Safe Food Supply Chain as Health Network: An Evolutionary Game Analysis of Behavior Strategy for Quality Investment

There is a natural relation between human health and the quality of their food and drinks, and elevating the quality input level of food production for all enterprises within the food supply chain system forms the foundation for preventing various potential food safety risks that may be encountered. Unlike the previous research on quality investment of food production by enterprises, this paper probes into the evolutionary routes of the behavior strategy selection of subjects in the food supply chain and the preconditions for the equilibrium points of the social co-governance system. It takes the approach of establishing a tripartite evolutionary game model of food suppliers, food manufacturers and consumers on the basis of the social co-governance framework, in view of the above, this paper focuses on the influence of the reputation mechanism and the market contracts among supply chain subjects on the selection of a behavior strategy for quality investment by enterprises under the condition of lawful regulation by government. The results show that every subject selects their own behavior strategy on the basis of the balance of their respective interests. The net disbursement incurred by enterprises for quality investment and the costs of participation in governance by consumers constitute the dominant factors that influence both enterprises' selection of a behavior strategy and the level of social co-governance. Compared with the increase in economic punishment imposed on suppliers for production of risky food raw materials, it is more efficient to control food safety risks by lowering the costs of quality investment by suppliers. Accordingly, this paper proposes advice on policy in an attempt to provide inspiration for preventing and controlling food safety risks.

Effects of operating conditions on biogas production in an anaerobic digestion system of the food and beverage industry

BACKGROUND

Food residuals (FR) were anaerobically biotransformed to produce biogases (e.g. methane and hydrogen), and different pre-treatment conditions, including particle size, oil content, pH and salt content, were controlled in this study. The bio-solids of a municipal solid waste (MSW) from a wastewater treatment plant were added to assess its effect on anaerobic transformation efficiency and gas yields.

RESULTS

The breaking of FR and the application of MSW were effective in enhancing the transformation efficiency and yield of biogases. The energy transfer efficiency value of the combined FRs used in this study was probably 23%. However, it can be very cost effective to apply arbitrary proportions to treat two types of FR in the anaerobic digestion tank of a wastewater treatment plant. It was also found that the alkalinity and pH value were two major parameters that controlled the success of the transformation. About 0.16-0.17 kg of alkalinity was needed during the anaerobic digestion of 1 kg dry FR, but this requirement was decreased by the treatment applying MSW. Olive oil had higher reducing rates when used as a substitute for heat-oxidized oil to study the effect of oil content on methylation.

CONCLUSION

The conditions for anaerobic digestion established in this study were practical for the digestion of FR in wastewater treatment plants in Taiwan. However, we nonetheless found that it was cost effective to use arbitrary proportions for both types of FR and integrate the anaerobic digestion process used in wastewater treatment plants. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

On the benefits and challenges of blockchains for managing food supply chains

The expansion of the food industry, within and beyond national borders, has resulted in complex collaborative networks and supply chains. The management culture adopted for food supply chains has an impact on the quality of the end product and the vitality of the businesses involved. In this report, we focus on the use of blockchain technology, and distributed ledgers in general, for managing supply chains in the food and agricultural sectors. We explore the challenges with which typical management systems are faced, such as food safety, food fraud, and inefficient processes, as well as ethical aspects like fair trade, animal welfare, and the environmental impact of food production. The use of blockchain-based systems for managing a supply chain offers significant benefits, such as faster and more reliable traceability. Our analysis, involving small and medium enterprises (SMEs) from Denmark, highlights that SMEs could benefit from blockchain-based systems that encourage fair trade and authenticity documentation, expose good practices, and decrease management costs. However, due to a lack of important policies and standards, and due to the limited understanding of the technology itself, its large-scale adoption is at the moment immature. © 2020 Society of Chemical Industry.

Changes in soft drinks purchased by British households associated with the UK soft drinks industry levy: controlled interrupted time series analysis

OBJECTIVE

To determine changes in household purchases of drinks and confectionery one year after implementation of the UK soft drinks industry levy (SDIL).

DESIGN

Controlled interrupted time series analysis.

