is advisable to illuminate the partially hydrogenated vegetable oil or the
industrial trans-fat from the diet plan. In a healthy diet, there should be at most 5 grams are in
one teaspoon of salt consumption per day, which should be in ionized form. On the contrary,
the World Health Organization (WHO), prohibits the extra usage of red meat it increases the
threat of certain cancers.
Table 1: A healthy diet recommended by World Health Organisation (WHO) is provided
below.
Meal Food
Breakfast 2 to 3 egg white, whole grain bread, fruits or oats or
sprouts, and dried nuts
Lunch Rice, chicken, pulses, beans, salad
Dinner Nuts, soup, vegetables and chicken or fish
In order to make the human being as well as the planet healthy, it is needed to produce and
consume food products in a sustainable way. The production of fruits and vegetables should
be conducted in a natural way, instead of using unnecessary pesticides and fertilizers.
Pesticides and fertilizers not only affect human health but also deteriorate quality and
underground water. In addition to this, the packaging used for food distribution and
3

Assignment Name Student ID
consumption, especially plastic should be avoided to minimize the adverse effect on the
environmental sustainability of individual health. This would be the minimum use of
wastewater for irrigation in the form of manual or fertilizer, for reducing food contamination.
Furthermore, people should minimize the consumption of antimicrobial drugs present in
food-producing animals as it leads to the global threat of antimicrobial resistance. This has
been explained in the report by Macdiarmid (4 pp.17).
The current national diet with a focus on:
a. Consumption of 5 food group foods
It is evident that, the Australian diet plan comprises of five basic food groups. This includes
mainly vegetables and legumes, fruits, lean meats, fish, poultry, eggs, legumes, seeds, nuts,
and tofu (Figure 1). Also, food elements such as cereals, particularly whole grain and high
fibre, and milk, cheese, yogurt as well as other low-fat alternatives were also included within
this classification (3-4). The foods are grouped on the basis of a similar quantity of basic
nutrients. For instance, fruits are the key provider of vitamin C, on the contrary, milk, cheese,
and yogurt are the source of protein and calcium. In order to get all types of minerals and
nutrients from the Australian five group diet chart, it is necessary to include all types of food
from each of the groups.
4

Assignment Name Student ID
Figure 1: Five group of foods according to the Australian Food Policy (3, 4)
b. Animal versus plant based foods
Foods mentioned in the food groups are regarded as the core items in the diet plan. The diet
of Australians is equally based on animal and plant foods. Animal based food comprise of
lean meat, fish, eggs, honey, cheese, and milk, while plant based food consists of fruits,
vegetables, wheat, rice, nuts, legumes, and celery. The Australians eat these food items
individually or in combination, as a form of snacks, meals, and drinks. For example, a
commonly preferred healthy food in Australia is a sandwich which comprises of bread, salad,
and cheese, or chicken rice consisting of vegetables, chicken, and rice (4). The Australian
dietary guidelines are more focused on food and food groups, rather than emphasizing on
nutrients.
c. Discretionary foods
Around one-third Australian population is focussed on discretionary diet like ice-cream,
chips, biscuits, and alcohol. According to a recent research report by the George Institute for
5

Assignment Name Student ID
Global Health, it is found that Australian food habits mainly composed of highly or ultra-
processed foods, and junk foods. Only one-third of their dietary plan is composed of healthy
food habits. It has been evident that Australia follows unsustainable food production practices
which lead to degradation of 5.7 million hectares of land do to salinity, acidification and
erosion. Overall, the current national dietary plan aims to include all the essential nutrients,
however, the actual practice of healthy and balanced diet can only be maintained based on
individual practices (2).
6

Assignment Name Student ID
Analysis of cause of gap between the current diet and a healthy and sustainable diet
The food system cause existing in the policy problem is based on three different orders:
Dietary behaviour – It has been identified that Australians are mostly dependent on packaged
food which is mostly ultra-processed. According to the report on sustainability and
biodiversity report presented by Burlingame and Dernini in the scientific symposium, the
impact of current lifestyle on the routine dietary plan of individual can be found to be highly
diversified according to income group, nature of occupation, and rural or urban localization
(5). In this report, it is concluded by the authors (5 pp12) that more than half of the Australian
population is fully dependent on junk or discretionary food products, while the remaining one
third of the population believes to have a healthy diet (5). In another report by Ghoshal, it is
argued by the author that these fat food items consist of bread, confectionery, and dairy
products, canned food, sauces, and oil (p. 48) (6). Based on research findings described in the
report by Luckose, Mamatha, Chauhan (7), 53% of the Australian packaged food such as
chocolate, biscuits come out sweetened drinks, meat pies, salty snacks, and butter are
nutritionally poor. Despite Australian dietary guidelines emphasize core foods like cereals,
fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fish, lean meat and dairy products, but these core foods only
comprise 47% in actual dietary habits (6-7).
Components of the food supply chain –Lack of food production monitoring during
production, procession, distribution, retail, and marketing to check the proportion meeting at
the reformulation target of sugar, sodium and saturated fat, makes it unhealthy and below the
standard Health Star Rating (HSR). Based on this study (8), it is found that only one-third of
the total food products available in the Australian market is above the standard HSR, thus
indicating the basic level of healthfulness. In this busy lifestyle, people are provided with a
variety of junk foods that are mostly ultra-processed. However, Pulker, Trapp, Scott, Pollard
(9) have mentioned that 98% of the packed food available is convenience food which
7

