Introduction
The food sector has a significant and growing negative impact on both health and the environment. In actuality, the Western diet is based on an agricultural production method that harms ecosystems, ups fossil fuel consumption, ups greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and ups deforestation. Additionally, with the rise in the demand for agricultural products in the future, its effects are anticipated to become even more pronounced due to the growth in the human population and the increase in per capita consumption.
Since the 1700s, agricultural area has been expanded in ways that have never been possible, while technical advancements started in the 1930s have made it possible to produce more calories per person than ever before in human history. But this extraordinary triumph didn't come without a heavy price. High-tech agriculture symbolizes79% of GHG emissions are caused by acidification, 61% by food, and 95% by eutrophication [1]. The existing agricultural system uses up almost half of the world's arable land, which is another extremely resource-intensive factor. Additionally, agriculture uses more freshwater than industry does, primarily for irrigation, and makes only a little contribution to the replacement of water in rivers and groundwater, leading to medium- and long-term water insecurity.
A considerable section of the population may have had access to food as a result of agricultural modernization, which was justified on the grounds of "ending hunger." This would have satisfied one aspect of food and nutrition security. However, because food production depends on the accessibility of fresh water and water security, the dominant production system does not engage with development and its ideas of sustainability, furthering food insecurity.
The Western lifestyle, which is linked to a high intake of high-calorie foods with a focus on animal and processed products, has become more and more prevalent in recent decades, resulting in an increase in non-communicable chronic diseases linked to metabolic changes and a chronic inflammatory state. These pathologic disorders' occurrence, together with the rise in the prevalence of these pathophysiological circumstances, along with the aging of the population, will probably be the main factors driving the global rise in non-communicable illnesses.
Many issues, including meat consumption and greenhouse gas emissions from food production and transportation, were brought up during the 20th century. The connection between environmental health and human health, however, was not always obvious. Recent studies indicate a rise in demand for these foods, which have significant negative environmental effects. For instance, the demand for animal products surged by 62% between 1993 and 2013 while the population increased by 29% [2]. A reduction in general health as well as increased risks for metabolic and mortality are associated with this rise in the use of foods derived from animals. The immune system of future generations has become overactive as a result of Western lifestyles, and this has reached a tipping point in Western societies. Epidemiological data show that malnutrition and over nutrition coexist in a number of nations, a situation known as the "double burden of malnutrition." The short-term effects of this combined burden include undernutrition linked to early infant mortality, weakened immunity, impaired physical development, and impaired cognitive abilities. In the long run, it involves high mortality, chronic non-communicable disease comorbidities, and obesity. Brazil is a prime illustration of this burden, where the epidemiological and nutritional picture is punctuated by a recent eating habit that is also consistent with high rates of eating disorders [3]. Given the high intake of added sugar and saturated fat, this is associated with a greater risk of obesity and non-communicable chronic diseases. Additionally, there is a propensity for ultra-processed foods to take the place of traditional meals made with fresh or lightly processed ingredients. Due to the usage of diverse agricultural inputs and outputs, the result is the pollution of food, and as a result, of water, air, and soil. Diverse populations, including those affected by monoculture landscapes as well as small groups of family farmers, become subject to these threats.
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