Implications of a Nutrition Driven Food Policy for the Countryside

Project Status: Ongoing
Type of Project: Research Project
Principal Investigator: Prof Bruce Traill, University of Reading (Email)
Website

Policy and Practice Notes

Objectives

Common Agricultural Policy reform is shifting farm policy away from traditional production support; meanwhile concern with diet-health relationships will move nutritional goals to the policy front-line, with major implications for food demand and land use. This work examines the potential for development of sustainable food chains capable of delivering healthy foods at prices consumers are willing to pay, and assesses the impact on land use and the rural environment and economy.

The research studies extensive livestock production systems and their effects on the fat composition of ruminant meat and dairy products. Likewise, it studies fruit and vegetable production systems, transport and storage and their effects on nutrient levels. Consumers are being surveyed to assess their attitudes, behaviour and willingness to pay for healthier and locally produced foods. The information is fed into models of demand, land use and employment and the implications of alternative policy scenarios for landscapes and biodiversity are assessed as well as the value countryside users place on those changes.

Subsidiary objectives are:

• To model the effects on consumer demand, land use, rural employment, landscape and biodiversity of the availability of domestically produced nutritionally improved fruit and vegetables, dairy and meat products.
• To assess novel production systems for soft fruit and lettuce with respect to beneficial micronutrient and phytochemical levels, examine postharvest degradation, and compare imported and domestic produce; and assess novel extensive ruminant livestock production systems for improved fatty acid composition in meat and milk.
• To estimate consumers' attitudes, behaviour and willingness to pay for local and nutritionally improved foods and use these to model the options for and implications of nutrition driven food policy for the rural economy, land use and human health.

The work is being undertaken at the University of Reading and involves a stakeholder platform comprising consumer groups, rural organisations, agricultural, food retail, food service and food production industries as well as Government scientists.

Publications

Journal Articles
Givens, D.I., Kliem, K.A. and Gibbs, R.A. (2006) ‘The role of meat as a source of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the human diet’. Meat Science 74: 209-218.

Tiffin, R., Traill, W.B. & Mortimer, S. (2006) ‘Food choice in an interdisciplinary context’. Journal of Agricultural Economics, 57, 2: 213-220.

Chambers, S., Lobb, A.E., Butler, L., Harvey, K. and Traill, W.B. (2007) “Consumer attitudes towards local, national and imported foods: a qualitative study” Appetite 49, 208-13.

García-Macías, P., Ordidge, M., Vysini, E., Waroonphan, S., Battey, N.H., Gordon, M.H., Hadley, P., John, P., Lovegrove, J.A. and Wagstaffe, A. (2007) “Changes in the flavonoid and phenolic acid content and antioxidant activity of red leaf lettuce (cv. Lollo Rosso) due to cultivation under plastic films varying in ultraviolet transparency”. Journal of Agricultural and Food Science, 55, 10168-10172

Givens, D.I. (2007) “Animal nutrition and lipids in animal products”. Annals of Nutrition and Metabolism, 51 (suppl 1), 34.

Conference Papers and Presentations

Traill, B. (2005) "Implications of a nutrition driven food policy for land use and the Rural environment" Presentation to RELU conference Rural Economy and Land Use: The Challenge for Research 19-21 Jan 2005, Birmingham.
http://www.relu.ac.uk/events/Jan05/Presentations/p4 Traill.PDF

Arnoult, M., Lobb, A. and Tiffin, R. (2006) “Consumers' attitudes towards origin, seasonality and ethical attributes of food products: an application to lamb and strawberries in the UK.” Presentation to 80th AES Conference, INA-PG, Paris, France, 30-31 March.

Garcia-Macias, P., Ordidge, M., Vysini, E., Waroonphan, S., Gordon, M.H, Lovegrove, J.A., Battey, N.H., Hadley, P., John, P. and Wagstaffe, A. (2006) “Effects of growing strawberries under UV spectral filters on phenolic content and antioxidant activity”. Presentation to the 23rd International Conference on Polyphenols, August 22-25, Winnipeg, Canada.

Hadley, P. (2006) “Overview of the application of novel films to the production of horticultural crops under protection”. Presentation to Advanced Climate Control Conference, University of Reading 27-28 September. [Organised by British Polythene Industries Visqueen Horticultural Product]

Ordidge, M. (2006) “The RELU Project – assessing the effect of uv transparent and uv blocking films on the nutritional content of soft fruit and lettuce”. Presentation to the Advanced Climate Control Conference, University of Reading 27,28 September. [Organised by British Polythene Industries Visqueen Horticultural Product].

Traill, W.B. (2006) “Are consumers willing to pay for healthier agricultural products?” Presentation to the International Food and Health Innovation Conference, Malmo, Sweden, October.

Traill, B. (2006) “Consumer sovereignty and healthy eating: dilemmas for research and policy” Presentation to Rural Economy and Land Use: Enabling Knowledge Exchange, University of Manchester, 18-20 January.

Traill, B. (2006) “Healthy eating implications for rural development” Presentation to RELU/AWM Workshop on Sustainable Food Chains and Rural and Regional Development, Birmingham, 11 May.

