Can What We Feed Farm Animals Directly Benefit Our Own Health?

By Pablo Gregorini

Several chronic diseases—obesity, cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and some cancers—have been linked to lifestyles and diets high in calories, based on processed foods and lacking diversity and nutritional value.

These diseases are among the greatest health challenges globally and in New Zealand, placing growing pressure on health care systems.

This highlights the need for prevention strategies that address not only individual consumer behavior but also environments and food systems.

Research increasingly shows how connected our health is to that of the animals we eat and the land they graze. The conventional view of landscapes as merely sites of food production no longer holds.

My team's research focuses on designing and implementing new food production systems as part of a project that integrates farming with health in pursuit of "healthscapes."

Our objective is to innovate, demonstrate and manage a tangible transition from current practices to a system designed to enhance health from the ground up, with measured improvements in soil, plant, animal, human and community health.