PARTICIPANTS

Members of a panel of households reporting their purchasing on a weekly basis to a market research company (average weekly number of participants n=22 183), March 2014 to March 2019.

INTERVENTION

A two tiered tax levied on manufacturers of soft drinks, announced in March 2016 and implemented in April 2018. Drinks with ≥8 g sugar/100 mL (high tier) are taxed at £0.24/L and drinks with ≥5 to <8 g sugar/100 mL (low tier) are taxed at £0.18/L. Drinks with <5 g sugar/100 mL (no levy) are not taxed.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Absolute and relative differences in the volume of, and amount of sugar in, soft drinks categories, all soft drinks combined, alcohol, and confectionery purchased per household per week one year after implementation of the SDIL compared with trends before the announcement of the SDIL.

RESULTS

In March 2019, compared with the counterfactual estimated from pre-announcement trends, purchased volume of drinks in the high levy tier decreased by 155 mL (95% confidence interval 240.5 to 69.5 mL) per household per week, equivalent to 44.3% (95% confidence interval 59.9% to 28.7%), and sugar purchased in these drinks decreased by 18.0 g (95% confidence interval 32.3 to 3.6 g), or 45.9% (68.8% to 22.9%). Purchases of low tier drinks decreased by 177.3 mL (225.3 to 129.3 mL) per household per week, or 85.9% (95.1% to 76.7%), with a 12.5 g (15.4 to 9.5 g) reduction in sugar in these drinks, equivalent to 86.2% (94.2% to 78.1%). Despite no overall change in volume of no levy drinks purchased, there was an increase in sugar purchased of 15.3 g (12.6 to 17.9 g) per household per week, equivalent to 166.4% (94.2% to 238.5%). When all soft drinks were combined, the volume of drinks purchased did not change, but sugar decreased by 29.5 g (55.8 to 3.1 g), or 9.8% (17.9% to 1.8%). Purchases of confectionery and alcoholic drinks did not change.

CONCLUSIONS

Compared with trends before the SDIL was announced, one year after implementation, the volume of soft drinks purchased did not change. The amount of sugar in those drinks was 30 g, or 10%, lower per household per week-equivalent to one 250 mL serving of a low tier drink per person per week. The SDIL might benefit public health without harming industry.

TRIAL REGISTRATION

ISRCTN18042742.

Estimated health benefits, costs, and cost-effectiveness of eliminating industrial trans-fatty acids in Australia: A modelling study

BACKGROUND

trans-fatty acids (TFAs) are a well-known risk factor of ischemic heart disease (IHD). In Australia, the highest TFA intake is concentrated to the most socioeconomically disadvantaged groups. Elimination of industrial TFA (iTFA) from the Australian food supply could result in reduced IHD mortality and morbidity while improving health equity. However, such legislation could lead to additional costs for both government and food industry. Thus, we assessed the potential cost-effectiveness, health gains, and effects on health equality of an iTFA ban from the Australian food supply.

METHODS AND FINDINGS

Markov cohort models were used to estimate the impact on IHD burden and health equity, as well as the cost-effectiveness of a national ban of iTFA in Australia. Intake of TFA was assessed using the 2011-2012 Australian National Nutrition and Physical Activity Survey. The IHD burden attributable to TFA was calculated by comparing the current level of TFA intake to a counterfactual setting where consumption was lowered to a theoretical minimum distribution with a mean of 0.5% energy per day (corresponding to TFA intake only from nonindustrial sources, e.g., dairy foods). Policy costs, avoided IHD events and deaths, health-adjusted life years (HALYs) gained, and changes in IHD-related healthcare costs saved were estimated over 10 years and lifetime of the adult Australian population. Cost-effectiveness was assessed by calculation of incremental cost-effectiveness ratios (ICERs) using net policy cost and HALYs gained. Health benefits and healthcare cost changes were also assessed in subgroups based on socioeconomic status, defined by Socio-Economic Indexes for Areas (SEIFA) quintile, and remoteness. Compared to a base case of no ban and current TFA intakes, elimination of iTFA was estimated to prevent 2,294 (95% uncertainty interval [UI]: 1,765; 2,851) IHD deaths and 9,931 (95% UI: 8,429; 11,532) IHD events over the first 10 years. The greatest health benefits were accrued to the most socioeconomically disadvantaged quintiles and among Australians living outside of major cities. The intervention was estimated to be cost saving (net cost <0 AUD) or cost-effective (i.e., ICER < AUD 169,361/HALY) regardless of the time horizon, with ICERs of 1,073 (95% UI: dominant; 3,503) and 1,956 (95% UI: 1,010; 2,750) AUD/HALY over 10 years and lifetime, respectively. Findings were robust across several sensitivity analyses. Key limitations of the study include the lack of recent data of TFA intake and the small sample sizes used to estimate intakes in subgroups. As with all simulation models, our study does not prove that a ban of iTFA will prevent IHD, rather, it provides the best quantitative estimates and corresponding uncertainty of a potential effect in the absence of stronger direct evidence.

