Introduction: Healthy, sustainable, and just food systems
Food systems strongly influence human health, environmental sustainability, and social equity. Although global food production provides sufficient calories for most people, diets remain nutritionally poor and unevenly distributed. Unhealthy diets contribute to roughly 15 million avoidable deaths annually, while more than 30% of the global population lacks access to healthy diets. Food systems generate about US$10 trillion annually but create negative externalities estimated at $15 trillion, largely due to health and environmental impacts. Rising food prices, climate-related shocks, and geopolitical instability further expose structural weaknesses in global food systems. The report argues that transforming food systems is essential to address interconnected crises in health, climate, biodiversity, and inequality.

Section 1: What is a healthy diet?
The Commission re-evaluates evidence supporting the planetary health diet (PHD), a dietary framework designed to promote health while reducing environmental pressures. The PHD emphasises plant-based foods such as whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts, with moderate amounts of fish, dairy, poultry, and eggs, and limited red meat, added sugars, and saturated fats. Evidence indicates that adoption of the PHD can significantly reduce the incidence of non-communicable diseases and may prevent approximately 15 million deaths annually. The diet is intentionally flexible, allowing adaptation across cultural contexts and dietary traditions. However, current diets in most regions diverge substantially from these recommendations, particularly through excessive consumption of red meat and processed foods. The Commission also highlights significant gaps in dietary data, particularly in low-income regions, which limits the precision of global health assessments.

Section 2: Sustainable food systems within planetary boundaries
Food systems are identified as the largest driver of environmental pressures across planetary boundaries. Six of nine planetary boundaries have already been exceeded, and food production contributes heavily to land-use change, biodiversity loss, freshwater depletion, and nutrient pollution. Food systems also account for approximately 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The Commission introduces the concept of “food system boundaries”, defining the share of global environmental limits allocated to food production and consumption. Achieving these boundaries requires reducing deforestation, improving nutrient management, and adopting sustainable agricultural practices. Unsustainable land conversion and intensive fertiliser use remain major drivers of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation.

Section 3: Justice in food systems
The report introduces a justice framework centred on distributive, representational, and recognitional justice. A just food system must guarantee the rights to adequate food, a healthy environment, and decent work. Currently, nearly half of the global population falls below the social foundations required to realise these rights. Inequalities exist across both production and consumption: wealthier populations generate disproportionate environmental pressures through resource-intensive diets, while lower-income populations face limited access to nutritious foods. Food system workers also frequently experience low wages, poor labour protections, and limited political representation. Addressing these inequalities is essential for achieving sustainable food systems.

Section 4: Assessing potential environmental and socioeconomic consequences of a food systems transformation
Using a multimodel analysis involving ten global food system models, the Commission assesses the outcomes of transforming diets, production systems, and food waste patterns by 2050. A transition to healthy diets alone could reduce agricultural emissions by around 15%, while combining dietary shifts with improved productivity and reduced food loss and waste could achieve roughly 20% reductions. Integrated interventions could also moderate growth in nitrogen and phosphorus use compared with business-as-usual scenarios. The modelling suggests that a transformed food system could sustainably feed approximately 9.6 billion people by mid-century with relatively modest impacts on food costs.

Section 5: Solutions and actions to improve health, environmental sustainability, and justice
The Commission identifies several priority actions to support transformation. These include creating food environments that encourage healthy diets, protecting traditional dietary patterns, implementing sustainable and ecological intensification in agriculture, and reducing food loss and waste. Additional measures include improving labour conditions for food system workers, strengthening representation for marginalised groups, and protecting remaining natural ecosystems. Policy frameworks should combine these actions into coordinated policy bundles tailored to regional conditions.

Section 6: A just food systems transformation is possible
Transforming food systems will require coordinated action across governments, businesses, civil society, and consumers. Substantial investment is needed, estimated at US$200–500 billion annually. However, the potential economic benefits are estimated at around $5 trillion per year due to improved health outcomes, environmental stability, and economic productivity. Redirecting existing subsidies and financial incentives towards sustainable production practices could accelerate this transition.

Conclusions: Accelerating meaningful action
The Commission concludes that achieving healthy, sustainable, and just food systems is feasible but requires rapid and coordinated global action. Governments must develop national roadmaps aligned with international frameworks such as the Paris Agreement and biodiversity targets. Cross-sector collaboration, stronger governance mechanisms, and mobilisation of finance are essential to accelerate progress and ensure that food systems support both planetary stability and human wellbeing.