The government-funded Netherlands Nutrition Center “is recommending people eat just two servings of meat a week, setting an explicit limit on meat consumption for the first time,” says National Geographic. Corne van Dooren, a sustainable food expert at the center, told the magazine, “We focus on eating a less animal-based and more plant-based diet by the unique advice to consume not more than 500 grams of meat a week,” or a little more than one pound. A key objective of the dietary advice is to reduce the environmental impact of the human diet.
“Just last week, the U.K. issued its latest nutrition advice, recommending a diet lower in red and processed meat,” says the National Geographic. Nutrition groups applauded and livestock groups blasted “blanket advice” as potentially harmful.
The website Dutch News summarized the dietary recommendation as, “Meat consumption should be reduced and replaced by legumes, nuts, eggs or tofu. Water, coffee and tea remain the best sources of liquid.” Processed products generally contain too much salt, sugar or saturated fats and are not included in the list, said Dutch News, and the recommendations say sweets, snacks, biscuits, sauces, processed meats, fruit juices and sweet spreads for bread “may be eaten but in limited quantities and not often.”