CONCLUSIONS

Our model estimates that a ban of iTFAs could avert substantial numbers of IHD events and deaths in Australia and would likely be a highly cost-effective strategy to reduce social-economic and urban-rural inequalities in health. These findings suggest that elimination of iTFA can cost-effectively improve health and health equality even in countries with low iTFA intake.

An analysis of the stock market reaction to the announcements of the UK Soft Drinks Industry Levy

On 16^th March 2016, the government of the United Kingdom announced the Soft Drinks Industry Levy (SDIL), under which UK soft-drink manufacturers were to be taxed according to the volume of products with added sugar they produced or imported. We use 'event study' methodology to assess the likely financial effect of the SDIL on parts of the soft drinks industry, using stock returns of four UK-operating soft-drink firms listed on the London Stock Exchange. We found that three of the four firms experienced negative abnormal stock returns on the day of announcement. A cross-sectional analysis revealed that the cumulative abnormal returns of soft drink stocks were not significantly less than that of other food and drinks-related stocks beyond the day of the SDIL announcement. Our findings suggest that the SDIL announcement was initially perceived as detrimental news by the market but negative stock returns were short-lived, indicating a lack of major concerns for industry. There was limited evidence of a negative stock market reaction to the two subsequent announcements: release of draft legislation on 5^th December 2016, and confirmation of the tax rates on 8^th March 2017.

Parents' Perceptions and Responses to the UK Soft Drinks Industry Levy

OBJECTIVE

To record parents' awareness of the UK soft drinks industry levy (SDIL) and explore associations between negative psychological reactance to the levy and motivation and intentions to change consumption and purchasing.

METHODS

A cross-sectional online survey with UK-based parents of children aged 5-11 years (n = 237). Regression analyses were used to test associations between psychosocial responses to the levy and behavioral intentions to change family consumption and purchasing.

RESULTS

A total of 92% of responding parents were aware of the SDIL. Of the responding parents, 57% supported its aims, but 29% felt it threatened their freedom of choice. A total of 41% expressed intention to change shopping habits or restrict their child's intake as a result. Reactance and motivation were poorer in low-income families, and intentions to change were positively predicted by motivation.

CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS

This snapshot suggests that the UK SDIL is largely supported by parents and associated with intentions to change their children's intake.

The Alcohol Marketing Landscape: Alcohol Industry Size, Structure, Strategies, and Public Health Responses

OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this study is to inform public health efforts to reduce alcohol-related harm by describing the alcohol marketing landscape. We review the size, structure, and strategies of both the U.S. national and global alcohol industries and their principal marketing activities and expenditures and provide a summary of public health responses.

METHOD

Primary data were obtained from advertising and alcohol industry market research firms and were supplemented by searches of peer-reviewed literature, business press, and online databases on global business and trade.

RESULTS

Worldwide, alcohol sales totaled more than $1.5 trillion in 2017. Control of alcoholic beverage production and marketing is concentrated globally in the hands of a small number of firms. The oligopoly structure of the producing industry helps to generate high profits per dollar invested relative to other industries, which in turn fund marketing expenditures that function as barriers to entry by other firms. Advertising expenditures are high and advertising is widespread. Stakeholder marketing and corporate social responsibility campaigns assist in maintaining a policy environment conducive to extensive alcohol marketing activity. The most common regulatory response has been alcohol industry self-regulation; statutory public health responses have made little progress in recent years and have lagged behind industry innovation in digital and social marketing.

