October 02, 2025
Overview:
Since the first EAT–Lancet Commission report was published in 2019, the global landscape has changed drastically. Events such as the COVID-19 pandemic, rising geopolitical instability, and soaring food prices have deepened existing inequalities and created new challenges
This new report, developed by the EAT–Lancet Commission, which includes OHT’s Dr. Ramanan Laxminarayan, explores how global food systems can be reshaped to ensure healthy, sustainable diets for everyone.
The report addresses the interconnected challenges of food security, public health, environmental sustainability, and social justice, and offers a roadmap for building resilient food systems that support both human well-being and planetary health.
The Question:
How can today’s food systems ensure healthy diets for everyone while staying within the planet’s environmental limits in a world that has become more unstable and unequal?
The Findings:
The report highlights that while current food systems in many places have managed to produce enough calories to feed a growing global population, they are now the largest single driver of environmental degradation, pushing the planet beyond safe ecological limits. More than half of the world’s population still cannot afford or access a healthy diet, resulting in widespread malnutrition, hunger in some regions, and rising obesity in others.
The authors emphasize that transforming food systems is essential, not only to improve human health and nutrition but also to achieve global goals such as the Sustainable Development Goals, the Paris Climate Agreement, and the Global Biodiversity Framework. Despite the current crises, food systems present a powerful opportunity to strengthen the resilience of our health, environment, and economies while improving well-being for all.
Read the report in The Lancet Commissions here.
