The Food Systems Policy Index: A global tool to stimulate governments towards healthier, more equitable and sustainable food systems

A food systems transformation is urgently needed, given their contribution to three interlinked global health pandemics: (1) undernutrition, (2) obesity, and (3) climate change. As policymakers make decisions that shape food systems, our research aimed to identify a wide range of “double and triple-duty policies”, to simultaneously reduce the burden of these pandemics.

Starting from a compilation of international policy recommendations, the double and triple-duty potential of policies was assessed in a scoping review and through international expert consultations, the International Network for Food and Obesity/NCDs Research, Monitoring and Action Support (INFORMAS) has created a Food Systems Policy Index for governments composed of 44 double and triple-duty policies. Moreover, exploratory policy mappings and 40 semi-structured interviews with national and local policy stakeholders across five African countries have been conducted to identify potential barriers and facilitators to their development and implementation.

The new policy index represents a useful tool to guide governments and benchmark their actions to tackle undernutrition, obesity and climate change.