Food production has an impact on the environment. This is due to the use of fossil energy, fertilizers, pesticides, land and water and the depletion of soil . Sustainable food both protects ecological systems and meets people’s existing and future nutrition needs. RIVM is examining what is needed to stimulate people in the Netherlands to consume environmentally friendly and healthy diets. To that end, RIVM collects and links food consumption data to data on the environmental impact of food products.
The environmental impact of food products
Thanks to the Food Consumption Survey (VCP), we know what and how much we eat in the Netherlands every day. In the EPIC cohort study, we have been monitoring 40,000 Dutch individuals for 30 years to study developments in lifestyle (including nutrition) and health problems.
We have also studied the environmental impact of approximately 250 food products. The database on the environmental impact of food products shows the environmental footprint of producing one kilogram of a whole range of food products. This environmental footprint includes greenhouse gas emissions, land and water use, eutrophication and acidification. By combining these data with those of the VCP, we can identify the diets with the highest environmental footprints. We can also study the relationship, if any, between the environmental impact of diets and people’s health.
Research based on LCA (Life Cycle Analysis) data
We conduct scenario studies to identify the environmental impact and nutritional value of a range of consumption patterns. What will change if we eat less meat? Would eating according to the Wheel of Five be (more) environmentally friendly? Will we be healthier if we eat according to more environmentally friendly principles?
Want to reduce the footprint of your own diet? The Netherlands Nutrition Centre has tips to help you do so
Are you a supplier, hospitality entrepreneur or another partner in the food chain and interested in working with sustainable food? Or would you like to know how to reduce the environmental footprint of your own eating and drinking habits? Visit this page on Voedingscentrum.nl with tips and advice.
See also
- The environmental sustainability of the Dutch diet. Background report to ‘What’s on our plate? Safe, healthy and sustainable diets in the Netherlands.’
- What is on our plate? : Safe, healthy and sustainable diets in the Netherlands
- Dutch consumers can eat healthier and more environmentally sustainable for the same amount of money I PhD thesis