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Nicole Tichenor Blackstone is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Agriculture, Food, and Environment at the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. Nicole’s research focuses on developing and evaluating strategies to improve food system sustainability. Her work fuses industrial ecology, nutrition, and social science methods. To date, her research has explored the environmental and social implications of livestock agriculture, human diets, food waste management, and regional food systems. Current projects include estimating the risk of forced labor in the US produce supply and evaluating the relationship between diet quality, food waste, and agricultural resource use. Nicole also has active scholarship in sustainable food systems education. She is committed to inclusive and collaborative pedagogy, mentorship, and training.
Diet sustainability analyses are stronger when they incorporate multiple food systems domains, disciplines, scales, and time/space dimensions into a common modeling framework. Few analyses do this well: there are large gaps in food systems data in many regions, accessing private and some public data can be difficult, and there are analytical challenges, such as creating linkages across datasets and using complex analytical methods. This article summarizes key data sources across multiple domains of food system sustainability (nutrition, economic, environment) and describes methods and tools for integrating them into a common analytic framework. Our focus is the United States because of the large number of publicly available and highly disaggregated datasets. Thematically, we focus on linkages that exist between environmental and economic datasets to nutrition, which can be used to estimate the cost and agricultural resource use of food waste, interrelationships between healthy eating and climate impacts, diets optimized for cost, nutrition, and environmental impacts, and others. The limitations of these approaches and data sources are described next. By enhancing data integration across these fields, researchers can be better equipped to promote policy for sustainable diets.
Zach Conrad; Alexandra Stern; David Love; Meredith Salesses; Ashley Cyril; Acree McDowell; Nicole Blackstone. Data Integration for Diet Sustainability Analyses. Sustainability 2021, 13, 8082 .
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Alexandra Stern, David Love, Meredith Salesses, Ashley Cyril, Acree McDowell, Nicole Blackstone. Data Integration for Diet Sustainability Analyses. Sustainability. 2021; 13 (14):8082.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Alexandra Stern; David Love; Meredith Salesses; Ashley Cyril; Acree McDowell; Nicole Blackstone. 2021. "Data Integration for Diet Sustainability Analyses." Sustainability 13, no. 14: 8082.
Background There is an urgent need to assess the linkages between diet patterns and environmental sustainability in order to meet global targets for reducing premature mortality and improving sustainable management of natural resources. This study fills an important research gap by evaluating the relationship between incremental differences in diet quality and multiple environmental burdens, while also accounting for the separate contributions of retail losses, inedible portions, and consumer waste. Methods Cross sectional, nationally-representative data on food intake in the United States were acquired from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2005–2016), and were linked with nationally-representative data on food loss and waste from published literature. Survey-weighted procedures estimated daily per capita food retail loss, food waste, inedible portions, and consumed food, and were summed to represent Total Food Demand. Diet quality was measured using the Healthy Eating Index-2015 and the Alternative Healthy Eating Index-2010. Data on food intake, loss, and waste were inputted into the US Foodprint Model to estimate the amount of agricultural land, fertilizer nutrients, pesticides, and irrigation water used to produce food. Results This study included dietary data from 50,014 individuals aged ≥2 y. Higher diet quality (HEI-2015 and AHEI-2010) was associated with greater per capita Total Food Demand, as well as greater retail loss, inedible portions, consumer waste, and consumed food (P < 0.001 for all comparisons). Consumed food accounted for 56–74% of agricultural resource use (land, fertilizer nutrients, pesticides, and irrigation water), retail loss accounted for 4–6%, inedible portions accounted for 2–15%, and consumer waste accounted for 20–23%. Higher diet quality was associated with lower use of agricultural land, but the relationship to other agricultural resources was dependent on the tool used to measure diet quality (HEI-2015 vs. AHEI-2010). Conclusions Over one-quarter of the agricultural inputs used to produce Total Food Demand were attributable to edible food that was not consumed. Importantly, this study also demonstrates that the relationship between diet quality and environmental sustainability depends on how diet quality is measured. These findings have implications for the development of sustainable dietary guidelines, which requires balancing population-level nutritional needs with the environmental impacts of food choices.
