Canada’s new Food Guide is on right track
Plant-based proteins are preferable, write Deniz Akyurekli, MD, et al.
Since Health Canada began revising the Canada Food Guide two years ago, the subject has received a lot of attention. According to the What We Heard Report released in March, a majority of Canadians are pleased with the direction of the new national dietary guidelines. Indeed, Health Canada’s emphasis on nutritious, sustainable diets and specifically its recommendation that Canadians eat more plant-based proteins is encouraging.
Not everyone is excited about the proposed changes, however. The recent article “Beef, dairy producers concerned about upcoming changes to Canada Food Guide” (Calgary Herald, Nov. 19) outlines the meat and dairy industries’ fears that the new Food Guide will lead to decreased consumption of their products. Their concerns are not new.
Late last year, the public learned that government officials at Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada had sent a secret memo to Health Canada, warning that “messages that encourage a shift toward plant-based sources of protein would have nega- tive implications for the meat and dairy industries.”
Moreover, the House of Commons standing committee on agriculture and agrifood recommended that “the government work with the agriculture and agri-food sector to ensure alignment and competitiveness for domestic industries” in developing the Food Guide. In trying to protect the bottom line of the industries they represent, these groups have suggested that the short-term economic interests of the meat and dairy industries take precedence over the health of Canadians. This is unacceptable.
We urge Health Canada to stay the course and resist food industry pressures to reduce the emphasis on consuming plant-based foods. Several evidence-based publications confirm the health benefits of predominantly plant-based diets, which have been shown to reduce the risk of many lifestyle diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity as well as certain types of cancer (such as breast, colon and prostate).
Consumption of plantbased foods is also associated with greater longevity and healthy weight management.
Given that the leading causes of death in Canada are cancer and heart disease, and that millions of Canadians live with diabetes and obesity, the urgency of this issue can hardly be overstated. A recent study published in the Canadian Journal of Public Health found that insufficient fruit and vegetable consumption costs the Canadian economy $4.39 billion annually, through hospital care, drugs, physician services, premature death and disability.
The Heart and Stroke Foundation, Diabetes Canada and Dietitians of Canada all recommend the increased consumption of plant foods, and it is time for our national Food Guide to do the same.
The benefits of plantbased diets extend to our natural environment. Animal agriculture has a substantial carbon footprint, with meat, poultry, dairy, fish and eggs all requiring vast amounts of resources to produce. Livestock production uses one-third of the world’s fresh water and is a major contributor to water pollution. It occupies 30 per cent of the world’s ice-free surface and consumes 33 per cent of all croplands as feed; generates significant levels of methane, carbon dioxide and nitrous oxide, contributing to climate change; and is a major driver of biodiversity loss.
Plant-based diets can help resolve our most pressing environmental issues while boosting Canada’s economy. Many of the most nutritious plant-based foods are grown locally: we are one of the world’s largest suppliers of pulses, which include beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas.
By choosing plant-based proteins, we can support Canadian farmers and the farm-to-table movement, and uphold Canada as a leading producer of healthy, affordable and sustainable foods.
Many Canadians are already reducing their meat consumption due to health concerns, ethics, environmental considerations and cost, and this trend is only expected to continue.
As a group of concerned doctors and dietitians, we commend Health Canada for basing its recommendations on the best available evidence, rather than allowing industry to dictate policy. The new Canada Food Guide, and the citizens it serves, will be better-for it.