CONCLUSIONS

Alcohol marketing is widespread globally and a structural element of the alcoholic beverage industry. Given the level of alcohol-related harm worldwide, global and regional recommendations and best practices should be used to guide policy makers in effective regulation of alcohol marketing.

A review on blockchain applications in the agri-food sector

BACKGROUND

Food security can benefit from the technology's transparency, relatively low transaction costs and instantaneous applications. A blockchain is a distributed database of records in the form of encrypted blocks, or a public ledger of all transactions or digital events that have been executed and shared among participating parties and can be verified at any time in the future. Generally, the robust and decentralized functionality of the blockchain is used for global financial systems, but it can easily be expanded to contracts and operations such as tracking of the global supply chain. In the precision agriculture context, Information and Communications Technology can be further implemented with a blockchain infrastructure to enable new farm systems and e-agriculture schemes.

RESULTS

The purpose of this review is to show a panorama of the scientific studies (enriched by a terms mapping analysis) on the use of blockchain in the agri-food sector, from both an entirely computational and an applicative point of view. As evidenced by the network analysis, the reviewed studies mainly focused on software aspects (e.g. the architecture and smart contracts). However, some aspects regarding the different blockchain knots (computers always connected to the blockchain network) having the role to store and distribute an updated copy of each block in a food supply-chain, result of crucial importance.

CONCLUSION

These technologies appear very promising and rich of great potential showing a good flexibility for applications in several sectors but still immature and hard to apply due to their complexity. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry.

Application of Immobilized Enzymes in Food Industry

Enzymes are macromolecular biocatalysts, widely used in food industry. In applications, enzymes are often immobilized on inert and insoluble carriers, which increase their efficiency due to multiple reusability. The properties of immobilized enzymes depend on the immobilization method and the carrier type. The choice of the carrier usually concerns the biocompatibility, chemical and thermal stability, insolubility under reaction conditions, capability of easy regeneration and reusability, as well as cost efficiency. In this review, we provide an overview of various carriers for enzyme immobilization, with the primary focus on food industry.

Sponsorship of national and regional professional paediatrics associations by companies that make breast-milk substitutes: evidence from a review of official websites

OBJECTIVES

Professional paediatrics associations play an important role in promoting the highest standard of care for women and children. Education and guidelines must be made in the best interests of patients. Given the importance of breastfeeding for the health, development and survival of infants, children and mothers, paediatric associations have a particular responsibility to avoid conflicts of interest with companies that manufacture breast-milk substitutes (BMSs). The objective of this study was to investigate the extent to which national and regional paediatric associations are sponsored by BMS companies.

METHODS

Data were collected on national paediatric associations based on online searches of websites and Facebook pages. Sites were examined for evidence of financial sponsorship by the BMS industry, including funding of journals, newsletters or other publications, conferences and events, scholarships, fellowship, grants and awards. Payment for services, such as exhibitor space at conferences or events and paid advertisements in publications, was also noted.

RESULTS

Overall, 68 (60%) of the 114 paediatric associations with a website or Facebook account documented receiving financial support from BMS companies. Sponsorship, particularly of conferences or other events, was the most common type of financial support. The prevalence of conference sponsorship is highest in Europe and the Americas, where about half of the associations have BMS company-sponsored conferences. Thirty-one associations (27%) indicated that they received funding from BMS companies as payment for advertisements or exhibitor space. Only 18 associations (16%) have conflict of interest policies, guidelines, or criteria posted online.

CONCLUSION

Despite the well-documented importance of breastfeeding and the widespread recognition that commercial influences can shape the behaviours of healthcare professionals, national and regional paediatric associations commonly accept funding from companies that manufacture and distribute BMS. Paediatric associations should function without the influence of commercial interests.

