Associate feature: Let Food Be Thy Medicine: Good Food Nation Bill must have plant-based food at its heart

According to the Scottish Health Survey, over two thirds of adults and over a quarter of children are living with overweight and obesity in Scotland¹, with an estimated cost to the health service of between £363 and £600 million per year. ²

An evolution in our understanding of obesity as a disease – and therefore a public health issue rather than an individual’s responsibility – means that the government must play its part in tackling this.  

The Scottish Government’s ambition that everyone in Scotland will have access to nutritious food and that dietary-related diseases will decline is commendable, but in order to achieve this, the Good Food Nation Bill must include a significant commitment to promoting healthy plant-based diets as part of its strategy to tackle obesity and preventable diseases. 

This could include measures such as public health campaigns positioning well-planned plant-based diets as a healthy and sustainable option; training for healthcare professionals in the benefits of healthy plant-based diets; aligning nutritional guidelines with the latest science which recommends reduction in meat and dairy products; the provision of healthy plant-based options as the default on public sector menus; and using the power of public procurement to promote healthier and more sustainable options.

Plant-based diets can reduce the risk of developing multiple chronic diseases including those associated with obesity, and in maintaining a healthy body weight. Research suggests that people eating a plant-based diet have, on average, a lower BMI than those eating a ‘standard Western’ diet that includes animal products. ^3,4,5

We know that lifestyle can play a huge role in body composition, and excess animal protein in early life can increase the likelihood of children developing obesity in later life 6. Plant-based diets are, on average, less calorie dense than omnivorous diets which can support healthy weight maintenance. Plant-based diets have huge potential to establish healthy eating habits early, including meeting fibre and saturated fat recommendations and the recommended intake of fruit and vegetables. ⁷

To put a financial figure on this investment opportunity, research in partnership with the Office for Health Economics estimated that vegan diets could reduce the risk of diabetes by 47%, and 18% for all cancers, with an overall estimated cost saving of £6.7 billion a year to the NHS.⁸ 

Other countries are already leading the way, like Denmark and South Korea, whose Governments have recently published their plans for transitioning to a more sustainable plant-based food system and for championing their plant-based sector. Some are changing health guidelines to recommend consuming less meat, like Germany, Austria and Spain have done. 

The upcoming Good Food Nation Bill is a seismic opportunity for Scotland to join these world leaders, as our research has found that the Scottish people show higher than average support for policy measures to promote plant-based diets. 67% of Scots who want the government to promote plant-based diets said they’d back public awareness campaigns on the health and environmental benefits. 

And there is evidence that these policy interventions are successful when trailed. To give one example, in March 2022, 11 city hospitals in New York City transitioned to a plant-based default menu. The results have been phenomenal with 60% of patients sticking with the plant-based meal option, greater than 90% patient satisfaction, 36% reduction in food emission and 59 cents saving per meal. People embrace nudges like this in the direction of a healthier diet. 

So the future Good Food Nation Bill must include measures to promote healthy plant-based diets. With the right political commitment, Scotland can be a beacon of a healthy food system to the world, while also harnessing a huge economic boon.

1. Chapter 5 Obesity - The Scottish Health Survey 2021 - volume 1: main report - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

2. Chapter 7 Obesity - Scottish Health Survey 2018: main report - revised 2020 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

3. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1530891X24005135

4. https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/proceedings-of-the-nutrition-society/article/plantbased-diets-and-longterm-health-findings-from-the-epicoxford-study/771ED5439481A68AD92BF40E8B1EF7E6

5. Julieanna Hever, MS, RD, CPT. Plant based diets: a physicians guide Perm J 2016 Summer; 20(3):15-082

6. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38732583/

7. https://www.foodstandards.gov.scot/downloads/Summary_briefing_-_Modelling_the_impact_of_reductions_in_meat_and_dairy_.pdf

8. The impact of higher uptake of plant-based diets in England: model-based estimates of health care resource use and health-related quality of life | medRxiv

This article is sponsored by the Vegan Society. 

www.vegansociety.com