Introduction Generating country-level political commitment will be critical to driving forward action throughout the United Nations Decade of Action on Nutrition (2016–2025). In this review of the empirical nutrition policy literature, we ask: what factors generate, sustain and constrain political commitment for nutrition, how and under what circumstances? Our aim is to inform strategic ‘commitment-building’ actions. Method We adopted a framework synthesis method and realist review protocol. An initial framework was derived from relevant theory and then populated with empirical evidence to test and modify it. Five steps were undertaken: initial theoretical framework development; search for relevant empirical literature; study selection and quality appraisal; data extraction, analysis and synthesis and framework modification. Results 75 studies were included. We identified 18 factors that drive commitment, organised into five categories: actors; institutions; political and societal contexts; knowledge, evidence and framing; and, capacities and resources. Irrespective of country-context, effective nutrition actor networks, strong leadership, civil society mobilisation, supportive political administrations, societal change and focusing events, cohesive and resonant framing, and robust data systems and available evidence were commitment drivers. Low-income and middle-income country studies also frequently reported international actors, empowered institutions, vertical coordination and capacities and resources. In upper-middle-income and high-income country studies, private sector interference frequently undermined commitment. Conclusion Political commitment is not something that simply exists or emerges accidentally; it can be created and strengthened over time through strategic action. Successfully generating commitment will likely require a core set of actions with some context-dependent adaptations. Ultimately, it will necessitate strategic actions by cohesive, resourced and strongly led nutrition actor networks that are responsive to the multifactorial, multilevel and dynamic political systems in which they operate and attempt to influence. Accelerating the formation and effectiveness of such networks over the Nutrition Decade should be a core task for all actors involved.

Objective: To examine how socio-demographic characteristics and diet quality vary with consumption of ultra-processed foods (UPF) in a cross-sectional nationally representative survey of Australian adults.Design: Using a 24-h recall, this cross-sectional analysis of dietary and socio-demographic data classified food items using the NOVA system, estimated the percentage of total energy contributed by UPFs and assessed diet quality using the Dietary Guideline Index (DGI–2013 total and components). Linear regression models examined associations between socio-demographic characteristics and diet quality with percentage of energy from UPF.Setting: Australian Health Survey 2011–2013.Participants: Australian adults aged ≥ 19 years (n 8209).Results: Consumption of UPF was higher among younger adults (aged 19–30 years), adults born in Australia, those experiencing greatest area-level disadvantage, lower levels of education and the second lowest household income quintile. No significant association was found for sex or rurality. A higher percentage of energy from UPF was inversely associated with diet quality and with lower DGI scores related to the variety of nutritious foods, fruits, vegetables, total cereals, meat and poultry, fish, eggs, nuts and seeds, legumes/beans, water and limits on discretionary foods, saturated fat and added sugar.Conclusions: This research adds to the evidence on dietary inequalities across Australia and how UPF are detrimental to diet quality. The findings can be used to inform interventions to reduce UPF consumption and improve diet quality.

The use of dietary pattern assessment methods has increased over time. However, data from individual studies can be difficult to compare and synthesize when the dietary pattern assessment methods, and the dietary patterns that are identified are not described sufficiently. The aims of this systematic review were to analyze the application and reporting of dietary pattern assessment methods, and the reporting of the dietary patterns that were analyzed with health outcomes. Three electronic databases were searched (Medline, Embase, and Global Health). Cohort and nested case control studies published in English between January 1980 and March 2019 that examined associations between dietary patterns and health outcomes (including cardiovascular disease, cancer, diabetes and metabolic syndrome, and body weight) in apparently healthy, community dwelling adults (aged over 18 years) or children (aged 2–18 years) were eligible for inclusion. A narrative synthesis was conducted and descriptive statistics were used to summarize the application and reporting of each dietary pattern assessment method, and the reporting of the identified dietary patterns. Analysis of associations between dietary patterns and health outcomes was beyond the scope of this review. Of the included studies (n = 410), 62.7% used index-based methods, 30.5% used factor analysis or principal component analysis, 6.3% used reduced rank regression, and 5.6% used cluster analysis. Some studies (4.6%) used more than one method. There was considerable variation in the application and reporting of dietary pattern assessment methods. For example, the application of Mediterranean diet indices varied in terms of the nature of dietary components (foods only or foods and nutrients) and the rationale behind the cut-off points (absolute and/or data driven). In some cases, important methodological details were omitted. The level of detail used to describe the dietary patterns also varied, and food and nutrient profiles were often not reported. To ensure dietary patterns evidence can be synthesized and translated into dietary guidelines, standardized approaches for the application and reporting of dietary pattern assessment methods and the reporting of the identified dietary patterns would be beneficial.

