University of South Australia - School of Mathematics and Statistics; Centre for Food Policy, City, University of London; University of Sheffield - Department of Geography
Deakin University - School of Exercise and Nutrition
Date Written: December 19, 2022
Abstract
Building on an extensive review of the literature and expert elicitation using group model building, we developed a series of causal loop diagrams identifying the environmental impacts of ultra-processed food (UPFs) systems, and underlying system drivers. The final conceptual model displays the commercial, biological and social drivers of the UPF system, and the impacts on environmental sub-systems including climate, land, water and waste. It displays complex interactions between various environmental impacts, demonstrating how changes to one component of the system could have flow-on effects on other system components. The model has a wide range of applications including guiding policy interventions to promote healthy and sustainable diets, identifying policy trade-offs and informing the design of quantitative analyses.
Keywords: Healthy and sustainable food systems, Ultra-processed foods, Sustainable diets, Group model building, Food system transformation, Environmental impact assessment
Anastasiou, Kim and Baker, Philip and Hendrie, Gilly and Hadjikakou, Michalis and Boylan, Sinead and Chaudhary, Abhishek and Clark, Michael and DeClerck, Fabrice and Fanzo, Jessica and Fardet, Anthony and Leite, Fernanda Helena Marrocos and Mason-D’Croz, Daniel and Percival, Rob and Reynolds, Christian and Reynolds, Christian and lawrence, Mark, Conceptualising the Drivers of Ultra-Processed Food Production and Consumption and Their Environmental Impacts: A Group Model-Building Exercise (December 19, 2022). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4306622 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4306622
Download This Paper