Fixing Food Together with Dr Sean Owens

By Steven Galvin - Last update


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Fixing Food Together with Dr Sean Owens is taking place at Sligo Library on Wed, 13 Sep 2023 13:00 – 13:45.

Fixing Food Together is a report that seeks to change the way we eat in Ireland moving us toward more plant based foods.

Fixing Food Together with Dr Sean Owens

Register here.

If you are seeking a better way of feeding yourself and your family this talk, the exhibition and the report that accompanies it may give you the information and motivation you need to make healthy changes in your diet. One of the most repeated pieces of advice that nutrition experts have advocated for years is that we consume 5-7 portions of fruit or vegetables every day. In Ireland 66% of the population do not eat 5-7 portions of fruit or vegetables every day.

The average Irish adult’s daily diet exceeds planetary boundaries for Greenhous Gas Emissions by 226%. Investigators have calculated the sustainable amount of carbon that can be safely used to feed the human population and divided this amongst the current population of 8 billion people.

All recent research on the average Irish diet has concluded that what we eat is making us obese, less healthy and more prone to an early death.

The report advocates that Irish people move to a more plant-based diet, not only good for the planet but good for you.

Obesity rates in men have increased from 8% in men in 1990 to 26% in 2011 and have now increased even further. Women are not far behind with obesity rates rising from 13% to 21% in the same period.

In Ireland, cardiovascular disease (heart disease and stroke) is one of the leading causes of death, accounting for over one in four (26.5%) of all deaths. At least 80% of premature cardiovascular disease (CVD) is preventable through lifestyle change alone, in which a healthy diet plays an important part.

One in 15 adults aged 20-79 years is estimated to have diabetes.

A major part of the report examines with changes that are needed in policy to make these changes a reality. But a substantial portion deals with the changes that you can make in what you eat to ensure that you and your family lead long and healthy lives.

We lead busy and demanding lives and the food industry has responded, producing what are know as “ultra-processed foods”, examples include confectionary, fried snacks, processed meats (e.g. sausages, black pudding), cakes and biscuits. A lot of these foods appear familiar but typically industrially produced ultra processed foods contain additives such as artificial flavours, emulsifiers, colouring, and sweeteners (which are less likely to go off than natural ingredients). Many also contain preservatives to increase their shelf life.

The foods may also contain substances from the packaging, they are in contact with.

These foods have been industrially produced to mimic a food that could have been produced in a kitchen, but you could not produce them in your own kitchen using the ingredients listed. You would probably not recognise the ingredients listed on the pack and if you don’t, the product is probably an ultra-processed food.

Recent research has indicated that some Irish people have diets that are composed of 42% ultra-processed food and this is climbing. On average we under-consume fruit, vegetables, wholegrains, legumes (peas, beans, lentils), nuts and seafood.


Are you interested in courses on food and nutrition? Click on the links to discover courses around the country.


Steven Galvin

TCD Engineering - Air Pollution Monitoring based on Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)
Business with Logistics & Distribution Course at Cathal Brugha


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