Animal and plant-sourced nutrition: Complementary not competitive
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Date
2022-05
DOI
Open Access Location
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Publisher
CSIRO Publishing
Rights
(c) The author/s
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Abstract
Debate on the sustainability of the global food system often compares the environmental, economic and health impacts of plant- and animal-sourced foods. This distinction can mask the considerable variation in impacts across and within these food groups. Moreover, the nutritional benefits of these food groups are insufficiently discussed. In this review, we highlight the nutritional contribution to the current global food system of both plant- and animal-sourced foods and place their impacts on human health in the global context. We highlight how the comparison of the environmental impacts of foods via life cycle analyses can change on the basis of the functional unit used, particularly the use of mass as opposed to nutrient content or nutrient richness. We review the literature on the affordability of nutrient-adequate diets, demonstrating the presence of both plant- and animal-sourced foods in affordable nutritious diets. Finally, we address the potential of alternative food sources that are gaining momentum, to ask where they may fit in a sustainable food system. We conclude that there is a clear place for both plant- and animal-sourced foods in future sustainable food systems, and a requirement for both for sustainable global nutrition; as such, the two groups are complementary and not competitive.
Description
Keywords
animal production, environmental footprints, human health, human nutrition, non-communicable diseases, plant production, sustainable consumption, sustainable diets
Citation
Smith NW, Fletcher AJ, Hill JP, McNabb WC. (2022). Animal and plant-sourced nutrition: Complementary not competitive. Animal Production Science. 62. 8. (pp. 701-711).