Food is fundamental to our survival, health, and quality of life – and something we consume several times a day. Yet few people consider what goes on before the food lands on our plate. According to Professor Tine Hald, it is high time we changed the way we produce and consume food. She discusses this in a video lecture, which you can watch here.
“It is necessary to restructure our current food production so that it becomes far more sustainable than it is today,” says Tine Hald, who is also the Head of Studies for the Master’s programme in Sustainable and Safe Food Production, offered in collaboration between DTU and the University of Copenhagen.
A system of skewed resources and heavy burdens
Roughly half of the world’s arable land is used for food production – and the majority of this is for animal feed. Yet meat and dairy products only account for a smaller proportion of the total calorie intake. At the same time, a quarter of global greenhouse gas emissions comes from the food sector, especially from animal production.
According to Tine Hald, the system is out of balance and puts a significant strain on the environment. Monocultures, pesticides, and deforestation undermine biodiversity. For example, pollinating insects such as bees and butterflies – species upon which many crops depend – are under threat.
Animal welfare is also under pressure. In intensive farming, animals’ natural behaviour and freedom of movement are restricted, and in some countries, antibiotic growth promoters are used routinely. This drives the development of antimicrobial resistance, which poses a serious global health threat.
Scarcity and abundance – at the same time
Although enough food is produced to feed the world’s population, its distribution is unequal. Many people go hungry or lack a nutritious diet, while others suffer from overconsumption and lifestyle diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
“About one third of all food is never eaten because it is either wasted during production and distribution or discarded by retailers or consumers due to surpassed expiry dates,” says Tine Hald.
What can we do?
According to Tine Hald, there are many ways to reverse this development. One of the most effective is to eat less meat – especially beef – and more plant-based foods such as legumes. Research shows that this both reduces climate impact and improves public health.
“It would be possible to save over 1,000 life-years annually in Denmark,” she says, referring to a European study by researchers from, among others, the DTU National Food Institute investigating the expected impact if consumers replaced half of their beef intake with legumes.
Organic and diverse farming should also be promoted. Although organic farming often yields less per area, it results in lower pollution, better soil quality, and greater biodiversity.
Alternative foods such as insects, seaweed, and microalgae are also mentioned as possible ways forward – not least because they require fewer resources and emit far less CO2 than traditional meat production.
Technological innovation plays a role as well. For example, the DTU National Food Institute is working to extract dietary fibers from beer production by-products and use them in other foods such as bread. This makes better use of resources – and improves health.
Politics and responsibility
But it is not only up to individual consumers. Tine Hald points to the fact that EU agricultural subsidies still overwhelmingly go to animal production – despite its high climate footprint.
“It simply makes no sense to support food systems that harm people, animals, and our planet,” says Tine Hald.
She calls for the reallocation of subsidies to promote healthy and sustainable food. At the same time, she encourages consumers to choose greener and more plant-based alternatives – and only buy what they genuinely need.
A shared future
Tine Hald ends her lecture with a message of shared responsibility and the potential for change.
“Together, we can each work towards a sustainable future in which agriculture and food benefit people, animals, and our planet,” she says.
Read more
Explore the thematic section on sustainable development on the website of DTU National Food Institute.
Click on the illustrations to view them in full size:
