GRAZIERS are concerned about a recent change of emphasis by the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC), the Commonwealth’s peak medical science body.

NHMRC is proposing to include environmental considerations into what constitutes a healthy diet as opposed to focussing solely on the individual’s health.

The NHMRC’s Australian Dietary Guidelines 2013 are being updated and environmental impacts, including carbon emissions, are to be stipulated as relevant to the formulation of a healthy diet.

Federal health minister, Mark Butler is supporting the change.

Previously, a healthy diet was assessed on its own merits, that is to say how good it was for the individual.

Producers of red meat are worried since they are already confronted with having to reduce the carbon footprint of sheep and cattle.

Cattle Australia (CA) has expressed deep concern at the NHMRC’s move fearing that it “will create a dangerous channel for misguided ideology, not robust nutritional science, to advise the nation’s consumers”.

CA chief executive, Dr Chris Parker, said the grass-fed cattle industry held grave concerns that the inclusion of environmental messaging would fail to grasp the reality of modern beef production and muddy the waters for consumers on how best to optimise their health through nutrition.

“Australian beef producers prioritise their responsibility to care for natural resources and we absolutely stand behind our sustainability credentials and commitment to continual improvement, as evidenced by the gains we consistently make across a range of environmental measures,” he said.

“Any move that provides an opportunity for environmental ideologies or agendas that fail to understand the world-leading work being undertaken by Australian beef producers, and which ignores both the positive contribution we make to the landscape and the nutritional needs of our community, is entirely misguided and inappropriate.”

He said deviating from the Australian Dietary Guidelines’ core function of promoting public health and preventing chronic disease posed a real threat to consumers, who would not benefit from accurate and reliable information about their basic nutritional requirements and the important role red meat plays in nourishing the nation.

“A typical 150 gram serving of Australian beef contains 12 essential nutrients recommended for good health and is a powerful source of protein, iron, zinc and vitamin B12,” Dr Parker said.

“Beef that is predominantly grass-fed is also a source of Omega-3 fatty acids, with more iron and zinc than poultry and fish.

“Further, the Federal Government’s own statistics showed that in 2020 the Australian beef industry had reduced its net CO2 emissions by 64.1 per cent since 2005 and it continues to improve on key sustainability measures.”

Dr Parker said given the Dietary Guidelines are only reviewed periodically, with the current guidelines from 2013, the risk was they would become outdated and fail to keep pace with changes in the beef industry.

“To move away from core nutritional information could confuse Australian consumers and deny them of real data as to how red meat can play a role in healthy lifestyles,” he said.

In a similar vein, Red Meat Advisory Council independent chairman, John McKillop said, “These developments are an overreach by the Dietary Guidelines Expert Committee that goes well beyond the policy intent of the Australian Dietary Guidelines to provide recommendations on healthy foods and dietary patterns.

“The red meat industry has a strong story about sustainability, so our concerns are not because we believe it’s a weakness, but because it’s not the role of the dietary guidelines nor is it the expertise of the Dietary Guidelines Expert Committee.

“People should have the right to feed their families nutritious food, without mixed messaging about the environment or other sustainability considerations.

 “We are calling on the NHMRC and the Dietary Guidelines Expert Committee to reconsider their plans to expand the remit of the dietary guidelines beyond nutritional science. If they refuse, we’ll be asking the Federal Government to intervene as it’s starting to look like the process is running off the rails.

“There are already people who do not have access to basic nutritional requirements afforded by red meat protein, which results in adverse health outcomes. Taking a local lens, one in five women are iron deficient in Australia; we should be working to solve these problems, not make them worse.

“The dietary guidelines review process must not be allowed to be used as a vehicle to drive ideological agendas at the expense of the latest available nutritional science,” Mr McKillop said.

The Nationals leader, David Littleproud commented, “These (the NHMRC) are medical professionals and they should stick to medical advice.”

Wannon MP, Dan Tehan told The Spectator, “Once again we have bureaucrats driven by ideology telling us how to live our lives, in this case what we should or shouldn’t eat. This is a deeply concerning development for our farmers.”