The effects of network topology, climate variability and shocks on the evolution and resilience of a food trade network

Future climate change will impose increased variability on food production and food trading networks. However, the effect of climate variability and sudden shocks on resource availability through trade and its subsequent effect on population growth is largely unknown. Here we study the effect of resource variability and network topology on access to resources and population growth, using a model of population growth limited by resource availability in a trading network. Resources are redistributed in the network based on supply and the distance between nodes (i.e. cities or countries). Resources at nodes vary over time with wave parameters that mimic changes in biomass production arising from known climate variability. Random perturbations to resources are applied to study resilience of individual nodes and the system as a whole. The model demonstrates that redistribution of resources increases the maximum population that can be supported (carrying capacity) by the network. Fluctuations in carrying capacity depend on the amplitude and frequency of resource variability: fluctuations become larger for increasing amplitude and decreasing frequency. Our study shows that topology is the key factor determining the carrying capacity of a node. In larger networks the carrying capacity increases and the distribution of resources in the network becomes more equal. The most central nodes achieve a higher carrying capacity than nodes with a lower centrality. Moreover, central nodes are less susceptible to long-term resource variability and shocks. These insights can be used to understand how worldwide equitable access to resources can be maintained under increasing climate variability.

Outbreaks of Disease Associated with Food Imported into the United States, 1996-20141

The proportion of US food that is imported is increasing; most seafood and half of fruits are imported. We identified a small but increasing number of foodborne disease outbreaks associated with imported foods, most commonly fish and produce. New outbreak investigation tools and federal regulatory authority are key to maintaining food safety.

Process Evaluation and Costing of a Multifaceted Population-Wide Intervention to Reduce Salt Consumption in Fiji

This paper reports the process evaluation and costing of a national salt reduction intervention in Fiji. The population-wide intervention included engaging food industry to reduce salt in foods, strategic health communication and a hospital program. The evaluation showed a 1.4 g/day drop in salt intake from the 11.7 g/day at baseline; however, this was not statistically significant. To better understand intervention implementation, we collated data to assess intervention fidelity, reach, context and costs. Government and management changes affected intervention implementation, meaning fidelity was relatively low. There was no active mechanism for ensuring food companies adhered to the voluntary salt reduction targets. Communication activities had wide reach but most activities were one-off, meaning the overall dose was low and impact on behavior limited. Intervention costs were moderate (FJD $277,410 or $0.31 per person) but the strategy relied on multi-sector action which was not fully operationalised. The cyclone also delayed monitoring and likely impacted the results. However, 73% of people surveyed had heard about the campaign and salt reduction policies have been mainstreamed into government programs. Longer-term monitoring of salt intake is planned through future surveys and lessons from this process evaluation will be used to inform future strategies in the Pacific Islands and globally.

Orientation of Agri-Food Companies to CSR and Consumer Perception: A Survey on Two Italian Companies

BACKGROUND

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is the most important tool for implementing Sustainability Guidelines for Business (US20030018487A1), delivering economic, social and environmental benefits for all the stakeholders and is currently the focus of international studies and debates (US7260559B1), especially in the agri-food sector as demonstrated by recent patents (CA2862273A1). In most agri-food businesses operating in Italy, there is little effectiveness in the communication strategies of this instrument to the stakeholders since they are often not advanced.

METHODS

Identifying the first two food companies in the European ranking of the 6th CSR Online Awards, through an empirical survey on consumers, their level of perception of the CSR strategies communication of these companies will be analyzed.

RESULTS

In both case studies analyzed, there is the presence of a Sustainability Orientation and the evolution of CSR tools within such companies and their promotion and communication to all the stakeholders. Despite this, the level of perception of respondents on the CSR strategies communication of these companies and the promotion of CSR instruments is not optimal.

CONCLUSION

The interviewed consumers have not enriched their knowledge on CSR due to the lack of an adequate communication strategy for both case studies. Consequently, to raise awareness on the subject, there is still a great deal of cooperation needed between public institutions, local communities, businesses and citizens.

