Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam

Trinh, Huong Thi; Linderhof, Vincent; Vuong, Vy Thao; Esaryk, Erin E.; Heller, Martin; Dijkxhoorn, Youri; Nguyen, Trang Mai; Huynh, Tuyen Thi Thanh; Hernandez, Ricardo; Duong, Thanh Thi; Luu, Van Thi; Jones, Andrew D.; Talsma, Elise F.; Truong, Mai Tuyet; Achterbosch, Thom; de Haan, Stef

doi:10.3390/agriculture11020137

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Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam

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Tuyen Thi Thanh Huynh

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International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)-Asia Office, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Thuongmai University, Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

Wageningen Economic Research, Wageningen University and Research, Prinses Beatrixlaan 582, 2595 BM Den Haag, The Netherlands

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Department of Global Development, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA

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Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University of California, San Francisco, CA 95616, USA

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School for Environment and Sustainability, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA

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School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA

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Division of Human Nutrition and Health, Wageningen University, P.O. Box 9101, 6700 HB Wageningen, The Netherlands

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National Institute of Nutrition (NIN), Hanoi 100000, Vietnam

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International Potato Center (CIP), Avenida La Molina 1895, Apartado 1558, 15023 Lima 12, Peru

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Academic Editor: Isabel Lara Ayala

Agriculture 2021, 11(2), 137; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11020137

Received: 31 December 2020 / Revised: 25 January 2021 / Accepted: 2 February 2021 / Published: 7 February 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Agriculture and Food Systems – Global and Local Comparisons)

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Abstract

Human diets and their associated environmental impacts differ across segments of the population. There is evidence that consumer choices of food intake can also affect the overall environmental impacts of a food system. This paper analyzes the environmental impact of diets and food choices across a rural–urban transect in Northern Vietnam by using mixed survey data from 619 adult respondents. The average greenhouse gas emissions (GHGE) resulting from producing the daily food intake of adults in the urban and peri-urban districts were similar, while the average in the rural district was lower. Although starchy staples contributed the most to energy intake, pork and beef were the largest contributors to GHGE. Metrics of blue water use were higher for diets of males than those of females in all three districts. Interestingly, the difference in mean diet diversity score between urban and rural households was significant, and females’ diets were more diverse than those of males. As expected, urban households were more likely to buy food, while rural households often produced their own foods. Urban households reported prioritizing personal health and the natural content of food and would increase seafood and fruits if their income were to increase. In rural regions, interventions aimed at reducing undernutrition should address improving diet quality without significant increases to diet-related environmental impacts. View Full-Text

Keywords: rural–urban transect; GHGE; blue water use; diet variety scores; food sourcing; demographic; consumer behavior; sustainable food system; Vietnam

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MDPI and ACS Style

Trinh, H.T.; Linderhof, V.; Vuong, V.T.; Esaryk, E.E.; Heller, M.; Dijkxhoorn, Y.; Nguyen, T.M.; Huynh, T.T.T.; Hernandez, R.; Duong, T.T.; Luu, V.T.; Jones, A.D.; Talsma, E.F.; Truong, M.T.; Achterbosch, T.; de Haan, S. Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam. Agriculture 2021, 11, 137. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11020137

AMA Style

Trinh HT, Linderhof V, Vuong VT, Esaryk EE, Heller M, Dijkxhoorn Y, Nguyen TM, Huynh TTT, Hernandez R, Duong TT, Luu VT, Jones AD, Talsma EF, Truong MT, Achterbosch T, de Haan S. Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam. Agriculture. 2021; 11(2):137. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11020137

Chicago/Turabian Style

Trinh, Huong T., Vincent Linderhof, Vy T. Vuong, Erin E. Esaryk, Martin Heller, Youri Dijkxhoorn, Trang M. Nguyen, Tuyen T.T. Huynh, Ricardo Hernandez, Thanh T. Duong, Van T. Luu, Andrew D. Jones, Elise F. Talsma, Mai T. Truong, Thom Achterbosch, and Stef de Haan. 2021. "Diets, Food Choices and Environmental Impacts across an Urban-Rural Interface in Northern Vietnam" Agriculture 11, no. 2: 137. https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture11020137

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