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Cited by 895Global Public Health Policies and EpidemiologyEconomics of Agriculture and Food MarketsNutrition, Health, and Society Studies

Uneven dietary development: linking the policies and processes of globalization with the nutrition transition, obesity, and diet-related chronic diseases

Open access
Hawkes, Corinna·2006·Globalization and Health
DOI 10.1186/1744-8603-2-4PMC PMC1440852
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Abstract

In a "nutrition transition", the consumption of foods high in fats and sweeteners is increasing throughout the developing world. The transition, implicated in the rapid rise of obesity and diet-related chronic diseases worldwide, is rooted in the processes of globalization. Globalization affects the nature of agri-food systems, thereby altering the quantity, type, cost and desirability of foods available for consumption. Understanding the links between globalization and the nutrition transition is therefore necessary to help policy makers develop policies, including food policies, for addressing the global burden of chronic disease. While the subject has been much discussed, tracing the specific pathways between globalization and dietary change remains a challenge. To help address this challenge, this paper explores how one of the central mechanisms of globalization, the integration of the global marketplace, is affecting the specific diet patterns. Focusing on middle-income countries, it highlights the importance of three major processes of market integration: (I) production and trade of agricultural goods; (II) foreign direct investment in food processing and retailing; and (III) global food advertising and promotion. The paper reveals how specific policies implemented to advance the globalization agenda account in part for some recent trends in the global diet. Agricultural production and trade policies have enabled more vegetable oil consumption; policies on foreign direct investment have facilitated higher consumption of highly-processed foods, as has global food marketing. These dietary outcomes also reflect the socioeconomic and cultural context in which these policies are operating. An important finding is that the dynamic, competitive forces unleashed as a result of global market integration facilitates not only convergence in consumption habits (as is commonly assumed in the "Coca-Colonization" hypothesis), but adaptation to products targeted at different niche markets. This convergence-divergence duality raises the policy concern that globalization will exacerbate uneven dietary development between rich and poor. As high-income groups in developing countries accrue the benefits of a more dynamic marketplace, lower-income groups may well experience convergence towards poor quality obseogenic diets, as observed in western countries. Global economic policies concerning agriculture, trade, investment and marketing affect what the world eats. They are therefore also global food and health policies. Health policy makers should pay greater attention to these policies in order to address some of the structural causes of obesity and diet-related chronic diseases worldwide, especially among the groups of low socioeconomic status.

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  • Food systems have changed due to the shift from local to regional to global foods in quantity, type, cost, variety, and desirability.

    “Food systems have changed due to the shift from local to regional to global foods in terms of quantity, type, cost, variety, and desirability (Hawkes 2006).”

    From Drivers of food waste and their implications for sustainable policy development (2016) · cites this paper as Hawkes 2006

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Research works printed but not linked: 10

  1. Kennedy G Nantel G Shetty P Globalization of food systems in developing countries: a synthesis of country case studies FAO Food and Nutrition Paper 2004 1 24 19178111
  2. Beckman C Vegetable Oils: Competition in a Global Market Bi-weekly Bulletin 2005 18 Ottawa, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
  3. Office SCI Material for the Press Conference of the State Council Information office. The Nutrition and Health Status of the Chinese People Unpublished Work 2004
  4. Bunge Press Release: DuPont, Bunge Introduce New Soybean Oil that Eliminates Trans Fats in Foods 2004 White Plains, NY, Bunge
  5. Bolling C Somwaru A US food companies access foreign markets though direct investment Food Review 2001 24 23 28
  6. Leith S Coca-Cola still dominates lucrative Mexican soft drink market Atlanta Journal and Constitution 2003 September 7 2003
  7. Guthrie A Snack-Food Stores in Mexico Grab Double-Digit Annual Sales Gains Wall Street Journal 2005 1
  8. Hawkes C Marketing activities of global soft drink and fast food companies in emerging markets: a review Globalization, Diets and Noncommunicable Diseases 2002 Geneva, WHO
  9. Hastings G Stead M McDermott L Forsyth A MacKintosh AM Rayner M Godfrey C Caraher M Angus K Does food promotion influence children? A systematic review of the evidence 2003 London, Food Standards Agency
  10. Anon U.S. snack food giant buys up Thai chip brands Deutche Press-Agenteur 1999 Accessed through Lexis-Nexis December 23 2005

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Authors
Hawkes, C.
Affiliations
International Food Policy Research Institute (US)
Corresponding author
Hawkes, Corinna
ORCID
Hawkes, Corinna
Venue
Globalization and Health
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2006-03-28
Volume
2
Issue
1
Pages
4-4
ISSN
1744-8603 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1186/1744-8603-2-4
PMC
PMC1440852
OpenAlex
W1561863145
Cited by
895
References
103
Citations by year
2026: 27 · 2025: 41 · 2024: 47 · 2023: 44 · 2022: 45 · 2021: 108 · 2020: 60 · 2019: 65 · 2018: 43 · 2017: 55 · 2016: 53 · 2015: 50 · 2014: 43 · 2013: 33 · 2012: 39
FWCI
45.22
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Globalization and Health (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • IFPRI E-brary (International Food Policy Research Institute) (submittedVersion)
  • CGSPace A Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research) (submittedVersion)
  • CGSPace A Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
  • DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
  • International Food Policy Research Institute (International Food Policy Research Institute) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Organizational Behavior and Human Resource Management › Global Public Health Policies and Epidemiology
  • Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Economics of Agriculture and Food Markets
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Science › Nutrition, Health, and Society Studies
Keywords
nutrition transition, globalization, obesity, diet-related chronic diseases, agri-food systems, agricultural trade policy, vegetable oil consumption, ultra-processed foods, market integration, middle-income countries, low socioeconomic status, food policy

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