Food system and global health

The course aims to describe the multiple pathways of impact of food systems on human, animal and environmental health and to illustrate actions necessary to minimize the negative impacts. The course will consider food systems at different stages of development and analyze the impact of ongoing transformation trends.

The course will cover the following topics :

1. Concept and components of food systems.  Types of food systems and metrics to describe them. Transformation trends and drivers for change. Introduction to health impact pathways.
2. How to define and how to measure healthy diets.  Impact of the consumption of unhealthy diets on human health.
3. Food insecurity and malnutrition. Situation and trends. Climate change, conflicts, economic downturns and pandemics as drivers for food insecurity.
4. The use of antimicrobials in animal production and its impact on antimicrobial resistance. 
5. Zoonoses linked to food production
6. Epidemiology of foodborne disease
7. Environmental impact of food systems: greenhouse gases, freshwater use, land use, nitrogen and phosphorus use, biodiversity
8. Chemical contamination of the environment induced by food systems
9. Inequalities in access to food
10. Benefits and risk of the consumption of animal source foods.
11. Policy options for reshaping food systems for health and sustainability: regulating the food environment
12. Policy options for reshaping food systems for health and sustainability: public food procurements
13. The role of alternative food networks in food systems transformation