Assignment Name Student ID
includes canned meat, frozen meals, ready to eat meals. In other words, though it is a sad
reality that these junk foods have become the essential food habits in daily life, the real factor
is that it is cheap and readily available.
Broader public policy activities – The food habits practiced in Australia is considered
unsustainable to the environment as well, which is elucidated in the report by Ritchie, Reay,
Higgins (10). The Australians prefer to drink bottled water and eat packed food which in turn
creates pollution through plastic disposal. The consumption of lean meat mentioned in the
dietary guidelines is also considered as unsustainable food products because the production of
every one kg of beef releases 27 kg of carbon dioxide into the environment. In this context, it
is found that the Australian men eat red meat 20% more than recommended in the guidelines
(8 - 10). Furthermore, food transportation and food production also contribute to 16% of the
total GHG emissions in Australia. Thus, these factors negatively affect the climate and
increase the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere as discussed in11, which is infact a
contradictory to the conclusion presented7.
Formulation of a national food policy consisting of a coherent set of policy actions for
promoting healthy and sustainable Food systems
Identify the type of policy to tackle the food system causes of the policy problem
Nutrition like fibres, minerals and vitamins plays an important role in retaining a sustainable
and healthy lifestyle (2). However, the Australian population is found to be more diverted
towards unhealthy eating habits including high fat, salt, sugar, and refined carbohydrates.
Such form of unhealthy diet plans can lead to obesity, type 2 diabetes, high blood cholesterol,
certain forms of cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure among the people in Australia
(11). It is, therefore, the responsibility of the government and health sector to implement
policies and improve the food habits of the public (3). The whole of government policy
should be imposed to tackle the above-mentioned issues, which is being detaled in the
8

Assignment Name Student ID
scientific paper by Burlingame and Dermini (5). This policy comprises a number of
programs, as these are of high importance for the customers to determine the correct food
choices. The primary of objective of this revised policy is to promote actions that support
healthy and sustainable diet, minimise hunger of people, increase transparency, develop food
accessibility, improve public health, and minimise the environmental impact through food
production and farming. The previous policy lacks a number of actions that are needed to
maintain a healthy diet, especially for children and poor people, which is being explicitly
argued in the report by Lee, Kane, Lewis (12 pp88).
Review the evidence of the risks and benefits for the policy’s actions
With these policy actions, the public of Australia will be benefited at different levels. For
instance, diet regulatory implied for employees at the workplace will not only keep the
employees healthy but also will save the company's future expenses on health insurance for
employee’s chronic disease (13). Similarly, the healthcare training provided to teachers is
also expected to pass valuable knowledge to students in each academic year. In this way, the
future generation will become aware of what is healthy and unhealthy for their body and
environment. Social health workers discussing health and diet-related issues with parents will
improve the food buying choice of the entire family. Furthermore, the food program
introduced in school will also motivate poor people and low-income groups to send their
children to school (14). These children will not only receive a healthy diet but will also gain
their education. Overall, it can be argued that the positive health consequences can be
achieved by initiating work from grass-root level, for which school children are the best
targets. On the contrary, there exist certain risks with the new food policy. The new policy
requires a heavy investment of finance towards providing free food facility as a part of the
food program in schools. This policy also aims to maximize the salary of low-income people
and also reduce the cost of healthy food. These actions are also an additional expense on the
9

