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24 November 2023 — While there is continued consumer interest in healthy and sustainable diets, scientists show that there is a gap in understanding these complex topics. At the recent Free From Food show in Amsterdam, Netherlands, Nutrition Insights Jenneke Heising, program director at Wageningen University and Research, to examine ongoing discussions and how research aims to expand knowledge of what is healthy.
She highlights that following dietary guidelines has the most significant impact on health.
“I think there are too many cookies, sugary drinks and chocolate in our diet – it’s becoming part of our normal consumption. At the same time, portion sizes are increasing. Although these products can fit perfectly into your diet, consumers have to make choices, which is difficult for people.”
According to Heising, discussion of what is healthy in food stems from vague definitions, with people, companies and scientists assigning different meanings to what is healthy.
She insists that communication needs to be improved: “For the general public, I think a lot of people are confused as to what is healthy and sustainable? They want a simple answer, but if we give consumers a logo that doesn’t tell the whole story.”
The food system also needs to change, Heising emphasized. Companies, especially smaller brands, need help selling their stories about how their products are healthy or sustainable.
Processed foods
Heising sees similar confusion in the definitions of “processed foods.” Although she agrees that refined products are unhealthy, since they contain fewer nutrients and added energy, she warns that “processing” is too broad and creates confusion among consumers.
“At home, people wash, cut and cook vegetables before eating them. You do the same thing that is done in a factory, and the factory environment does not make it unhealthy.”
Heising warns that the term “processing” is too broad and creates confusion among consumers.“We need to agree as policy makers and as scientists on definitions. For example, there are different definitions of dietary fiber from chemical, nutritional and legal perspectives, which are different in the EU and the US. So how can the consumer know what it means?”
Heising says food labeling focuses on one “healthy” detail. For example, a product label only focuses on its fruit content, and contains sweeteners and healthy compounds.
Consumer understanding
Heising points out that understanding what is healthy among consumers can take a long time.
“I saw a study that compared what consumers thought were dangerous to their health about 30 years ago. At the time, e-numbers were the main concern, and people thought that a balanced diet was not as important. Meanwhile, scientists said food safety and unbalanced diets are the most important issues.”
The study was repeated in 2008, when researchers found that consumers agree more with scientists. When the researchers repeated the investigation last year, consumers learned that e-numbers are not very unhealthy, but an unbalanced diet is a problem.
Making food healthier
Heising points out that it could also affect product shelf life as manufacturers try to make food products healthier.
“For example, if you remove salt or sugars, then you change the texture of the food and the water activity – a measure of the water available for microorganisms to grow.”
In powder, microorganisms cannot grow because there is no water available to them. In products with high amounts of salt or sugar, for example in jam, there is also limited water available for microorganisms.
“But if you remove the salt or sugar, the water activity becomes higher, and the shelf life of a product can also be shorter,” warns Heising.
She points out that it’s not just about the taste or texture of the product. During product reformulation, companies must also consider product shelf life and safety when removing or adding components.
Healthy, clean, plant-based and natural labels were the main themes at this year’s Free From Food fair in Amsterdam.Sustainability communication
Regarding sustainability, Heising declares that it is challenging to communicate this complex subject to consumers without creating confusion.
“We should educate about what is sustainable and the aspects we analyze. It can be about greenhouse gas emissions, water use and social sustainability, such as human rights and child labour.”
She suggests that an independent organization should determine sustainable practices and how products score on them, pointing out that international standards do not check the term or claim “sustainable”.
Heising notes that reducing food waste is a critical sustainability issue. She recommends digital pricing systems that help prevent food waste by offering discounts on products that are close to their sell-by date.
“We could prevent much more food waste if we can already start from the beginning and, based on the quality of the food, separate and direct foods.”
In addition to food waste, she suggests that “we need to move towards more plant-based products, or at least reduce animal-based products. There is no need to eliminate these, but we need to eat less.”
Ongoing research
Heising states that several ongoing and upcoming research projects are evaluating healthy and sustainable foods at Wageningen University and Research, for example, looking at alternative proteins, such as insects.
“Insects are another source of protein, but we have to study their safety because they can also carry viruses,” she explains. “Furthermore, if we need to use high levels of energy or water to extract protein from insects, it may not be sustainable either.”
“You don’t want to produce isolates if you turn to other sources of protein. Preferably, you want the whole source. We are studying those properties.”
Next year, the university also plans to explore plant-based meat analogues for their impact on health in the EXPLAIN project. In this project, researchers will conduct a controlled feeding human clinical trial — providing all meals to participants — to evaluate the health impact of current meat analogs compared to meat in relation to cardio-metabolic health and microbiota.
In addition, the project aims to re-engineer meat analogues for health through formulation and process improvement, guided by in vitro health assessment.
By Jolanda van Hal
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