Wagstaffe, A. (2006) “The Soft Fruit Technology Group – the growing importance of plastic films within the sector”. Presentation to Advanced Climate Control Conference, University of Reading 27,28 September. [Organised by British Polythene Industries Visqueen Horticultural Product]

Arnoult, M.H., Lobb, A.E. and Tiffin, J.R. (2007) "The UK consumer's attitudes to, and willingness to pay for, imported foods" Presentation to 105th EAAE Seminar, Bologna, 8th -10th March.

Arnoult, M.H., Lobb, A.E., Chambers, S., Traill, W.B. and R. Tiffin (2007) “Consumers’ attitudes towards novel foods: an application to strawberries, lettuce and lamb in the UK”.  Presentation to Agricultural Economics Society 81st Annual Conference, University of Reading, 2-4 April.

Chambers, S. and Lobb, A.E. (2007) “Consumer acceptance of functional foods: soft fruit and lamb” Poster presentation to International Symposium on “Developments in Functional Foods in Europe – International Impact and Significance” Malta, 9-11 May.

Chambers, S., Lobb, A.E. and Traill, W.B. (2007) “The promotion of healthy eating: a moral dimension?” Presentation to “Setting an Ethical Agenda for Health Promotion Conference”, Ghent, Belgium, 18-20 September.

García-Macías, P., Ordidge, M., Vysini, E.,  Waroonphan, S.,  Lovegrove, J.A., Battey, N.H., Hadley, P., John, P., Wagstaffe, A. and Gordon, M.H. (2007) Presentation to “Enhancement of polyphenols in crops by exposure to UV radiation during cultivation” 3rd International Conference on Polyphenols and Health, Kyoto Japan, November.

Lobb, A.E., Chambers, S.A., Butler, L.T. and Traill, W.B. (2007) “Consumers’ attitudes and motivations towards diet and health”.  Presentation to the 3rd International Consumer Sciences Research Conference 27-29 June 2007.

Trail, W.B. (2007) Trends in healthy eating and the possible implications for our diet, UK agriculture and the countryside. ESRC data archive event in Leeds as part of Social Science week

Traill, B. (2007) “Should consumers be allowed to make their own food choices?”  Relu Debates on Power and Responsibility: Who Decides: You Decide, Royal Academy of Engineering, London. March.

Traill, W.B. (2007) “Can changing the way we grow food make our diets more nutritious?”  Presentation to Relu Conference “Unlocking change in the food chain”, London, 7 November.

Traill, W.B., Chambers, S., Arnoult, M.H., Lobb, A., and Tiffin, J.R. (2007) “Consumers’ willingness to pay for innovative healthy agricultural products” Presentation to 5th International MAPP Workshop on Consumer Behaviour and Food Marketing, Middelfart, Denmark, 8-9 May.

Wagstaffe, A. and Battey, N.H. (2007) “Tunnel production of strawberries in the UK: a review” Presentation to 6th International Strawberry Symposium, Ventura, California, USA, International Society of Horticultural Science, February 9-12.

Conference Proceedings
Kliem, K.E., Deaville, E.R., Morgan, R. and Givens, D.I. (2006). “Do biodiverse pastures have the potential to improve the fatty acid profile of ruminant meat?” Proceedings of the British Grassland Society 8th Research Conference, Cirencester, 4-6 September 2006, pp. 87-88. [Awarded best poster presentation].

Working Papers and Briefing Papers
Traill, B. (2006) “Extensive ruminant production systems for healthy fatty acid profiles: summary of approach and research results for year 1”. Report 5, University of Reading, May.

Traill, B. (2006) “Food consumption changes in the UK under compliance with dietary guidelines” Report 2, University of Reading, June.

Traill, B. (2006) “Phytochemical rich soft fruit and lettuce: summary of research and research results in year 1”. Report 4 University of Reading, May.

Traill, B. (2006) “Willingness to pay for and consumers attitudes to local, national and imported foods: a UK survey” Report 3, University of Reading, June.

Arnoult, M.H. and Tiffin, R. (2007) Report 7.  “Econometric models of nutrient demand”, June.

Arnoult, M.H., Lobb, A.E., Chambers, S.A., Traill W.B. & Tiffin, R.  (2007) Report 9: “Consumers’ willingness to pay for functional agricultural foods”, June.

Battey, N., Garcia Macias, P., Gordon, M., Hadley, P., John, P., Lovegrove, J. and
Braendle, J. (2007) “A linear programming framework for integrated floodplain management”  MSc thesis. Cranfield University.

Chambers, S.A., Lobb, A.E., Butler, L.T. and Traill, W.B.(2007) Report 8.  “Attitudes and behaviour towards healthy eating: focus groups”, June.

Deaville, E.R., Kliem, K.E. and Givens, D.I. (2007) Report 11: “Extensive ruminant production systems for fatty acid profiles”, May.

Jones, P. J. and Tranter, R. B. (2007) Report 13: “Modelling the impact of different policy scenarios on farm business management, land use and rural employment”, June.

Ordidge, M., Vysini E. and Wagstaffe, A. (2007) Report 10. “Phytochemical-rich soft fruit and lettuce”, May. http://www.relu.rdg.ac.uk/Working%20Papers%20and%20Reports/Doc10WP3Rep02%20annual%202007.pdf

Tzanopoulos, J. and Mortimer, S. (2997) Report 12: “Assessment of impacts of land use change on biodiversity, landscape and the rural environment”, June.