Assignment Name Student ID
part of the government (15). There also exists a risk of corruption of policy funds provided at
different levels, which are actually intended for the development of public and environment.
Organise your identified policy actions in accordance with the three orders of food system
change
It is highly important that government must take necessary actions on the basis of three order
of food system change.
Dietary behaviour – In this context, the specified or responsible bodies should take control of
the supply and demand, by providing nutritious food to needy customers (5). In conjunction
with this, the government should design food assistance programs for improving the diet of
poor people and providing them with healthy food options. Further, as discussed in the report
by Tirdo, policies measures should be designed particularly for women, infants, and children
of the low-income groups to provide supplement food like infant cereal, whole milk, eggs,
dry beans, cheese, fruit juice, and infant formula. Income assistance program will also
encourage people to spend more on nutritious food (16). The food choices of customers are
directly dependent on the price of the items. Thus, a government based federal policy to
minimize the price of food items belonging to the ‘five food groups’ will motivate people to
purchase and consume healthy foods (9). Government and Health sectors sponsored
nutritional research information for a healthy diet should be provided to the public in the
form of educational programs (17, 18).
Components of the food supply chain – Fejzic and Barker have a valid point in their report,
which suggests that the food pharmacies identity must be created at the national and regional
levels by the policymakers (19). In this food policy making process, the government intends
to resolve the problem and improve the health of citizens. Food supply chain can be further
monitored with modern technologies like Internet of Things (IoT), so that the food safety
cannot be compromised.
10

Assignment Name Student ID
Broader public policy activities – Apart from considering the public health, the policy also
includes action for protection of environment from harmful effect of farming and food
production. Farmer will be encouraged and given financial assistance to conduct farming
without the use of fertilizer and pesticides. They should be taught to use Environmental
Friendly Fertilizers (EFFs) as well as animal waste manure. In addition to this, farmers
should be taught and encouraged to use natural or herbal pesticides like neem spray and use
organic pest control methods (18, 20). These practices are will not damage the soil and
underground water quality. The policy will also take action to stop the production of
Genetically Modified (GM) food as this is the prime reason behind allergic reactions, cancer,
and reduce antibacterial resistance.
Explain who is responsible for formulating, implementing and evaluating your policy and
each of its actions
In addition to this, Bocskor, Hunyadi, Vince have argued that the government should
strengthen food safety and quality governing policies (17). These food items should properly
label the ingredients and nutritional components on their packaging (2). This government
food policy will also encourage the public and private companies to promote healthy food
habits in their workplaces (13). They will give emphasize the type of food and drinks taken
by the employees, as the employees who eat well is more likely to remain healthy, happy, and
more productive. The government based food policy will emphasize more on direct food
instead of processed food items. In this way, the government is able to minimize the use of
plastics for the packing process. The new policy also emphasizes on the diet of children and
takes requisite actions in this direction. The food program will be introduced in school, where
the students will be provided with properly balanced diet food for breakfast and lunch. The
balanced diet for the students will include fruits, vegetables, eggs, meat, legumes, cheese,
butter, milk, tofu, and yogurt. In this regard, teachers will be given proper training by health
11

Assignment Name Student ID
care workers, so that they can take care of the children's diet effectively. As mentioned in the
report by Foley, Mihrshahi, Shrewsbury, health check-up camps will be arranged at all the
schools in Australia for at least twice a month (20). These camps will take check the weight,
and other nutrients deficiency diseases like rickets, beri beri, pellagra, as discussed by
Ferguson, O’ dea ad Altman (13). School students will also be provided with vaccinations to
improve their immunity against certain diseases.
There are several stages for developing a food policy, which are, agenda building,
formulation and adoption, implementation, and evaluation and termination (21). In the
agenda building process, a problem in the existing policy is identified, which further becomes
the agenda for the policy maker to address and design a new food policy. In the policy
formulation process, the policymakers arrive with solutions to resolve the problem. In this
process, the government executives, the court, and food and diet experts are involved.
Contradictory proposals for the food policy are also prepared. Further, the implementation
process is conducted by various institutions, such as the health care sectors and the
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (22). From the stakeholders’ perspectives as
discussed by Pettigrew et al. these agencies will provide details on the policies and the
procedure for evaluating compliance through regulations (23). For evaluating the effective
execution of the food policy, a committee meeting is conducted every 6 months. The
committee consists of governing bodies, financial committee, and advisory agencies. The
primary objective of this meeting is to identify any issues with the policy and then regularise
it. The comedy is set up to monitor any corruption. Also, in this context, Pulker, Trapp, Scott,
Pollard suggested that the committee members consult the Medical offices of each district to
identify the impact of food policy on the health of the local public (24). Further, the report
collected by the social health workers and teachers is also included in the evaluation process.
12

Assignment Name Student ID
On the identification of any issues, an amendment is included in the policy by the committee
members.
13

