Europeans demand that their food tastes better,
is healthier and can be prepared in less time; and yet they
want this food available year round at a low price. To meet
these demands, food travels many more miles; and along much
more complicated distribution routes than in the past.
European scientists and policy makers are therefore
looking more seriously at where food comes from, the ways
in which it is processed, packaged and distributed, to how
it is sold and eventually eaten.
"This requires a new approach to describing food supply.
We're advocating a food systems approach," says Thomas
Henrichs, a senior advisor for the National Environment Research
Institute in Denmark.
"The food systems approach includes not
only the activities involved in food supply, such as growing
and processing a green bean and packing it for distribution,
and shipping it, but also the outcomes of eating the green
bean on the environment, on the economy and on the health
and welfare of the person eating it", explains Henrichs.
One reason to better understand the European food system
is the growth in global markets. In both China and Europe
people are eating more meat, and a large market for dairy
products is opening up on the Indian subcontinent.
"Until recently, Europe has invested intensively in
its food system in relative isolation,", explains Rudy
Rabbinge, professor in sustainable development and food systems
at Wageningen University in the Netherlands. "But Europe
must change its food system to take advantage of these new
markets," he says.
With Europe's share of global exports predicted to drop
from 24 percent to 20 percent over the next 10 years, Europe
needs to become more efficient to compete in a global market.
Scientists hope that by encouraging different industries
within the food chain to think about the food system as a
whole, they can increase overall efficiency.
Changes to Europe's own food market is another reason to
better understand the European food system. An aging European
population brings different health demands that could be
met by altering the food they eat. Migration of people into
the EU has changed European food tastes, customs and traditions,
and increased wealth gives
Europeans the means to buy more meat.
Furthermore, longer workdays and the increase of dual-career
households have left many Europeans with little time to prepare
food, resulting in a reliance on 'ready-meals.' One consequence
of this is that an average meal now contains more ingredients
that have travelled further and require more packaging.
Finally, changing energy consumption and the threat of climate
change will force Europeans to think about how efficiently
they produce and consume food. By studying food systems,
scientists hope to understand the socioeconomic, political,
and cultural influences on what Europeans eat. And policy
makers can use this knowledge to steer how Europe manages
its food supply in response to global changes.
Source: European Science Foundation
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