Zach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Eric D. Roy. Healthy diets can create environmental trade-offs, depending on how diet quality is measured. Nutrition Journal 2020, 19, 1 -15.
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Nicole Tichenor Blackstone, Eric D. Roy. Healthy diets can create environmental trade-offs, depending on how diet quality is measured. Nutrition Journal. 2020; 19 (1):1-15.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Eric D. Roy. 2020. "Healthy diets can create environmental trade-offs, depending on how diet quality is measured." Nutrition Journal 19, no. 1: 1-15.
Emerging research demonstrates unexpected relationships between food waste, nutrition, and environmental sustainability that should be considered when developing waste reduction strategies. In this narrative review, we synthesize these linkages and the evidence related to drivers of food waste and reduction strategies at the consumer level in the United States. Higher diet quality is associated with greater food waste, which results in significant quantities of wasted resources (e.g., energy, fertilizer) and greenhouse gas emissions. Food waste also represents waste of micronutrients that could otherwise theoretically fill nutritional gaps for millions of people. To make progress on these multiple fronts simultaneously, nutrition professionals must expand beyond their traditional purview, into more interdisciplinary arenas that make connections with food waste and environmental sustainability.
Zach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. Identifying the links between consumer food waste, nutrition, and environmental sustainability: a narrative review. Nutrition Reviews 2020, 79, 301 -314.
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. Identifying the links between consumer food waste, nutrition, and environmental sustainability: a narrative review. Nutrition Reviews. 2020; 79 (3):301-314.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. 2020. "Identifying the links between consumer food waste, nutrition, and environmental sustainability: a narrative review." Nutrition Reviews 79, no. 3: 301-314.
Objectives Studies linking diet quality with environmental impacts in the US have generally not accounted for the additional burden associated with retail losses, inedible portions, and consumer waste. Moreover, there is a need to assess the environmental impacts of shifts in diet quality using data collected directly from individuals, rather than assessing the impacts of nutritionally perfect theoretical diets. This study fills these important research gaps by assessing the relationship between observed diet quality among a nationally-representative sample and the amount of agricultural resources used to produce food. Methods Dietary data from 50,014 individuals ≥2 y were collected from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES, 2005–2016), and diet quality was measured using the Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI) and Alternate Healthy Eating Index-2010 (AHEI). Food retail losses, inedible portions, and consumer waste were estimated by linking data from the USDA Loss-adjusted Food Availability data series with dietary data from NHANES. These data were input into the US Foodprint Model, which was modified to estimate the amount of agricultural resources needed to meet food demand. Results Daily per capita food demand represented nearly four pounds (1673 grams) of food, including 7% retail loss, 15% inedible, 24% consumer waste, and 54% consumption. Higher diet quality (HEI and AHEI) was associated with greater retail loss, inedible portions, consumer waste, and consumption (P < 0.001 for all). Higher diet quality was associated (P < 0.05) with lower use of agricultural land (HEI and AHEI), greater use of irrigation water and pesticides (HEI), and lower use of fertilizers (AHEI). Conclusions Among a nationally-representative sample of over 50 thousand Americans, higher diet quality was associated with greater food retail loss, inedible portions, consumer waste, and consumption. Higher diet quality was also associated with lower use of some agricultural resources (land and fertilizers), but greater use of others (irrigation water and pesticides). By combining robust measures of diet quality with an advanced food system modeling framework, this study reveals that the link between diet quality and environmental sustainability is more nuanced than previously understood. Funding Sources None.
Zach Conrad; Nicole Blackstone; Eric Roy. Diet Quality and Environmental Sustainability Are Linked, But in Unexpected Ways. Current Developments in Nutrition 2020, 4, 137 -137.
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Nicole Blackstone, Eric Roy. Diet Quality and Environmental Sustainability Are Linked, But in Unexpected Ways. Current Developments in Nutrition. 2020; 4 (Supplement):137-137.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Nicole Blackstone; Eric Roy. 2020. "Diet Quality and Environmental Sustainability Are Linked, But in Unexpected Ways." Current Developments in Nutrition 4, no. Supplement: 137-137.