Minimising food waste: a call for multidisciplinary research

Food losses and waste have always been a significant global problem for mankind, and one which has become increasingly recognised as such by policy makers, food producers, processors, retailers, and consumers. It is, however, an emotive subject whereby the extent, accuracy and resolution of available data on postharvest loss and waste are questionable, such that key performance indicators on waste can be misinformed. The nature and extent of food waste differ among developed economies, economies in transition and developing countries. While most emphasis has been put on increasing future crop production, far less resource has been and is still channelled towards enabling both established and innovative food preservation technologies to reduce food waste while maintaining safety and quality. Reducing food loss and waste is a more tractable problem than increasing production in the short to medium term, as its solution is not directly limited, for instance, by available land and water resources. Here we argue the need for a paradigm shift of current funding strategies and research programmes that will encourage the development, implementation and translation of collective biological, engineering and management solutions to better preserve and utilise food. Such multidisciplinary thinking across global supply chains is an essential element in the pursuit of achieving sustainable food and nutritional security. The implementation of allied technological and management solutions is reliant on there being sufficient skilled human capital and resources. There is currently a lack of robust postharvest research networks outside of the developed world, and insufficient global funding mechanisms that can support such interdisciplinary collaborations. There is, thus, a collective need for schemes that encourage inter-supply chain research, knowledge exchange and capacity building to reduce food losses and waste. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Exploring sales data during a healthy corner store intervention in Toronto: the Food Retail Environments Shaping Health (FRESH) project

INTRODUCTION

Population health interventions in the retail food environment, such as corner store interventions, aim to influence the kind of cues consumers receive so that they are more often directed toward healthier options. Research that addresses financial aspects of retail interventions, particularly using outcome measures such as store sales that are central to retail decision making, is limited. This study explored store sales over time and across product categories during a healthy corner store intervention in a lowincome neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario.

METHODS

Sales data (from August 2014 to April 2015) were aggregated by product category and by day. We used Microsoft Excel pivot tables to summarize and visually present sales data. We conducted t-tests to examine differences in product category sales by "peak" versus "nonpeak" sales days.

RESULTS

Overall store sales peaked on the days at the end of each month, aligned with the issuing of social assistance payments. Revenue spikes on peak sales days were driven predominantly by transit pass sales. On peak sales days, mean sales of nonnutritious snacks and cigarettes were marginally higher than on other days of the month. Finally, creative strategies to increase sales of fresh vegetables and fruits seemed to substantially increase revenue from these product categories.

CONCLUSION

Store sales data is an important store-level metric of food environment intervention success. Furthermore, data-driven decision making by retailers can be important for tailoring interventions. Future interventions and research should consider partnerships and additional success metrics for retail food environment interventions in diverse Canadian contexts.

Environmental assessment of the entire pork value chain in Catalonia - A strategy to work towards Circular Economy

Pork industry in Catalonia plays a foremost and representative role in the Spanish pork sector. Beyond the economic benefits, conventional practices in the pork industry also imply a number of environmental impacts that need to be dealt with. In this context, the environmental performance of traditional linear pork chain in Catalonia was evaluated through a LCA approach. The outcomes of the analysis showed that both fodder production and transport activities were identified as the critical stages of the system. Accordingly, alternative schemes based on circular economy principles were proposed and potential environmental credits were estimated. Within this framework, comparative results highlighted the advantages of moving towards a closing loop production system, where resource efficiency and waste valorisation were prioritised over final disposal options.

What happens to drinking when alcohol policy changes? A review of five natural experiments for alcohol taxes, prices, and availability

Natural experiments are an important alternative to observational and econometric studies. This paper provides a review of results from empirical studies of alcohol policy interventions in five countries: Denmark, Finland, Hong Kong, Sweden, and Switzerland. Major policy changes were removal of quotas on travelers' tax-free imports and reductions in alcohol taxes. A total of 29 primary articles are reviewed, which contain 35 sets of results for alcohol consumption by various subpopulations and time periods. For each country, the review summarizes and examines: (1) history of tax/quota policy interventions and price changes; (2) graphical trends for alcohol consumption and liver disease mortality; and (3) empirical results for policy effects on alcohol consumption and drinking patterns. We also compare cross-country results for three select outcomes-binge drinking, alcohol consumption by youth and young adults, and heavy consumption by older adults. Overall, we find a lack of consistent results for consumption both within- and across-countries, with a general finding that alcohol tax interventions had selective, rather than broad, impacts on subpopulations and drinking patterns. Policy implications of these findings are discussed.

