Sustainable nutrition: EIT Food and Foundation Earth announce new impact data alliance

07 Aug 2024 --- The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) Food will soon launch a new International Alliance for Food Impact Data with Foundation Earth to develop and test environmental impact data on food. The alliance aims to transform the environmental credentials of the food sector, aiming for a sector that benefits human and planetary health.

Foundation Earth is an independent NGO working with major F&B companies to issue front-of-pack environmental scores on food products and is now integrating with EIT Food.

The International Alliance for Food Impact Data addresses the need for more coordination between EU and international stakeholders. This is outlined as a hurdle to the roll-out of environmental scoring standards for the F&B industry.

“The alliance aims to contribute to policy that is informed with data, real-life results and mission-led models for transformational change. Through this, the alliance will ultimately aim to help deliver on EIT Food’s Missions and accelerate innovation to build a future-fit food system that produces healthy and sustainable food for all,” Foundation Earth CEO Cliona Howie tells Nutrition Insight.

“Governance structure for verification and quality assurance on application of method are key to ensuring credibility, rigor and building trust.”

Environmental impact data
The International Alliance for Food Impact Data sets out to leverage environmental impact data to transform food systems, as it facilitates informed decision-making across value chains. It also enables environmental and sustainability reporting and the development of front-of-pack labeling for consumers.

“The alliance will build on existing knowledge of science-based standards, environmental impact assessment guidelines, international standards and the great work thus far by the many organizations and experts within the food sector working on this topic,” asserts Howie. 

The new initiative addresses the lack of coherence in the methodologies and labels used globally, which makes it difficult for policymakers, companies and consumers to adequately compare products based on their environmental impact. 

The EU still lacks coordination on front-of-pack environmental scores for food products.The two organizations argue that the food industry must improve its approach to environmental data, scoring and governance if it is to meet its net-zero commitments.

Howie says that the alliance plans to engage with different stakeholders, including policymakers, food producers and consumers, to develop the new standards. “The concept of developing standards and scientific methods that are commercially viable requires the broad engagement of diverse actors across the food system.”

“This is where the alliance can build a trusted and useful governance structure to deliver positive impact.”

EU Green Claims Directive
There are no coherent standards on an EU level either, according to EIT Food and Foundation Earth. The entities note a lack of coordination and management by any EU-level organization, despite this being a requisite recently set out by the EU Green Claims Directive.

Discussing how the alliance will align with and influence the EU Green Claims Directive and other related EU policies, Howie states: “One of the cornerstones of Foundation Earth has been its ability to work with industry to carry out in-depth testing, while EIT Food has a long history of working with stakeholders across the food system.”

“This knowledge and learning will be brought into the mission of the alliance to ensure that standards are built in line with upcoming policy, as well as offering industry insight and feedback to policymakers in a constructive and collaborative mechanism of knowledge sharing.” 

Jago Pearson, outgoing chairman of Foundation Earth, adds: “Over the last three years, Foundation Earth has led the European-wide drive toward the environmental scoring of food and drink products. Our work now provides the building blocks for providing consumers with the information they need to make more environmentally-friendly buying choices and food producers with the credible information they need to innovate in a more sustainable way.

The EU is still yet to adopt a unified front-of-pack nutrition scoring system, as the topic has sparked controversies.

Howie explains that the new alliance also seeks to “help put an end to unnecessary competition” while enabling the creation of a new platform “to convene a real solution with a clear roadmap in the public service.” 

“The long-term goals are to deliver action-focused activity for impact, utilizing data across the whole value chain of the food system to ensure all relevant data and actors are considered,” she concludes. 

By Milana Nikolova