If the world were a dinner table of 100 people, only one of us could sit down knowing our food system truly supports both people and the planet by meeting nutritional needs, respecting human rights, and staying within planetary boundaries. Just one.

That is one of the key findings from the 2025 EAT-Lancet Report launched this month. The landmark scientific assessment captures how our global food system shapes human health, communities, and the stability of our planet.

Today, one in three people can’t afford or access a healthy diet. Over half suffer from diet-related disease. Meanwhile, the way we produce, consume, and transport food is a leading driver of climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution, undermining the very ecosystems that feed us. One third of food workers earn below a living wage.

Stark figures have already made headlines across the globe. Yet, amid these dramatic facts, one message easily gets lost—hope for better food systems that support people and the planet.

Science shows we have the tools to feed a growing population without destroying the planet. The new EAT-Lancet Report is our clearest scientific compass for how to get there, showing that healthy diets and sustainable and fair production could save 40,000 lives daily, while cutting emissions and pollution and restoring land and water systems.

The Report is not a lofty vision. It’s a call to choose a new path.

Scientists are not here to dictate what anyone should eat. The report advocates the freedom to choose, and freedom from hunger and from crushing medical bills. It shows how better food represents the freedom to drink clean water, make a decent living, or grow a business, in safe and resilient communities. It calls for equal opportunity for every parent to feed their children what they need to grow and thrive.

These freedoms, now enjoyed by only a lucky 1 percent, are within reach. A just food system is not just the goal, but a prerequisite to get there.

Science alone doesn’t create change. People do—farmers, policymakers, investors, chefs, entrepreneurs, and consumers. The world is not a dinner table, but in the global food system, we are all stakeholders, with much at stake, much to gain, and much to say. Lasting change doesn’t come from someone being told, but from everyone being heard.

Read the full article about building equitable global food systems by Gunhild Stordalen at Food Tank.