Healthy Food is Good for the Environment, Finds Major Think Tank Study

Brussels (ots/PRNewswire) - A healthy diet also
benefits the environment, according to a scientific study presented
in Brussels today by the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition (BCFN).

The study 'Double Pyramid: Healthy Food for people, sustainable
food for the planet' indicates that foods with higher recommended
consumption levels are also those with lower environmental impact.
Contrarily, those foods with lower recommended consumption levels are
also those with higher environmental impact.

The 'Double Pyramid' model combines the well-known food pyramid
with the environmental pyramid, based on an estimation of the
environmental impact of each foodstuff in terms of generation of
greenhouse gases (Carbon Footprint), consumption of water resources
(Water Footprint) and use of territory (Ecological Footprint).

The study was presented during an open debate at the European
Parliament, organised by the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition
(BCFN) and hosted by Paolo De Castro, Member of the European
Parliament (Socialists & Democrats, Italy). A large number of
participants from the institutions, trade associations, businesses
and civil society gathered to discuss the topic of 'Healthy Food,
Healthy Planet'.

"While we cannot stop the continuing evolution of the planet, we
have a moral duty to suggest directions and make proposals so that we
can interact responsibly with it," said Guido Barilla - Chairman of
Barilla Group presenting the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition.

MEP Paolo de Castro explained the importance of the study: "The
issue of food supply, fuelled in recent years by the exponential
growth in demand, particularly in some areas of the world, is leading
us onto dangerous ground. Food is destined to become an insufficient
and costly resource. Today's challenge is to increase productivity,
with fewer resources and less pollution."

Commenting on the economic and social implications of food and
nutrition, Mario Monti, Economist and member of the BCFN Advisory
Board, said: "Issues related to food and nutrition take on increasing
importance in terms of their impact on the economy and society. We
hope that our proposals and recommendations are taken into account by
policy makers and that the BCFN becomes a privileged partner of
public institutions".

MEPs Renate Sommer (European People's Party, Germany) and
Christel Schaldemose (Socialists & Democrats, Denmark), European
Commission Director General Paola Testori Coggi (Directorate General
for Health and Consumers) and Sue Davies, Chief Policy Advisor at
consumer organisation Which?, exchanged views on how to promote
healthy lifestyles, following an introduction by Gabriele Riccardi,
Professor of Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases at the University
of Naples and member of the BCFN Advisory Board.

"We have updated the Mediterranean dietary pattern, making it
more suitable for modern lifestyles. In this perspective, the BCFN
believes that the role of industry, which may offer easy to use
products in line with relevant nutritional guidelines, is crucial",
Riccardi said.

"The BCFN Double Pyramid is a significant achievement because it
demonstrates the coincidence, in one model, of two different but
equally important goals: health and environmental protection. In
other words, by making nutrition choices that are good for our
health, we also can help reduce the environmental impacts of food",
said Barbara Buchner, director of the Climate Policy Initiative in
Venice and member of the BCFN Advisory Board.

She was joined on the panel by MEP Mairead McGuinness (European
People's Party, Ireland), European Commission Director General Karl
Falkenberg (Directorate General for the Environment) and Mark
Driscoll, Head of Sustainable Consumption Policy and Head of WWF's
One Planet Food programme.

Antonio Tajani, Vice-President of the European Commission,
responsible for Industry and Entrepreneurship, concluded the debate
by giving a strong message of broad support for a comprehensive EU
food and environmental policy, highlighting its potential
contribution to the success of the EU 2020 Strategy.

Vice President Tajani added: "In a few weeks, the first meeting
of the High Level Forum on the Food Supply Chain will held in
Brussels under my chairmanship. We will discuss with fellow
Commissioners, Ministers, MEPs and stakeholders the criticalities of
the food chain. I am strongly convinced that a well-functioning food
supply chain will ensure that the European agrofood sector is more
competitive, innovative as well as sustainable".

Note to Editors

The Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition is a multidisciplinary
think tank focusing on issues of food and nutrition and their
relations to economics, medicine, diet, sociology and the
environment. The work of the Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition is
backed by an authoritative Advisory Board composed of Barbara
Buchner, Director of the Climate Policy Initiative in Venice,
Jean-Paul Fitoussi and Mario Monti, economists, Gabriele Riccardi,
endocrinologist, Camillo Ricordi, surgeon and scientist, Claude
Fischler and Joseph Sassoon, sociologists, and Umberto Veronesi,
oncologist.

You may watch the event at http://www.barillacfn.com

ots Originaltext: Barilla Center for Food & Nutrition
Im Internet recherchierbar: http://www.presseportal.de

Contact:
CONTACT: For additional information: Barilla - Giuseppe Coccon,
Tel.+39-0521-2621, info@barillacfn.com