Assignment Name Student ID
References
1. Monteiro CA, Cannon G, Moubarac JC, Levy RB, Louzada ML, Jaime PC. The UN
Decade of Nutrition, the NOVA food classification and the trouble with ultra-processing.
Public Health Nutrition. 2018 Jan;21(1):5-17
2. Burlingame B, Dernini S, editors. Sustainable Diets: Linking Nutrition and Food Systems.
CABI; 2018 Dec 10.
3. Garnett T, Mathewson S, Angelides P, Borthwick F. Policies and actions to shift eating
patterns: What works. Foresight. 2015;515(7528):518-22
4. Macdiarmid JI. Is a healthy diet an environmentally sustainable diet?. Proceedings of the
Nutrition Society. 2013 Feb;72(1):13-20
5. Burlingame B, Dernini S. Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity: Directions and Solutions for
Policy, Research and Action. International Scientific Symposium, Biodiversity and
Sustainable Diets United Against Hunger, FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy, 3-5 November
2010. In Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity: Directions and Solutions for Policy, Research
and Action. International Scientific Symposium, Biodiversity and Sustainable Diets United
Against Hunger, FAO Headquarters, Rome, Italy, 3-5 November 2010. 2012. Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO).
6. Ghoshal G. Emerging Food Processing Technologies. In Food Processing for Increased
Quality and Consumption 2018 Jan 1 (pp. 29-65). Academic Press.
7. Luckose F, Mamatha BS, Chauhan OP. Commercialization and Regulatory Issues of Non-
thermal Processed Foods. Non-thermal Processing of Foods. 2019 Jan 10:201
8. Mann D, Thornton L, Crawford D, Ball K. Australian consumers’ views towards an
environmentally sustainable eating pattern. Public health nutrition. 2018 Oct;21(14):2714-22
14

Assignment Name Student ID
9. Pulker CE, Trapp GS, Scott JA, Pollard CM. What are the position and power of
supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A
systematic scoping review. Obesity reviews. 2018 Feb;19(2):198-218
10. Ritchie H, Reay DS, Higgins P. The impact of global dietary guidelines on climate
change. Global environmental change. 2018 Mar 1;49:46-55
11. Rose D, Heller MC, Roberto CA. Position of the Society for Nutrition Education and
Behavior: the importance of including environmental sustainability in dietary guidance.
Journal of nutrition education and behavior. 2019 Jan 1;51(1):3-15
12. Lee AJ, Kane S, Lewis M, Good E, Pollard CM, Landrigan TJ, Dick M. Healthy diets
ASAP–Australian Standardised Affordability and Pricing methods protocol. Nutrition
journal. 2018 Dec;17(1):88
13. Ferguson M, O'dea K, Altman J, Moodie M. Health-promoting food pricing policies and
decision-making in very remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community stores in
Australia. International journal of environmental research and public health. 2018
Dec;15(12):2908
14. Maurya D, Mintrom M. Policy entrepreneurs as catalysts of broad system change: the
case of social health insurance adoption in India. Journal of Asian Public Policy. 2019 May
26:1-7
15. Browne J, Adams K, Atkinson P, Gleeson D, Hayes R. Food and nutrition programs for
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians: An overview of systematic reviews.
Australian Health Review. 2018 Dec 19;42(6):689-97
16. Tirado C, (2015) Sustainable food systems and health the convenient truth of addressing
climate change while promoting health. UNSCN [Updated 21 Aug 2019]. Available at:
https://www.unscn.org/en/unscn-publications?idnews=1427
15

Assignment Name Student ID
17. Walls H, Baker P, Chirwa E, Hawkins B. Food security, food safety & healthy nutrition:
are they compatible?. Global Food Security. [Updated 2019 Jun 25 Cited 21 Aug 2019].
Available at: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S221191241830138X
18. Muzaffar H, Metcalfe JJ, Fiese B. Narrative review of culinary interventions with
children in schools to promote healthy eating: directions for future research and practice.
Current developments in nutrition. 2018 Apr 26;2(6):08-16
19. Bocskor Á, Hunyadi M, Vince D. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and
Medicine (2015) The Integration of Immigrants into American Society. Washington, DC:
The National Academies Press. 458 pages. Intersections: East European Journal Of Society
And Politics. 2017;3(3):157-61
20. Foley BC, Mihrshahi S, Shrewsbury VA, Shah S. Adolescent-led strategies within the
home to promote healthy eating and physical activity. Health Education Journal. 2019
Mar;78(2):138-48
21. Fejzic J, Barker M. Pharmacy practitioners’ lived experiences of culture in multicultural
Australia: From perceptions to skilled practice. PloS one. 2019 Jun 19;14(6):e0217673
22. Scott P. Global panel on agriculture and food systems for nutrition: food systems and
diets: facing the challenges of the 21st century. [Updated 21 Aug 2019]. Available at:
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12571-017-0678-y
23. Pettigrew S, Talati Z, Sauzier M, Ferguson A. Stakeholder perceptions of a school food
policy ten years on. Public health nutrition. 2018 May;21(7):1370-4
24. Pulker CE, Trapp GS, Scott JA, Pollard CM. What are the position and power of
supermarkets in the Australian food system, and the implications for public health? A
systematic scoping review. Obesity reviews. 2018 Feb;19(2):198-218
16