Between a rock and a hard place: Economic expansion and social responsibility in UK media discourses on the global alcohol industry

CONTEXT

Transnational alcohol corporations (TACs) employ a range of strategies to achieve their business objectives, including attempts to frame perceptions of their activities in media debates. TACs aim to achieve a favourable regulatory environment by presenting themselves as socially responsible actors. However, the need to secure financial investment means they must also emphasise their potential for growth. This article investigates tensions between these objectives in coverage of the global alcohol industry in the UK print media.

METHODS

This article examines coverage of the world's four largest TACs in five British daily newspapers and one industry publication between March 2012 and February 2013. 477 articles were identified for analysis through keyword searches of the LexisNexis database. Thematic coding of articles was conducted using Nvivo software.

FINDINGS

Two conflicting framings of the alcohol industry emerge from our analysis. The first presents TACs as socially responsible actors; key partners to government in reducing alcohol-related harms. This is targeted at policy-makers and the public in an attempt to shape policy debates. The second framing highlights TACs' potential for economic growth by establishing new markets and identifying new customer bases. This is targeted at an audience of potential investors.

CONCLUSIONS

A fundamental contradiction lies at the heart of these framings, reflecting the tensions that exist between TACs' political and financial strategies. Alcohol industry involvement in policy-making thus involves a fundamental conflict of interests. Consequently, the UK government should reassess the prominence it currently affords to the industry in the development and delivery of alcohol policy.

Tax on sugar sweetened beverages in Spain

This article provides a critical review about the challenges that taxes on sugary drinks as an instrument of health policy must face to reverse the trend of the current epidemics of obesity. We analyzed the experiences of the leading countries, particularly Mexico, and reflect on the counterweight exerted by the industry against obesity policies, and on the power of lobbyists. Those tax policies for public health have to overcome the enormous strength of the industry, which is exerted in several-science and research, brand reputation, influence on regulators-levels. We suggest that a specific tax on sugary drinks has enough potential to reduce noncommunicable diseases and risk -diabetes, Hypertriglyceridemia, hyperholesterolemia LDL, hypertension- via reduced consumption thanks to the high price elasticity of those drinks. Furthermore, the effects are amplified even in the medium term, once established new habits to healthier eating. These taxes could encourage business innovation without inflicting costs of lost jobs and contribute to reducing the social gradient in obesity.

Waste management under a life cycle approach as a tool for a circular economy in the canned anchovy industry

The anchovy canning industry has high importance in the Cantabria Region (North Spain) from economic, social and touristic points of view. The Cantabrian canned anchovy is world-renowned owing to its handmade and traditional manufacture. The canning process generates huge amounts of several food wastes, whose suitable management can contribute to benefits for both the environment and the economy, closing the loop of the product life cycle. Life cycle assessment methodology was used in this work to assess the environmental performance of two waste management alternatives: Head and spine valorisation to produce fishmeal and fish oil; and anchovy meat valorisation to produce anchovy paste. Fuel oil production has been a hotspot of the valorisation of heads and spines, so several improvements should be applied. With respect to anchovy meat valorisation, the production of polypropylene and glass for packaging was the least environmentally friendly aspect of the process. Furthermore, the environmental characterisation of anchovy waste valorisation was compared with incineration and landfilling alternatives. In both cases, the valorisation management options were the best owing to the avoided burdens associated with the processes. Therefore, it is possible to contribute to the circular economy in the Cantabrian canned anchovy industry.

Bush Supersizes Effort to Weaken the World Health Organization

Obesity has reached global epidemic levels, and two-thirds of Americans are now either obese or overweight. But the U.S. government, along with the powerful food industry, is trying to thwart the World Health Organization's efforts, through its proposed Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity, and Health, to make even the most commonsense recommendations on diet.

United States Accused of Sabotaging Obesity Strategy

In early 2004, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services disputed some of the scientific evidence underlying the World Health Organization's proposals for curbing obesity. Critics of the DHHS position suggest that it puts the interests of the junk food industry ahead of people's health.