Improving awareness and accessibility of healthy diets are key challenges for health professionals and policymakers alike. While the US government has been assessing and encouraging nutritious diets via the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) since 1980, the long-term sustainability, and thus availability, of those diets has received less attention. The 2015 Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee (DGAC) examined the evidence on sustainable diets for the first time, but this topic was not included within the scope of work for the 2020 DGAC. The objective of this study was to systematically review the evidence on US dietary patterns and sustainability outcomes published from 2015 to 2019 replicating the 2015 DGAC methodology. The 22 studies meeting inclusion criteria reveal a rapid expansion of research on US dietary patterns and sustainability, including 8 studies comparing the sustainability of DGA-compliant dietary patterns with current US diets. Our results challenge prior findings that diets adhering to national dietary guidelines are more sustainable than current average diets and indicate that the Healthy US-style dietary pattern recommended by the DGA may lead to similar or increased greenhouse gas emissions, energy use, and water use compared with the current US diet. However, consistent with previous research, studies meeting inclusion criteria generally support the conclusion that, among healthy dietary patterns, those higher in plant-based foods and lower in animal-based foods would be beneficial for environmental sustainability. Additional research is needed to further evaluate ways to improve food system sustainability through both dietary shifts and agricultural practices in the United States.
Sarah L Reinhardt; Rebecca Boehm; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Naglaa H El-Abbadi; Joy S McNally Brandow; Salima F Taylor; Marcia S DeLonge. Systematic Review of Dietary Patterns and Sustainability in the United States. Advances in Nutrition 2020, 11, 1016 -1031.
AMA StyleSarah L Reinhardt, Rebecca Boehm, Nicole Tichenor Blackstone, Naglaa H El-Abbadi, Joy S McNally Brandow, Salima F Taylor, Marcia S DeLonge. Systematic Review of Dietary Patterns and Sustainability in the United States. Advances in Nutrition. 2020; 11 (4):1016-1031.
Chicago/Turabian StyleSarah L Reinhardt; Rebecca Boehm; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Naglaa H El-Abbadi; Joy S McNally Brandow; Salima F Taylor; Marcia S DeLonge. 2020. "Systematic Review of Dietary Patterns and Sustainability in the United States." Advances in Nutrition 11, no. 4: 1016-1031.
The purpose of this research was to compare the global reference diet from the EAT-Lancet Commission on Healthy Diets from Sustainable Food Systems (EAT-Lancet) with the healthy eating patterns from the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). Conversion factors were developed to quantitatively compare the patterns. These factors are provided to enable investigators to incorporate the EAT-Lancet diet into analyses while maintaining relevance to US-based dietary guidance. Our findings show several areas of agreement between EAT-Lancet and the DGA but key differences in the amounts of whole grains, fruit, starchy vegetables, red meat, nuts and seeds, and discretionary calories. Many of the differences between the patterns reflect divergent approaches to developing dietary recommendations, not only methodologically but also regarding whether current food consumption patterns are considered as constraints on recommendations. Continued interdisciplinary collaboration is needed to advance dietary guidance that promotes sustainable nutrition.
Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Zach Conrad. Comparing the Recommended Eating Patterns of the EAT-Lancet Commission and Dietary Guidelines for Americans: Implications for Sustainable Nutrition. Current Developments in Nutrition 2020, 4, nzaa015 .
AMA StyleNicole Tichenor Blackstone, Zach Conrad. Comparing the Recommended Eating Patterns of the EAT-Lancet Commission and Dietary Guidelines for Americans: Implications for Sustainable Nutrition. Current Developments in Nutrition. 2020; 4 (3):nzaa015.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole Tichenor Blackstone; Zach Conrad. 2020. "Comparing the Recommended Eating Patterns of the EAT-Lancet Commission and Dietary Guidelines for Americans: Implications for Sustainable Nutrition." Current Developments in Nutrition 4, no. 3: nzaa015.