Objective: To develop a policy formulation tool for strategically informing food and nutrition policy activities to promote healthy and sustainable diets (HSD).Design: A policy formulation tool consisting of two complementary components was developed. First, a conceptual framework of the environment–public health nutrition relationship was constructed to characterise and conceptualise the food system problem. Second, an ‘Orders of Food Systems Change’ schema drawing on systems dynamics thinking was developed to identify, assess and propose policy options to redesign food systems.Setting: Food and nutrition policy activities to promote HSD have been politicised, fragmented and lacking a coherent conceptual and strategic focus to tackle complex food system challenges.Results: The tool’s conceptual framework component comprises three integrated dimensions: (i) a structure built around the environment and public health nutrition relationship that is mediated via the food system; (ii) internal mechanisms that operate through system dynamics; and (iii) external interactions that frame its nature and a scope within ecological parameters. The accompanying schema is structured around three orders of change distinguished by contrasting ideological perspectives on the type and extent of change needed to ‘solve’ the HSD problem.Conclusions: The conceptual framework’s systems analysis of the environment–public health nutrition relationship sets out the food system challenges for HSD. The schema helps account for political realities in policy making and is a key link to operationalise the framework’s concepts to actions aimed at redesigning food systems. In combination they provide a policy formulation tool to strategically inform policy activities to redesign food systems and promote HSD.

Summary: Generating political commitment for ending all forms of malnutrition represents a key challenge for the global nutrition community. Without commitment, the policies, programs, and resources needed to improve nutrition are unlikely to be adopted, effectively implemented, nor sustained. One essential driver of commitment is nutrition actor network (NAN) effectiveness, the web of individuals and organizations operating within a given country who share a common interest in improving nutrition and who act collectively to do so. To inform new thinking and action towards strengthening NAN effectiveness, we use a systems dynamics theoretical approach and literature review to build initial causal loop diagrams (CLDs) of political commitment and NAN effectiveness and a qualitative group model building (GMB) method involving an expert workshop to strengthen model validity. First, a “nutrition commitment system” CLD demonstrates how five interrelated forms of commitment—rhetorical, institutional, operational, embedded, and system‐wide—can dynamically reinforce or diminish one another over time. Second, we present CLDs demonstrating factors shaping NAN effectiveness organized into three categories: actor features, resources, and capacities; framing strategies, evidence, and norms; and institutional, political, and societal contexts. Together, these models generate hypotheses on how political commitment and NAN effectiveness could be strengthened in future and may provide potential starting points for country‐specific conversations for doing so.

Dietary change has been suggested as a key strategy to maintain food security, improve health and reduce environmental impacts in the face of rising populations, resource scarcity and climate change impacts, particularly in developed countries. This paper presents findings from a quantitative modelling analysis of food availability and environmental implications of shifting the current average Australian dietary pattern to one of two alternative, healthy dietary patterns, the ‘healthy mixed diet’, with a mixture of animal and plant foods, and the ‘healthy plant-based diet’, with only plant foods. Both were constructed in accordance with the Australian Dietary Guideline recommendations, and four sustainability principles: Avoiding over-consumption, reducing intake of discretionary foods, reducing animal products, and reducing food waste. It was assumed that all food was provided domestically where possible, and export of foods only occurred when there was a surplus to domestic requirements. The authors compared the impacts of each dietary pattern on direct food availability, water use, land use, greenhouse gas emissions, fuel and energy use and fertiliser use. The plant-based diet had the best overall environmental and direct food availability outcomes, however had key vulnerabilities in terms of fertiliser and cropping land availability. For the agricultural sector overall, changes in diet had little effect on environmental impact due to the amount and nature of Australian exports, indicating that changes to production methods are also necessary. Likewise, changing diets had little effect on the existing environmentally intensive Australian economy, indicating that changes to other sectors are also necessary.