By JOHN RICHARD SCHROCK
Eggs, milk and meat are important to provide the range of proteins, fats and carbohydrates, and especially micro-nutrients that are hard to find in plants in the quantity and quality needed by populations in developing countries.
This was the message in the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) just-released 295-page report: “Contribution of terrestrial animal source food to healthy diets for improved nutrition and health outcomes–An evidence and policy overview on the state of knowledge and gaps.”
This analysis of risks and benefits of consuming animal-source foods examined data in over 500 published science papers and 250 policy documents. This comes as no surprise to biologists who are aware of our evolution as “omnivores.” From teeth to digestive tract, our anatomy and physiology reflect our long history of eating both plant and animal tissues.
Individuals who only eat vegan require supplements that are not economical in the developing world. This FAO report finds that high quality protein, some essential fatty-acids, Vitamin B12, iron, calcium, zinc, selenium, choline as well as bioactive compounds (creatine, carnitine, taurine) are economically provided by farm and other livestock animals.
The report notes: “Livestock species are adapted to a wide range of environments, including areas that are unsuitable for crop production. Globally, more than a billion people depend on livestock value chains for their livelihoods... Rangeland or grassland ecosystems occupy some 40 percent of the world’s terrestrial area. Livestock keepers raise grazing animals to transform grassland vegetation into food.”
Strong evidence supports the benefits of milk and dairy products. “Milk and dairy consumption during pregnancy promotes healthy weight of infants at birth and may also benefit birth length and foetal head circumference... Evidence shows that consumption of milk and dairy products by school-age children and adolescents increases height and reduces overweight and obesity. Beef consumption in school-age children may improve cognitive outcomes. In adults, there is evidence showing that milk and yoghurt consumption reduces risk of all-cause mortality, hypertension, stroke, type 2 diabetes, colorectal cancer, breast cancer, obesity, osteoporosis and fractures.”
“Evidence also shows that egg consumption in adults does not increase risk of stroke or coronary heart disease....”
The FAO report provides 378 recommendations on terrestrial animal source food consumption following a “life-course” approach noting differences across “five life-course phases: women during pregnancy and lactation; infants and young children; school-age children and adolescents; adults and older adults.” Considerable research points to negative effects of highly processed meat products.
But, “if consumed as part of an appropriate diet, animal source foods can help with meeting the nutrition targets endorsed by the World Health Assembly and Sustainable Development Goals related to reducing stunting, wasting among children under five, low birthweight, anaemia in women of reproductive age, and obesity and non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in adults.”
The report documents the extreme ranges in food availability. An average person in Burundi consumes 3 kilograms of meat a year while a person in Hong Kong consumes 136 kilograms. Average per person consumption of milk in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is only 160 grams, while an average Montenegro resident consumes 338 kilograms.
However, in a foreword to this report, the FAO Deputy Director-General Maria Helena Semedo and Chief Economist Maximo Torero Cullen state the livestock sector “must contribute to addressing a range of challenges... These include issues related to the environment...” including deforestation, CO2 emissions, unsustainable water and land use, pollution, and animal health related issues.
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The FAO Report is at: https://www.fao.org/documents/card/en/c/cc3912en
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John Richard Schrock has trained biology teachers for more than 30 years in Kansas. He also has lectured at 27 universities during 20 trips to China. He holds the distinction of “Faculty Emeritus” at Emporia State University.