Are students graduating from sustainability education programs with the competencies that will enable them to act for sustainability? This case study 1.) explores the degree to which a project-based capstone course advances sustainability competencies; 2.) identifies the extent to which graduating students demonstrate competencies; and 3.) compares two methods of measuring student mastery of competencies. A multiple-choice survey and a qualitative analysis of blog assignments were used and compared. While the survey did not indicate improvement in sustainability competencies pre- and post-capstone course, students showed varying levels of mastery of all the competencies by graduation. However, degree of mastery varied by assessment method. Recommendations for improving competencies include better defining the level of competencies to be achieved, ensuring that engaged pedagogy addresses all competencies, and developing new self-assessment methods for measuring competency mastery.
Vanessa R. Levesque; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. Exploring Undergraduate Attainment of Sustainability Competencies. Sustainability 2020, 13, 32 -38.
AMA StyleVanessa R. Levesque, Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. Exploring Undergraduate Attainment of Sustainability Competencies. Sustainability. 2020; 13 (1):32-38.
Chicago/Turabian StyleVanessa R. Levesque; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone. 2020. "Exploring Undergraduate Attainment of Sustainability Competencies." Sustainability 13, no. 1: 32-38.
Addressing social inequities has been recognized as foundational to transforming food systems. Activists and scholars have critiqued food movements as lacking an orientation towards addressing issues of social justice. To address issues of inequity, sustainable food systems education (SFSE) programs will have to increase students’ equity-related capabilities. Our first objective in this paper is to determine the extent to which SFSE programs in the USA and Canada address equity. We identified 108 programs and reviewed their public facing documents for an explicit focus on equity. We found that roughly 80% of universities with SFSE programs do not provide evidence that they explicitly include equity in their curricula. Our second objective is to propose an equity competency model based on literature from multiple fields and perspectives. This entails dimensions related to knowledge of self; knowledge of others and one’s interactions with them; knowledge of systems of oppression and inequities; and the drive to embrace and create strategies and tactics for dismantling racism and other forms of inequity. Integrating our equity competency model into SFSE curricula can support the development of future professionals capable of dismantling inequity in the food system. We understand that to integrate an equity competency in our curricula will require commitment to build will and skill not only of our students, but our faculty, and entire university communities.
Will Valley; Molly Anderson; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Eleanor Sterling; Erin Betley; Sharon Akabas; Pamela Koch; Colin Dring; Joanne Burke; Karen Spiller. Towards an equity competency model for sustainable food systems education programs. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene 2020, 8, 1 .
AMA StyleWill Valley, Molly Anderson, Nicole Tichenor Blackstone, Eleanor Sterling, Erin Betley, Sharon Akabas, Pamela Koch, Colin Dring, Joanne Burke, Karen Spiller. Towards an equity competency model for sustainable food systems education programs. Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene. 2020; 8 (1):1.
Chicago/Turabian StyleWill Valley; Molly Anderson; Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Eleanor Sterling; Erin Betley; Sharon Akabas; Pamela Koch; Colin Dring; Joanne Burke; Karen Spiller. 2020. "Towards an equity competency model for sustainable food systems education programs." Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene 8, no. 1: 1.