Preventing type 2 diabetes: Changing the food industry

Improving our global diet by working with the food industry is a fairly complex task. Previously the global food manufacturing companies and governments were the major players. However, matters have shifted rapidly so that food retailers, food manufacturers, the restaurant-food service sector, and agribusinesses are now the major players. The current modern system of packaged processed food has now penetrated the globe-rich and poor, rural and urban are all in reach of this food system. Consequently, working with this complex sector when possible and an array of governmental regulatory large-scale options to improve our diet have increased in importance. Taxation of unhealthy foods and beverages, marketing controls, and front of the package labeling are the primary current options. Evaluations of the impacts of both public and industry initiatives are needed.

Synergy between bio-based industry and the feed industry through biorefinery

Processing biomass into multi-functional components can contribute to the increasing demand for raw materials for feed and bio-based non-food products. This contribution aims to demonstrate synergy between the bio-based industry and the feed industry through biorefinery of currently used feed ingredients. Illustrating the biorefinery concept, rapeseed was selected as a low priced feed ingredient based on market prices versus crude protein, crude fat and apparent ileal digestible lysine content. In addition it is already used as an alternative protein source in diets and can be cultivated in European climate zones. Furthermore, inclusion level of rapeseed meal in pig diet is limited because of its nutritionally active factors. A conceptual process was developed to improve rapeseeds nutritional value and producing other bio-based building blocks simultaneously. Based on the correlation between market prices of feed ingredients and its protein and fat content, the value of refined products was estimated. Finally, a sensitivity analysis, under two profit scenario, shows that the process is economically feasible. This study demonstrates that using biorefinery processes on feed ingredients can improve feed quality. In conjunction, it produces building blocks for a bio-based industry and creates synergy between bio-based and feed industry for more efficient use of biomass. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry.

COMPANION ANIMALS SYMPOSIUM: Future aspects and perceptions of companion animal nutrition and sustainability

Companion animals play an important role in our lives and are now considered to be and treated as family members in a majority of households in the United States. Because of the high number of pets that now exist, an increasingly stronger pet-human bond, and the importance placed on health and longevity, the pet food industry has realized steady growth over the last few decades. Despite past successes and opportunities that exist in the future, there are also challenges that must be considered. This review will present a brief overview of the current pet food industry and address some of the key issues moving forward. In regards to companion animal research, recent advances and future needs in the areas of canine and feline metabolism, aging, clinical disease, and the gut microbiome using molecular and high-throughput assays; chemical, in vitro, and in vivo testing of feed ingredients; and innovative pet food processing methods is discussed. Training the future workforce for the pet food industry is also of great importance. Recent trends on student demographics and their species and careers of interest, changing animal science department curricula, and technology's impact on instruction are provided. Finally, the sustainability of the pet food industry is discussed. Focus was primarily placed on the disconnect that exists between opinions and trends of consumers and the nutrient recommendations for dogs and cats, the desire for increasing use of animal-based and human-grade products, the overfeeding of pets and the pet obesity crisis, and the issues that involve the evaluation of primary vs. secondary products in terms of sustainability. Moving forward, the pet food industry will need to anticipate and address challenges that arise, especially those pertaining to consumer expectations, the regulatory environment, and sustainability. Given the already strong and increasingly dynamic market for pet foods and supplies, an academic environment primed to supply a skilled workforce, and continued industry support for basic and applied research initiatives, the future of the pet food industry looks very bright.

Why invest, and what it will take to improve breastfeeding practices?

Despite its established benefits, breastfeeding is no longer a norm in many communities. Multifactorial determinants of breastfeeding need supportive measures at many levels, from legal and policy directives to social attitudes and values, women's work and employment conditions, and health-care services to enable women to breastfeed. When relevant interventions are delivered adequately, breastfeeding practices are responsive and can improve rapidly. The best outcomes are achieved when interventions are implemented concurrently through several channels. The marketing of breastmilk substitutes negatively affects breastfeeding: global sales in 2014 of US$44·8 billion show the industry's large, competitive claim on infant feeding. Not breastfeeding is associated with lower intelligence and economic losses of about $302 billion annually or 0·49% of world gross national income. Breastfeeding provides short-term and long-term health and economic and environmental advantages to children, women, and society. To realise these gains, political support and financial investment are needed to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.