Environmental, social, and economic consequences of six food system strategies for Switzerland

Summary

Consumption- as well as production-side changes are needed to improve the sustainability performance of food systems. We assessed multiple impacts of six food system strategies for Switzerland. Two strategies encompassed dietary changes: following a pescetarian diet and adhering to the national dietary guidelines. Two strategies employed alternative farming systems: increasing the share of organic production and, in addition, applying the circularity principle of avoiding feed-food competition by excluding livestock feed grown on arable land. A fifth strategy reduced food waste. The sixth strategy increased the share of domestic produce. For all strategies, we assessed greenhouse gas emissions, land use, nitrogen surplus, social risks, diet quality, and diet costs. The strategies revealed trade-offs between impact categories, unless combined in a synergistic way. Combining all proposed strategies could lead to substantial improvements in all impact categories assessed, but would require a thorough transformation of the current food system.