Co-benefits of the EAT-Lancet diet for environmental protection in the framework of the Spanish dietary pattern

The immediate need to build resilient food systems with lower greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and protection of water resources is a global challenge. To address this, the EAT-Lancet Commission described the global reference diet with principles of nutritional quality and environmental sustainability. With this in mind, the carbon and water footprints of the current Spanish dietary pattern have been compared with the EAT-Lancet global dietary recommendations, taking into account deviations in food intake. To provide additional context, differences between the average Spanish dietary pattern and dietary guidelines applied in other countries in Europe (Italy, the Netherlands and the Mediterranean region) and America have also been analyzed and discussed from a sustainability approach. We found that the EAT-Lancet diet requires less water resources (3056 L.person(-1).day(-1)) and lower level of GHG emissions (2.13 kgCO(2)eq.person(-1).day(-1)) in comparison with the Spanish dietary pattern (3732 L.person(-1).day(-1) and 3.62 kgCO(2)eq.person(-1).day(-1), respectively). Starch-based products and oils and fats were identified as largest contributors to both environmental indicators in the EAT-Lancet diet. On the other hand, meat and dairy were the environmental hotspots in the Spanish dietary pattern. Comparison with other food-based dietary patterns also raises environmental concerns about the high meat consumption in Spain. Overall, this analysis suggests that reducing the consumption of beef meat and dairy to a level in line with the global environmental targets set by the EAT-Lancet Commission would ensure a shift in Spanish dietary habits towards more environmentally sustainable food consumption patterns.

Automated summary

Building resilient food systems with lower greenhouse gas emissions and protection of water resources is a global challenge. This study compares the carbon and water footprints of the Spanish dietary pattern with the global dietary recommendations of the EAT-Lancet Commission and finds that the EAT-Lancet diet has lower environmental indicators. Meat and dairy products in the Spanish diet are identified as major contributors to environmental impacts, and reducing their consumption would lead to more environmentally sustainable food consumption patterns.