The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MOCCAE), the Ministry of Health and Prevention (MoHAP), Emirates Nature-WWF, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) are all set to launch a public awareness and engagement campaign on healthy diets from sustainable food systems under the theme "Food for Life".
The two-month-long campaign aims to promote healthy dietary patterns through sustainable food systems strategies that can contribute significantly to serving the society, preserving the environment, and enhancing national economy.
“Food for Life” will be launched on 23 February as part of the Food For Future Summit, taking place at Expo 2020. A launch ceremony, inaugurated by H.E. Mariam bint Mohammed Almheiri, Minister of Climate Change and Environment, and leadership from all partner organizations, will take place at the Leaders’ Symposium Stage. Other activities on launch day will include a dedicated “Food for Life” panel discussion and a farmers market tour to sample the UAE’s finest locally grown produce.
“Food for Life” will highlight the role food plays in people’s lives and nutrition and the interrelationship between healthy eating patterns and sustainable food systems for the health of both people and planet. The campaign aims to enhance public awareness about and engagement with health and nutrition, thus supporting the UAE’s vision to become one of the leading countries in the world in terms of adopting healthy diets.
A diverse schedule of activities will be launched to support the campaign’s objectives, including developing and improving healthy dietary patterns through healthy diets, and inspiring people to forge a healthy and active future while appreciating the value of food.
The programme will contribute to improving lifestyles, health, nutrition, and the environment, and creating a better understanding on the role of food and nature for current and future generations. In addition, it will promote integrated efforts to ensure a sustainable food future among all parties in the food chain by increasing their awareness.
Its objective is to help all individuals achieve optimal growth and development and support their functional performance and physical, mental, and social well-being at all stages of life. Other goals include preventing all forms of malnutrition (e.g., undernutrition, micronutrient deficiencies, overweight, and obesity), reducing the risk of diet-related non-communicable diseases, and preserving biological and environmental diversity.
Following an edutainment- (a method blending entertainment and education) and engagement-based ethos, the campaign will introduce individuals to sources of food and highlight the conscious patterns they need to adopt when eating or using such sources, in addition to making tangible changes to their lives, as improving dietary patterns results in one of the biggest impacts people can have on both health and the environment.
A dedicated “Food for Life” website will be revealed on launch day, where UAE citizens and residents will be encouraged to learn more and register to participate in unique hands-on events with community partners who are pioneering the sustainable food movement in the UAE.