In order to contribute to the target of the F2F strategy of promoting sustainable food consumption and facilitating the shift to healthy, sustainable diets, the project aimed to support the integration of sustainability in sport nutrition in Germany, Greece, Malta, Portugal, Spain and Türkiye by: - Enhancing the knowledge of professional and non-professional athletes and other sports professionals (coaches, trainers, fitness instructors etc.) on sustainable food choices and their effect on the athletes health and sports performance and on the environment, so that they not only change their dietary habits, but become role models and agents of change - Increasing awareness among athletes, sports professionals and organizations on athletes’ dietary choices carbon footprint - Enhancing access to dietary guidelines and flexible educational tools for professional and non-professional athletes that are aligned with sustainability principles - Enhancing the knowledge and skills of sports nutrition professionals on the impact diets have on the environment and how they can assist athletes to shift to more sustainable diets.
The food industry is one of the sectors with the greatest impact on climate change. A healthier and more sustainable EU food system is a cornerstone of the EU’s Green Deal with its Farm to Fork strategy in order to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. A shift in the way of producing, buying and consuming food is necessary to improve the environmental footprint and help mitigate climate change. There are various barriers for consumers in general and athletes in particular to change their diets into more sustainable ones. While it is important that athletes meet dietary guidelines to maintain health and improve performance capacity, studies show that athletes exceed (animal) protein intakes and use a large number of dietary supplements. Furthermore, at the moment very few sports nutrition recommendations and guidelines include sustainable eating. Therefore, the consortium wanted to address the need of integrating sustainability in athletes’ diets while also including coaches and other sports and nutrition professionals in this process. In addition, athletes are role models for society and can act as strong voices for planetary health.