January 2015 - Question 1
Question 1: How
could policies be changed to promote food production that would support the
dietary guidelines? How can we as dietitians help make this happen?
posted by Unknown @ 2:21 PM
11 comments
11 Comments:
The government could provide more grants to local farms that grow organic produce and provide quality meat (not to corn and soybean farms who contribute to the processed foods or mass meat production facilities). I have a bias to support the smaller local farms that follow regulations who also treat their animals better and grow non-GMO produce. Dietitians can support local food markets and incorporate those foods into their workplace. For example, Diane at Campus Dining creates a local foods dinner in the dining hall to promote healthier choices and quality food.
I also think food labeling policies should be more strict with what companies are able to claim. Food production could be altered by smaller portions of packaged foods or I've even heard the suggestion putting taxes on foods that are empty calories and no nutritional value. Dietitians can educate clients and patients about food labels and suggested amounts.
Providing grants to local farms is a great idea. In my mind, the more we do to support the agriculture industry, the better. The DGA's support the consumption of nutrient dense foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, low-fat meats and dairy. The more we can do to help out the farms that produce these products, the better. In my humble opinion, more Americans should be advocates of providing support to farms and the like; as opposed to other major corporations who are given huge tax breaks and other incentives.
Also, in order to promote the consumption of nutritionally dense foods, we (as nutrition professionals) need to show consumers how delicious (and still nutritious!) these types of foods can be. Food demonstrations, recipe creations, taste testing and things like that come to mind. We can help farms and everything all we want, but if nobody will purchase the foods, it won't matter how much assistance they get--they won't be able to make it. Consumer demand drives our economy and that holds true for every sector. I read an interesting article about quinoa a few years ago about how the demand for it was far exceeding the production. That may be a good problem to have. I don't mean that we want shortages, but having a shortage usually indicates a high level of consumer demand (with the exception of weather based shortages). My wife and I DIG quinoa and have incorporated it into numerous dishes that I would love to share with consumers (turkey quinoa muffins, quinoa chicken chili...YUMMMM). Such promotion can help enhance awareness. Awareness can help drive sales. Sales support farmers. It's a win/win.
I'm working at Bent Elementary School over break and just last week we served edamame. There were actually a bunch of kids who remembered the last time it was served and were completely psyched to have it again! I absolutely loved to hear that! They had tried it at school and were looking forward to having it again. If our future generations grow up eating such foods, they will (hopefully) carry that into adulthood--thus driving future demand. So basically, I'm a huge fan of school foodservice operations trying new things and letting children experiment. I'm still trying to get them to serve okra...
Haley, I've heard about the taxation of food devoid of nutritional value as well but I don't know if that's the solution. Extra taxation of free-market companies is a slippery slope. While I'm all for a nutritionally complete diet that is very limited in things like soda and potato chips, the companies that are producing those products are just selling what consumers want. It's not their fault that some people drink 16 cans of soda a day, they are a business...it's their job to produce what sells. I think a better solution is to educate our fellow Americans and to let them make choices for themselves. Those who are interested enough in change will change and those who don't want to won't.
Now, on the other side of the coin, if we taxed those companies, we could use those tax dollars to fund nutrition education and grants/support to more healthful food options...but here's the thing, with the federal (and even state's) government being so terrible at allocating money, how many of those dollars do we actually think would go towards such efforts? There are definitely two sides to this story, and there are no right or wrong answers...it's just a matter of opinion.
I really like the idea of promoting Farmer's markets too. Those are so great! Also Haley, I like your idea regarding food labels and serving sizes. I feel like so many Americans don't know how to read nutrition fact labels. Understanding those labels is so key. One of the things I loved doing the most during my assistantship last year was educating people about food labels. It's kind of like that old saying "give a man a fish and he eats for a day, show him how to fish and he eats forever." We've got to educate our clients with "take home skills." That's the key in my mind.
I believe emphasizing food from local growers can help improve the quality of the United States’ food supply. Policies like the government providing incentives for more farmers to partner with SNAP or the WIC Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program would provide greater access to healthy food for those in need, who may be less likely to meet the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. This would also benefit local farmers and the American economy.
Farmers markets are great for individual consumers, but for large-scale food service operations that feed many people, more local farmers could partner with distributing companies. The farmer may not have the resources to ship their products, where as the distributor does. Having major food distributors like US Foods partnering with local farmers helps increase the farmers’ ability to dispense their product. I know that US Foods has started some local foods initiatives by offering products like apples and micro greens that are locally grown in Illinois.
Creating policies that provide incentives for large retailers to obtain food locally rather than from out of the country could be another tactic. Grocery stores should be encouraged to offer more local products. This has recently increased in popularity during the summer months, where you can find some local produce being sold in stores like Meijer or Wal-Mart. Eliminating the middleman and creating relationships with farmers is ideal, but this may not always be realistic. So grocery stores and food distributors should be used as channels more often to help get local foods to the masses.
As dietitians, we need to educate people of the benefits of buying local foods and encourage people to choose fresh, unprocessed foods more often. We also need to show people techniques of how to prepare fresh foods. When I was at WIC, I created a pamphlet of recipes for produce that could be found at farmers markets. These recipes featured different ways of preparing fresh fruits and vegetables and encouraged the WIC participants to utilize the WIC Farmers Market vouchers. During my time at WIC, the Farmers Market vouchers ran out early and not every WIC participant received them. Therefore, the USDA should allocate more money to this program.