Evidence-based nutrition policy is a key mechanism to promote planetary health. In the USA, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans are the foundation of nutrition policy and guide more than US$80 billion in federal spending. Recent attempts have been made to incorporate sustainability into the development of the Dietary Guidelines. However, the sustainability of the 2015–20 Dietary Guidelines remains unclear; research has not yet assessed the environmental impacts of the distinct healthy patterns recommended by the policy. In this modelling study done at the University of New Hampshire (Durham, NH, USA), we analysed the healthy US-style (US), healthy Mediterranean-style (MED), and healthy vegetarian (VEG) patterns recommended in the 2015–20 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Food groups and subgroups consisted of 321 commonly consumed foods, with group composition predetermined by the US Department of Agriculture. We compiled and used multiple datasets to assign environmental burdens to foods, focusing on six impact categories of policy importance: global warming potential, land use, water depletion, freshwater and marine eutrophication, and particulate matter or respiratory organics. We did life cycle impact assessments for each of the three diet patterns and compared the six impact categories between the patterns. We also analysed the proportion contribution of the food groups to each impact category in each of the diet patterns. The US and MED patterns had similar impacts, except for freshwater eutrophication. Freshwater eutrophication was 31% lower in the US pattern than the MED pattern, primarily due to increased seafood in the MED pattern. All three patterns had similar water depletion impacts, with fruits and vegetables as major contributors. For five of the six impacts, the VEG pattern had 42–84% lower burdens than both the US and MED patterns. Reliance on plant-based protein and eggs in the VEG pattern versus emphasis on animal-based protein in the other patterns was a key driver of differences, as was a lower overall protein foods recommendation in the VEG pattern. The recommended patterns in the Dietary Guidelines for Americans might have starkly different impacts on the environment and other dimensions of human health beyond nutrition. Given the scale of influence of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans on food systems, incorporating sustainability into their development has the potential to have great benefit in terms of long-term food security. None.
Nicole Tichenor Blackstone; Naglaa H El-Abbadi; Margaret S McCabe; Timothy S Griffin; Miriam E Nelson. Linking sustainability to the healthy eating patterns of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans: a modelling study. The Lancet Planetary Health 2018, 2, e344 -e352.
AMA StyleNicole Tichenor Blackstone, Naglaa H El-Abbadi, Margaret S McCabe, Timothy S Griffin, Miriam E Nelson. Linking sustainability to the healthy eating patterns of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans: a modelling study. The Lancet Planetary Health. 2018; 2 (8):e344-e352.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole Tichenor Blackstone; Naglaa H El-Abbadi; Margaret S McCabe; Timothy S Griffin; Miriam E Nelson. 2018. "Linking sustainability to the healthy eating patterns of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans: a modelling study." The Lancet Planetary Health 2, no. 8: e344-e352.
Timothy Griffin; Christian Peters; David Fleisher; Michael Conard; Zach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor; Ashley McCarthy; Emily Piltch; Jonathan Resop; Houman Saberi. Baselines, Trajectories, and Scenarios: Exploring Agricultural Production in the Northeast U.S. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 2018, 8, 1 -15.
AMA StyleTimothy Griffin, Christian Peters, David Fleisher, Michael Conard, Zach Conrad, Nicole Tichenor, Ashley McCarthy, Emily Piltch, Jonathan Resop, Houman Saberi. Baselines, Trajectories, and Scenarios: Exploring Agricultural Production in the Northeast U.S. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development. 2018; 8 (2):1-15.
Chicago/Turabian StyleTimothy Griffin; Christian Peters; David Fleisher; Michael Conard; Zach Conrad; Nicole Tichenor; Ashley McCarthy; Emily Piltch; Jonathan Resop; Houman Saberi. 2018. "Baselines, Trajectories, and Scenarios: Exploring Agricultural Production in the Northeast U.S." Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 8, no. 2: 1-15.
Improving diet quality while simultaneously reducing environmental impact is a critical focus globally. Metrics linking diet quality and sustainability have typically focused on a limited suite of indicators, and have not included food waste. To address this important research gap, we examine the relationship between food waste, diet quality, nutrient waste, and multiple measures of sustainability: use of cropland, irrigation water, pesticides, and fertilizers. Data on food intake, food waste, and application rates of agricultural amendments were collected from diverse US government sources. Diet quality was assessed using the Healthy Eating Index-2015. A biophysical simulation model was used to estimate the amount of cropland associated with wasted food. This analysis finds that US consumers wasted 422g of food per person daily, with 30 million acres of cropland used to produce this food every year. This accounts for 30% of daily calories available for consumption, one-quarter of daily food (by weight) available for consumption, and 7% of annual cropland acreage. Higher quality diets were associated with greater amounts of food waste and greater amounts of wasted irrigation water and pesticides, but less cropland waste. This is largely due to fruits and vegetables, which are health-promoting and require small amounts of cropland, but require substantial amounts of agricultural inputs. These results suggest that simultaneous efforts to improve diet quality and reduce food waste are necessary. Increasing consumers’ knowledge about how to prepare and store fruits and vegetables will be one of the practical solutions to reducing food waste.
