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For Immediate Release, October 5, 2015

Analysis Finds Strong Support for Sustainability, Less Meat in Dietary Guidelines

Additional Legal Analysis Shows Clear Basis for Sustainability in Guidelines

WASHINGTON – A new analysis released today of an unprecedented 29,000 public comments on the 2015 scientific report’s recommendations on the Dietary Guidelines for Americans reveals overwhelming support for including sustainability considerations and clear guidance for diets that include less meat and more plants in national dietary policy. A companion analysis outlined the legal basis and argument for including sustainability in the Dietary Guidelines.

“A review of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee’s (DGAC) recommendations shows that each and every one of them, including eating less meat and more vegetables and fruits, and the historic sustainability recommendation, are based on a rigorous review of the science and literature,” said Bob Martin, director of Food System Policy at the Center for a Livable Future. “Congress shouldn’t ignore science-based recommendations or the thousands of public comments supporting them.”

The House Committee on Agriculture will hold hearing a on the Dietary Guidelines on Wednesday, Oct. 7.

My Plate, My Planet, an initiative launched to support the scientific recommendations of the DGAC in promoting both human health and environmental sustainability, commissioned the analysis from QUID, a data analytics firm. QUID analyzed a representative sample of the public comments and found 75 percent of them supported the sustainability and nutrition recommendations of the DGAC.

“The sheer number of comments—fourteen times the number submitted in 2010—shows overwhelming public support for the science-based recommendations linking nutrition and environmental concerns, including less meat and more plant-based foods in our diets,” said Kari Hamerschlag, senior program manager with Friends of Earth. 

My Plate, My Planet also supported a legal review of U.S Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s claim that concerns about sustainability and environmental impacts are beyond the scope of the law. 

“Our analysis of the law, including the congressional intent, clearly shows that USDA and HHS would be well within its mandate to incorporate sustainability in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans,” said public health attorney Michele Simon, who spearheaded the legal research. 

The review also found that the guiding principles of 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans -- which were approved by Secretary Vilsack -- called upon the nation to “develop and expand safe, effective, and sustainable agriculture and aquaculture practices to ensure availability of recommended amounts of healthy foods to all segments of the population.” This is clear evidence that the current call for sustainability is nothing new, but rather simply an expanded version of what Secretary Vilsack endorsed just five years ago.

Also supporting the basis for the guidelines’ incorporation of sustainability considerations is former Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan, who partnered with colleagues from Tufts and George Washington universities to author “Designing a Sustainable Diet,” published on Oct. 1 in Science magazine.

“The precedent, the law, the science and the incredible public engagement in this year’s process all point to same conclusion: Sustainability is crucial to the health of Americans and our food security, and must be included in the final guidelines,” said Stephanie Feldstein, population and sustainability director with the Center for Biological Diversity.

Since the release of the scientific report in February 2015, there has been an outpouring of public support for its sustainability recommendations including:

• A petition from 12 organizations with more than 150,000 signatories;
• An open letter from 49 major health, public interest and environmental organizations to secretaries Vilsack and Burwell; 
• A joint statement signed by more than 100 environmental and health organizations and experts in support of sustainability, less meat, and more plant-based foods in the DGA that was featured in full-page advertisements in The New York Times, Washington Post and Politico;
• A letter of support from more than 700 health professionals—including Yale University’s Dr. David Katz and Harvard University’s Dr. Walter Willett;
• A resolution adopted by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. 

My Plate, My Planet supports the scientific recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee in promoting both human health and environmental sustainability in America's official dietary policy: http://www.myplatemyplanet.org/

The John Hopkins Center for a Livable Future is the only public health school-based research and advocacy center working at the intersection of food production, public health, and the environment.

Friends of the Earth fights to create a more healthy and just world. Their current campaigns focus on promoting clean energy and solutions to climate change, ensuring the food we eat and products we use are safe and sustainable, and protecting marine ecosystems and the people who live and work near them.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 900,000 members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.