2023/24 Taught Postgraduate Module Catalogue

FOEV5103M Sustainable Food Consumption

15 creditsClass Size: 50

Module manager: Carolyn Auma
Email: c.i.auma@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2023/24

This module is not approved as an Elective

Module summary

This module will investigate the real-world challenges food sustainability presents in the context of food consumption. It will apply systems thinking approaches and integrate perspectives from psychology, nutrition and public health, sustainability, critical geography, and sociology. This module will critically investigate the health, environmental, social and economic drivers and impacts of food consumption, examine the role of different stakeholders (e.g. retail, schools, local authorities etc), and identify opportunities to achieve sustainability outcomes.Students will work collaboratively in groups with others from different backgrounds on a case study based on a real world challenge. Students will design interventions for healthy and sustainable diets. There will be 1 piece of formative assessment (i.e. a group presentation) and 1 piece of summative assessment: an individual report. There will also be many of opportunities for formative feedback e.g. during the lectures, seminars, practicals, and drop-in sessions.

Objectives

This module aims to:
• examine the essential theories, concepts, approaches and tools used in sustainable consumption studies, psychology, nutrition, and human geography in relation to food consumption;
• critically evaluate the multiple meanings of ‘sustainable’ and ‘healthy’ diets;
• apply systems thinking in order to critically investigate what people eat and why;
• take an interdisciplinary approach to design successful interventions for healthy and sustainable diets.

Learning outcomes
By the end of the module students will be able to (Module Learning Outcomes):
MLO1: Demonstrate critical understanding of healthy and sustainable diets in different contexts e.g. geographical, socio-economic etc.
MLO2: Critically evaluate the health, social, environmental and economic impacts and drivers of food consumption
MLO3: Design appropriate interventions for healthy and sustainable food consumption practices across a range of socio-economic contexts

Syllabus

Indicative content of this module will include topics such as:
• Definitions of sustainable diets and nutritious/healthy diets
• Environmental, social and economic drivers and impacts of food consumption
• Triple burden of malnutrition (undernutrition, overweight and obesity, micronutrient deficiencies)
• Food consumption across the world: international perspectives
• Value of food: monetary/ price/cost/profit, cultural/ heritage, community cohesion/ eating as a social practice, co-eating, nutrition etc
• Role of retailers and markets
• Procurement in organisations and institutions
• Household food insecurity, food justice, food sovereignty
• Class, race, gender, power, and inequalities
• Interventions for healthy, sustainable, ethical/ equitable food consumption
• Behavioural change, Social practice theory, ‘Health by Stealth’, labelling, education
• Health claims and effects of food on health
• Policy (e.g. nutrition, food, public health), regulatory, urban planning context
• Food consumers vs food citizens

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Workshop	1	7.00	7.00
Independent Learning	5	1.00	5.00
Lecture	5	2.00	10.00
Practical	2	2.00	4.00
Seminar	5	2.00	10.00
Private study hours			114.00
Total Contact hours			36.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			150.00

Private study

Reading and critically reviewing relevant material such as academic journals, books, grey literature (policy, technical and business reports, working papers, government documents, white papers etc.)
Group working and peer learning

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Report	2,000 word report	100.00
Oral Presentation	Formative Group presentation	0.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		100.00

The resit for this module will be a single item of assessment, in a format to be announced by the Module Leader, and covering all Module Learning Objectives. If the resit is being taken as a New First Attempt, the original mark will be discarded irrevocably and replaced by the new mark even if it is lower. If the resit is being taken as a Capped Second Attempt, whichever is higher of the original mark and the new mark capped at the Pass mark of 50%, will be returned

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 31/08/2023 16:20:37

Disclaimer

Browse Other Catalogues

• Undergraduate module catalogue
• Taught Postgraduate module catalogue
• Undergraduate programme catalogue
• Taught Postgraduate programme catalogue

Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team.PROD