Zach Conrad; Meredith T. Niles; Deborah A. Neher; Eric D. Roy; Nicole E. Tichenor; Lisa Jahns. Relationship between food waste, diet quality, and environmental sustainability. PLOS ONE 2018, 13, e0195405 .
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Meredith T. Niles, Deborah A. Neher, Eric D. Roy, Nicole E. Tichenor, Lisa Jahns. Relationship between food waste, diet quality, and environmental sustainability. PLOS ONE. 2018; 13 (4):e0195405.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Meredith T. Niles; Deborah A. Neher; Eric D. Roy; Nicole E. Tichenor; Lisa Jahns. 2018. "Relationship between food waste, diet quality, and environmental sustainability." PLOS ONE 13, no. 4: e0195405.
The market basket chosen for the Enhancing Food Security in the Northeast (EFSNE) project was one of its major tools, as its contents served as the subject of a variety of analyses across the research teams. The interdisciplinary systems project studied multiple components of food systems in the Northeast region. One of the team members’ first collaborative exercises was the choice of the eight items representing the major food groups, including different processed forms of food and healthier versions of several. This article summarizes the information gathered on the market basket items, including (1) some salient data describing the state of each food item’s industry; (2) the current regional-self-reliance production level; (3) consumer purchases of these items in the Northeast utilizing secondary data sources and data gathered in project intercept surveys; (4) store inventories, including prices and where the food is produced or manufactured; (5) the percentage of the market basket food that is produced regionally, as well as the regional economic value-added percentage; (6) models of six of the foods predicting the effect on production and supply chains of changes in the system, such as increased demand and environmental changes; and (7) foodprints for each food. Market baskets are frequently used instruments in food environment and cost studies. Using market baskets in EFSNE allowed the teams to aggregate and interconnect data from multiple analyses done by researchers from multiple disciplines to tell a rich story about a specific set of foods, their supply chains, and the future opportunities to enhance their production and distribution in the region.
Kate Clancy; Alessandro Bonanno; Patrick Canning; Rebecca Cleary; Zach Conrad; David Fleisher; Miguel Gómez; Timothy Griffin; Ryan Lee; Daniel Kane; Anne Palmer; Kristen Park; Christian J. Peters; Nicole Tichenor. Using a Market Basket to Explore Regional Food Systems. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 2017, 7, 163 -178.
AMA StyleKate Clancy, Alessandro Bonanno, Patrick Canning, Rebecca Cleary, Zach Conrad, David Fleisher, Miguel Gómez, Timothy Griffin, Ryan Lee, Daniel Kane, Anne Palmer, Kristen Park, Christian J. Peters, Nicole Tichenor. Using a Market Basket to Explore Regional Food Systems. Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development. 2017; 7 (4):163-178.
Chicago/Turabian StyleKate Clancy; Alessandro Bonanno; Patrick Canning; Rebecca Cleary; Zach Conrad; David Fleisher; Miguel Gómez; Timothy Griffin; Ryan Lee; Daniel Kane; Anne Palmer; Kristen Park; Christian J. Peters; Nicole Tichenor. 2017. "Using a Market Basket to Explore Regional Food Systems." Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development 7, no. 4: 163-178.
Nicole E Tichenor; Allison M Leach. Informing a sustainable food future. Environmental Research Letters 2017, 12, 111002 .
AMA StyleNicole E Tichenor, Allison M Leach. Informing a sustainable food future. Environmental Research Letters. 2017; 12 (11):111002.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole E Tichenor; Allison M Leach. 2017. "Informing a sustainable food future." Environmental Research Letters 12, no. 11: 111002.
Nicole E. Tichenor; Hannah H.E. van Zanten; Imke J.M. de Boer; Christian J. Peters; Ashley C. McCarthy; Timothy S. Griffin. Land use efficiency of beef systems in the Northeastern USA from a food supply perspective. Agricultural Systems 2017, 156, 34 -42.
