Updated EAT-Lancet Planetary Health Diet Could Prevent 40,000 Deaths Per Day

The EAT-Lancet Commission’s new report states that widespread adoption of the Planetary Health Diet could prevent more than 40,000 early deaths per day, and 15 million deaths per year.

According to the Commission, the Planetary Health Diet could also help save USD $5 trillion per year through improved climate resilience, environmental restoration, and human health, which is more than 10 times the amount needed to drive widespread food system change.

The EAT-Lancet Commission’s updated report stated that less than one percent of the world’s population is currently in the “safe and just space,” where people’s rights and food needs are met without exceeding planetary boundaries. The wealthiest 30 percent of people drive more than 70 percent of food-related environmental impacts.

“Food is at the heart of both human well-being and planetary health,” said Shakuntala Haraksingh Thilsted, Commission co-chair and director for Nutrition, Health, and Food Security at CGIAR. “Right now, too many people who grow and process our food are underpaid and excluded from basic protections, while the environmental and health costs fall hardest on the most vulnerable.”

Transformation ‘must guarantee’ the right to food, work, and a healthy environment

The EAT-Lancet Commission is made up of leading international experts in nutrition, climate, economics, health, social sciences, and agriculture from more than 35 countries and six continents. The Commission noted that just food systems are “essential” for achieving health and social equity, as even with a complete global transition away from fossil fuels, food systems could push global warming beyond 1.5°C and breach further planetary boundaries.

“Our findings make it clear that transformation must go beyond producing enough calories. It must guarantee the right to food, fair work, and a healthy environment for all,” said Thilsted. “Only when we share the benefits and burdens more equitably can we ensure that food systems are within planetary boundaries and create a safe and just space where all people can flourish.”

‘This is our new reality’

Photo shows a cardboard sign that reads "the climate is changing why aren't we?" — Adobe Stock Even if all fossil fuel use ceased tomorrow, the current food system would continue to damage the environment

The first EAT-Lancet report was a groundbreaking scientific review that detailed an optimal, healthy, and sustainable food system. It recommended “The Planetary Health Diet,” which primarily – but not exclusively – focuses on nutritious, sustainable plant-based foods.

The announcement of the Planetary Health Diet was met with considerable backlash, including misinformation, conspiracy theories, and personal attacks. A report leaked earlier this year indicated that this backlash may have been orchestrated by the meat industry, which is responsible for approximately 15 percent of all anthropogenic emissions.

In the few days since the updated EAT-Lancet report was published, a separate report involving 160 global researchers revealed that widespread bleaching damage to warm-water coral reefs marks the planet’s first breach of a climate “tipping point.”

Lead study author Steve Smith of the University of Exeter, UK, said, “This is our new reality.”