H. Aiking

Food sustainability: Diverging interpretations

The concept of sustainability in general and food sustainability, in particular, entails many aspects and many interpretations. During a conference on food sustainability a broad, multidisciplinary picture was painted and many key issues were dealt with, from ecology, economy and society. In sessions on food security – the focus in developing countries – and food safety – primarily a preoccupation in developed countries – many potential trade‐offs and opportunities for regional approaches were identified. The session on governance, therefore, focused on the interaction between multi‐level actors, including national governments, international organisations such as WTO, the food industry and consumers. Finally, transparency was identified as one of the main issues underlying good governance. In order to improve the sustainability of food production, therefore, it was considered of the utmost importance that food multinationals transfer some form of democratic control over their global environmental policies, as part of an overall multi‐level (public‐private) governance ideal.

Active biomonitoring of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons by means of mosses

Spherical bags, packed with 20 g of peat moss (Sphagnum spp.), were exposed to ambient air at a distance of 1 km from a plant manufacturing electrodes for the production of aluminium, near Rotterdam, The Netherlands. In these bags, the concentrations of six polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were determined, and compared with the concentrations in moss bags that had been exposed in relatively clean areas. From the results it can be concluded that, in addition to their useful application for biomonitoring of heavy metals, mosses can be applied in active biomonitoring of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in ambient air.

Sustainable protein production and consumption: Pigs or Peas?

Sustainable Protein Production and Consumption: Pigs or Peas? is a book that presents and explores the PROFETAS programme for development of a more sustainable food system by studying the feasibility of substituting meat with plant based alternatives. The emphasis is on improving the food system by reducing the use of energy, land, and freshwater, at the same time limiting the impacts on health and animal welfare associated with intensive livestock production. It is clear that such a new perspective calls not only for advanced environmental and technological research, but also for in-depth societal research, as the acceptance of new food systems is critically contingent on perceptions and attitudes of modern consumers. In this unique multidisciplinary setting, PROFETAS has opened up pathways for a major transition in protein food production and consumption, not by just analyzing the food chain, but rather by exploring the entire agricultural system, including biomass for energy production and the use of increasingly scarce freshwater resources. The study presented here is intended to benefit every stakeholder in the food chain from policymakers to consumers, and it offers guiding principles for a transition towards an ecologically and socially sustainable food system from a multi-level perspective.

Sharing the burden of adaptation financing: An assessment of the contributions of countries

Climate change may cause most harm to countries that contribute least to greenhouse gas emissions. This paper identifies deontology, solidarity and consequentialism as the principles that can serve as a basis for a fair international burden sharing scheme of adaptation costs. We translate these principles into criteria that can be applied in assigning contributions of individual countries, namely historical responsibility, equality and capacity to pay. Specific political and scientific choices are discussed, highlighting implications for international burden-sharing. Combining historical responsibility and capacity to pay seems a promising starting point for international negotiations on the design of burden-sharing schemes. From the numerical assessment, it is clear that UNFCCC Annex I countries carry the greatest burden under most scenarios, but contributions differ substantially subject to the choice of an indicator for capacity to pay. The total financial contribution by the Annex I countries could be in the range of

Swimming pool chlorination: a health hazard?

55-68 billion annually.

Integrated Environmental Index for Application in Land-Use Zoning

A pilot study addressed potential effects of long-term exposure to chlorination products in swimming pools. The indicator compound chloroform was detectable in blood from competitive swimmers in an indoor pool (mean = 0.89 +/- 0.34 microgram/l; n = 10), but not in outdoor pool swimmers. No hepatotoxic effect was indicated by serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase (SGOT), serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase (SGPT) or gamma-glutamyl transpeptidase (gamma-GT) enzyme levels. beta-2-microglobulin, an indicator of renal damage, was significantly elevated in urine samples of the slightly, but significantly, younger indoor swimmers. The precise ratio between these 2 possible causes, age and chloroform exposure, as well as the mechanism of the former, remain to be elucidated.