AMA StyleNicole E. Tichenor, Hannah H.E. van Zanten, Imke J.M. de Boer, Christian J. Peters, Ashley C. McCarthy, Timothy S. Griffin. Land use efficiency of beef systems in the Northeastern USA from a food supply perspective. Agricultural Systems. 2017; 156 ():34-42.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole E. Tichenor; Hannah H.E. van Zanten; Imke J.M. de Boer; Christian J. Peters; Ashley C. McCarthy; Timothy S. Griffin. 2017. "Land use efficiency of beef systems in the Northeastern USA from a food supply perspective." Agricultural Systems 156, no. : 34-42.
Nicole E. Tichenor; Christian J. Peters; Gregory A. Norris; Greg Thoma; Timothy S. Griffin. Life cycle environmental consequences of grass-fed and dairy beef production systems in the Northeastern United States. Journal of Cleaner Production 2017, 142, 1619 -1628.
AMA StyleNicole E. Tichenor, Christian J. Peters, Gregory A. Norris, Greg Thoma, Timothy S. Griffin. Life cycle environmental consequences of grass-fed and dairy beef production systems in the Northeastern United States. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2017; 142 ():1619-1628.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole E. Tichenor; Christian J. Peters; Gregory A. Norris; Greg Thoma; Timothy S. Griffin. 2017. "Life cycle environmental consequences of grass-fed and dairy beef production systems in the Northeastern United States." Journal of Cleaner Production 142, no. : 1619-1628.
The production of livestock feed in the USA is geographically concentrated, which poses several risks. Extreme weather events and disease outbreaks have the potential to disrupt production in these areas, which could reduce the national output of meat, dairy and eggs. Additionally, geographically concentrated livestock and feed production systems have been observed to contribute excessive nutrient loads to surrounding soil and water bodies, thereby threatening environmental sustainability. Geographic relocation of production systems has been proposed as an adaptation strategy to increase system resilience and this could take the shape of more geographically dispersed livestock feed production. We estimate the degree to which the demand for meat, dairy and eggs in the Northeast region is met with current levels of regional feed and livestock production, a term that we refer to as regional self-reliance. We combine mean annual (2001–2010) data on Northeast regional land use; crop output; meat, dairy and egg output; and food consumption with a livestock feed requirements model. An annual mean of over 6.1 million ha of land in the Northeast was dedicated to livestock feed from 2001 to 2010, with nearly 80% located in just three states (Pennsylvania, New York and West Virginia). The region is a net importer of livestock feed (in terms of total digestible nutrients and crude protein), as well as meat, dairy and eggs (in terms of total human-edible energy and protein). This is the result of a confluence of long-term regional trends that include the movement of agricultural production out of the region with a concomitant increase in the regional population and an increase in the national demand for meat, dairy and eggs. Limited slaughter output in the region is a key limiting factor to increasing the region's self-reliance for livestock products.
Zach Conrad; Nicole E. Tichenor; Christian J. Peters; Timothy S. Griffin. Regional self-reliance for livestock feed, meat, dairy and eggs in the Northeast USA. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 2016, 32, 145 -156.
AMA StyleZach Conrad, Nicole E. Tichenor, Christian J. Peters, Timothy S. Griffin. Regional self-reliance for livestock feed, meat, dairy and eggs in the Northeast USA. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems. 2016; 32 (2):145-156.
Chicago/Turabian StyleZach Conrad; Nicole E. Tichenor; Christian J. Peters; Timothy S. Griffin. 2016. "Regional self-reliance for livestock feed, meat, dairy and eggs in the Northeast USA." Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems 32, no. 2: 145-156.
Nicole Tichenor. Role of dairy in the carbon footprint of US beef. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 2015, 112, E820 -E821.
AMA StyleNicole Tichenor. Role of dairy in the carbon footprint of US beef. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. 2015; 112 (8):E820-E821.
Chicago/Turabian StyleNicole Tichenor. 2015. "Role of dairy in the carbon footprint of US beef." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 112, no. 8: E820-E821.