Arthur,
You made a great point about school foodservice operations incorporating new foods into their menus. The efforts with the new National School Lunch Program guidelines have most likely helped lessen the gap of children meeting the Dietary Guidelines. When I served lunch at Bloomington Jr. High School, sugar snap peas were on the menu and many children had never seen them before. I tried to convince as many of them as possible to just try them. Like you said, hopefully exposing children to different types of healthy foods while they are young will make them more likely to eat a healthy diet as an adult. This will support the creation of a healthier food system in the United States.
Caroline,
I absolutely agree. That's the same tactic I used with the edamame. It's an offer (not a serve) system, so we offer the vegetable, but they don't have to take it (there is always a cold vegetable option, like carrots and/or celery and also a cold fruit option). While some of the kids were excited about the edamame, others were less than thrilled and would immediately proclaim "NO BEANS PLEASE!!!" When that happens, I always try to say something like "trying something new never hurts!" or "oh come on, this is delicious!" A lot of the kids thought they were lima beans actually, so once I told them they were something totally different, some were down to give it the old college try.
I honestly believe that starting to eat healthy as a young child makes everything better in the long run. My parents were adamant about having at least one fruit with every breakfast and at least one vegetable with every meal and/or snack. That's how I was raised, and I've carried that on with me into adulthood. It works. Hopefully the future generation(s) of Americans will be healthier than the current generation. With our help, it's a very realistic possibility.
In my opinion, a good start to promoting food production that would help support dietary guidelines would be to re-examine agricultural subsidies. Redirecting or redistributing the funds to other productions such as fruits, vegetables, nuts and legumes, which only receive about 2% of all subsidies, would help stop promoting the production of unhealthy foods. The best way to help as dietitians is to put pressure on elected officials and to be an advocate for the food policies that matter to you!
I dislike encouraging the government to intervene. I think we as dietitians should push for consumers to demand products to reflect the DGA. I think we have already done a great job at creating awareness about this issue and consumers are now more than ever wanting to know where their food comes from. I also think its great that we have this eat local movement that continues to gain popularity and I think we should support that as well.
I've done some research on government subsidies for a few other classes and it pertains to this article as well. Government subsidies date back to the Depression and was used to ensure enough food for everyone. However, due to these subsidies, "unhealthy" foods are cheaper while fresh produce and other "healthier" foods are more expensive. These healthy items are not getting enough subsidies from the government, if at all. I think I would focus on government subsidies and moving the money around so that produce, lean meats, and whole grains can be more affordable than their less healthy counterparts. As a dietitian, it's still about contacting government, having a realistic plan, and really pushing as a community for grocery stores and government to give the consumers better food for a lesser cost. I also think that as a dietitian, we have to work with what we have and what our clients can afford. Nothing will change over night so if we can teach them to work within their means now and hopefully that benefits them even more when policies do change for the better.
I love Haley's suggestion of promoting local foods as a dietitian. As an immediate action, this would help the community and the food will be fresher and hopefully less expensive.
I definitely agree that supporting local farmers is a great goal for encouraging healthier eating practices, but this can be a pricey habit for some individuals. I believe one of the major reasons people choose unhealthy food options is their affordability and convenience. We need to tackle these problems head on in order to make changes. Some people will make changes if we explain to them the benefits of choosing better foods, but many people are stuck in their ways and don't want to be told what to do. If we can find a way to make fruits and vegetables cheaper than junk food, I bet we would see a difference in what people purchase from the grocery store. Government involvement is not ideal, but if it can influence the prices of produce and foods that are subsidized, it can make a big impact on American's diets.
I agree with Sammy. We need to put pressure on those individuals who are making decisions for us in Washington D.C. to do what's best for the population as a whole and help families to provide foods that are nutritious and tasty at their meals.
Taxation seems to force the hand of consumers, who strongly value free choice. This might be going in a totally different direction than what has been previously discussed, however a big problem I see is advertising in the food industry. Food companies place emphasis on making and selling products (and demand corresponding ingredients) which deliver the most profit. The demand by consumers significantly directs production. We need to first create a shift in consumer demand to create a more favorable market for healthier products.
Children are the future of this country. If we can change the perception of what is “normal” in an impressionable population, we might be able to shift future demand. Focusing on produce and whole grains, exposure is a big part of the problem for children. These foods are not as familiar to them. By changing the environmental cues, we can change what is familiar and accepted both now and in the future.
Many large food companies also make healthy food products alongside the unhealthy products. If food companies, of a certain size, were challenged, or required by law, to produce an equivalent ad (length, visibility, etc.) for a healthy product for each unhealthy product ad displayed, we could start to gradually shift the stimuli received in regards to eating. Companies who do not have a sufficient amount of healthy products can partner with farmers (We might need some sort of government funding here). Considering how much our environment affects our food choices, this could be a step in the right direction to increase the demand for foods of higher nutritional quality. The market, and underlying production, will follow demand.
The appeal in this thought is, it would not step on too many toes. There would be no enforcement of taxes and large food companies would still be able to promote their products. As dietitians, we could get our legislative foot in the door with food companies to potentially make larger strides in the future. Creating an environment that is more supportive of the eating style we promote will make our recommendations, as RDs, more effective. This idea obviously needs further development, but it was a thought.
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