Contours of an integrated environmental index for application in land use zoning

This paper describes the development of an integrated environmental index that may serve as a representation of the general environmental quality at a certain location. This index is meant to be used by local administrators to strike a balance between the development of industrial activities and the protection of sensitive land-uses (housing). The approach used to arrive at this index, based on health considerations, is described, detailing the different steps in the construction of the index: identification, assessment, summation, valuation and aggregation. The index combines environmental quality information concerning noise, odor, air pollution, and risk of industrial calamities. The resulting integrated environmental index is illustrated using data of a pilot project.

Changes in Consumption Patterns: Options and Impacts of a Transition in Protein Foods

This paper focuses on the development of an integrated environmental index for use in land use zoning. Such a composite indicator, which integrates various aspects of environmental conditions into one index, may be a useful tool for measuring sustainability (Overman, Hanson, Brown and Merideth, 1988). It is clear, however, that great care needs to be taken in the valuation and scaling of the components in such indicators in order to avoid the familiar problem of combining apples and oranges. The use of composites may also be difficult to communicate and explain to the public and to policy-makers, especially at the local level.

In search of indicators to assess the environmental impact of diets

Food is important to individuals and society, providing nutrients and generating income (Tansey and Worsley, 1995). The relationships between food production, environment and society are complex. In fact, the evolution of agriculture has both shaped and been shaped by world population growth (Evans, 1998). At any rate, a major proportion of global environmental pressure is generated by foodrelated human activities. Crops are produced, transported, processed and turned into food products in ever larger volumes, with ever-increasing impacts on the environment (Smil, 2001; Tilman et al., 2002). Lindblom (1990) notes that, although sustainability is a socially accepted goal, relative consensus exists concerning its ‘ills’ (such as food production related impacts), but hardly concerning its ‘ideals’. In this respect, some large multinationals (WBCSD, 2004) claim they can protect sustainability better than anyone else. However, their definition of sustainability does not coincide with that of the average consumer or NGO, the difference being in attributes such as ‘natural’ and ‘just’, in particular (Kloppenburg et al., 2000). In order to reduce global environmental change, the production of food, energy and water have been identified as three main targets for stepwise transition, instead of gradual improvement (Vellinga and Herb, 1999). Moreover, these three main activities are not independent of one another, since food production appropriates a major share of freshwater and energy produced. Therefore, when striving for a major step towards sustainable production in the next few decades, it should be realised that agriculture, climate change and land-use change are inextricably intertwined. Within the realm of food, meat has a unique status since consumers endow it with esoteric qualities (Beardsworth and Keil, 1997). Furthermore, its production is responsible for a disproportionate share of environmental pressure. When 10

The next protein transition

PurposeThe aim of this paper is to identify a set of crucial indicators to assess the most pressing environmental impacts of diets.MethodsBased on a literature review, 55 potential assessment methods were selected and their distinctive indicators identified. The methods were classified according to their position in the DPSIR framework [chain of Drivers, Pressures, State (changes), Impacts, and Responses], and into 15 environmental issues at three levels. The selection was narrowed down to eight, based on the availability of reliable methods, their relevance to agri-food systems, their frequent application for diets, and their recommendation by international bodies.Results and discussion(1) At the global (supra) level, the planetary boundaries approach addresses the current global environmental (change in) state and helps to prioritize the most pressing issues related to the agri-food system as a driver. These issues are climate change, nitrogen and phosphorus cycle disruption, land-use change, and freshwater use. (2) At the national (macro) level, the footprints approach is used to identify indicators. This footprint family includes ecological, land, carbon, energy, and water footprints. International bodies support these key indicators, but they recommend complementary assessment methods for nitrogen and phosphorus flows, soil health, and pesticide use. (3) At the product (micro) level, life cycle assessment includes 11 pressure indicators. Of the latter, greenhouse gas emissions (GHGEs) and land use (LU) are the most frequently used indicators in diet studies.ConclusionsWe conclude that GHGEs and LU fulfill the selection criteria and address most of the environmental impact of diets well. In the future, these indicators should be supplemented with an indicator addressing the nitrogen and phosphorous efficiency of food products.