A Vision For An Integrated Health And Agri-food Strategy

The discussion paper, Building Convergence, proposes a vision for an integrated health and agri-food strategy for Canada. The vision is one of “improving the well-being of Canadians by providing safe, nutritious and accessible food that supports healthy eating, contains health care costs, and is promoted by innovative and sustainable agricultural, food and health sectors” (Figure 6). Canadians will benefit from consuming food that makes them healthier, while Canadian businesses in the agri-food sector that produce healthier food will be better able to compete in local, national and global markets. The vision is supported by six pillars: safe food, nutritious food, accessible food, healthy eating, innovation, and sustainability. These pillars represent areas where policies and initiatives relevant to an integrated health and agri-food strategy are currently in place.

Building Convergence proposes a set of ‘lever points for change’ that runs within and across the six pillars. The lever points are intended to focus the discussions of leaders in the field around ways to develop an integrated strategy (bearing in mind that neither the levers nor the proposed lever points for change have been the subject of a consensus-building process). The lever points for change would create a structure that could bring together numerous interests to effect change in the food sector. Such interests would include consumers, the private sector, civil society, public health, and agriculture and agri-food agencies at the local, provincial/territorial, national and global levels. This whole-of-society mobilization would translate the levers into a set of concrete and focused initiatives, ultimately resulting in measurable health and economic outcomes. In the long term, this approach will reduce health care costs and improve the economic performance of the agriculture and agri-food sector.

The Strategic Components

Safe Food: The recent, widely publicized recalls of certain food products have heightened consumer awareness of food safety. Initiatives like the Food and Consumer Safety Action Plan²⁷ and the Growing Forward Framework²⁸ provide opportunities for governments, industry and consumers to cooperate in enhancing food safety and market confidence in Canadian products. The balance of action between government and industry is changing, as industry increasingly supplements government food safety programs with voluntary programs and private standards. With the rise of global food chains and increasing concentration in distribution and retail, government cannot be seen as the sole stakeholder in setting food safety policies.

Figure 6. A vision for an integrated health and agri-food strategy for Canada.

Nutritious Food: Canada is committed to the recommendations of the WHO Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health.²⁹ The strategy recommends that populations and individuals achieve energy balance and a healthy weight, limit dietary intake of free sugars, and increase their consumption of fruits, vegetables and legumes, whole grains, and nuts. They should also limit salt (sodium) consumption, and limit energy intake from total fats and shift their consumption patterns from saturated fats to unsaturated fats, and toward eliminating trans fatty acids. Canada continues to implement these global recommendations through federal and provincial nutrition initiatives, such as the Integrated Pan Canadian Healthy Living Strategy.³⁰

Accessible Food: Canada’s Action Plan for Food Security³¹ (1998) recognizes that food security exists when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food. In 2004, more than 1.1 million households in Canada (9.2%) were food insecure at some point in the previous year.³² Policy levers that change the social and economic environments (e.g., income supports, adequate employment, cost and availability of food) will have a significant impact on food access for many Canadians. Similarly, innovations in the agriculture and agri-food sector may help reduce the cost and price differential between food of high nutritional quality and food of little nutritional value.

Globally, although food prices have eased from their record highs in 2008,³³ the World Bank estimates that higher food prices have increased the number of undernourished people from 850 million (prior to 2008) to as many as 100 million more.³⁴ Over two billion people in developing countries suffer from micronutrient malnutrition.³⁵ The World Bank projects that, by 2030, worldwide demand will rise by 50% for food and by 85% for meat.³⁶ By 2050, the world population is expected to reach 9.2 billion. Food security will remain a challenge for decades, not only because of increased demand but also issues such as climate change, energy security, water scarcity and competition for land.

Healthy Eating: In 2003, Canada implemented mandatory nutrition labelling. In 2007, the federal government released Eating Well with Canada’s Food Guide³⁷ to help Canadians make better food choices. But many Canadians are still not acting on this advice, and more effort is needed to encourage the population to use these information tools.³⁸ While some believe government should limit “harmful” nutrients through regulations, industry proposes non-mandatory approaches. Some industries have already initiated healthy eating strategies, through health and wellness strategies or programs like the Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative.³⁹ Under this initiative, 17 food and beverage companies pledged to devote at least 50% of their advertising aimed at children under 12 to the promotion of products that represent healthy dietary choices and/or include healthy lifestyle messages. In 2003, the first “diet-related disease risk reduction claims” were allowed in Canada. But the process for approving these claims can be lengthy under the current regulatory framework.⁴⁰

Weaving Innovation Across All Aspects of Healthy Eating: The Growing Forward Framework emphasized the need to support innovation, building on Canada’s strong R&D base. The Framework prioritized “enhancing human health and wellness through food, nutrition, and innovative products,” particularly functional foods. Support for R&D funding, tax credits and public/private research partnerships and clusters will be essential to developing leading-edge products and technologies. The Advanced Food and Materials Network (AFMNet), one of Canada’s Networks of Centers of Excellence, is an example of a nationwide partnership among 39 universities, 35 industries, and 29 government departments.

A Socially, Economically and Environmentally Sustainable Approach: An integrated health and agri-food strategy would link health and agri-food in a manner that is socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable. Environmental quality includes clean air, clean water, and reduced greenhouse gas emissions, while sustainable development encompasses sustainable communities, the sustainable development and use of natural resources, and governance for sustainable development. These core components would guide the selection of the lever points for change that link food, health and the environment.

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