Foreword

The 2026 Global Nutrition Report arrives at a moment when scientific understanding of the links between food systems, health systems, climate change and nutrition have never been stronger. Yet, progress towards the global nutrition targets remains uneven, and access to healthy diets continues to be shaped by widening inequities, climate-related shocks and under-resourced delivery systems. This is felt most acutely in low- and middle-income countries, where the burden of malnutrition in all its forms is greatest.

This report is intended to help close the gap between what is increasingly well understood and what is implemented in practice. The report makes the case for integrated food and health system action under climate change, addresses the trade-offs that must be managed, examines accountability gaps and introduces a practical framework to guide action.

The case for integration. Healthy diets are produced by the combined functioning of food systems, health systems and social protection, yet they have too often advanced in parallel rather than together. Climate strategies continue to under-prioritise nutrition; food systems transformation frequently assumes nutrition gains without designing for them; and health systems are positioned as downstream responders rather than as active partners in shaping food environments. The report therefore reaffirms the long-standing recommendation of the nutrition community for integration and coordination on food, health and nutrition actions, not as a policy aspiration but as a practical condition for delivery at scale.

An honest dialogue on trade-offs. Much of the current debate emphasises "win-win" scenarios across climate, food systems, health and nutrition. These synergies are real, but they do not materialise without coordinated action. For example, dietary shifts that reduce environmental impact can increase the risk of micronutrient inadequacy if health and nutrition outcomes are not prioritised. Agricultural productivity gains do not necessarily translate into better diets if nutritious foods are not available and affordable to communities and families. The report invites policymakers and practitioners to engage explicitly with these tensions when making policy and programme decisions. Recognising and managing trade-offs is essential for policies that aim to improve diet quality for those most at risk, especially women and girls who face structural inequities across food and health systems.

Harmonising accountability with the evidence. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in the specificity and transparency of nutrition commitments. However, a persistent gap remains between procedural accountability, meaning what is promised on paper, and substantive capacity to deliver. Analysis of Nutrition for Growth commitments suggests that those explicitly linking food and health system actions are more likely to address resilience and equity, and to move beyond short-term, project-based approaches. Accountability frameworks must now evolve accordingly, tracking not only the ambition of commitments, but whether they are grounded in evidence and include secured financing, gender and resilience.

A framework to integrate action. To support application of these findings, the report introduces an analytical framework for achieving healthy diets through integrated food and health systems action under climate change. The framework identifies four enabling functions: leadership and governance, financing, operational capacity and research and monitoring. Together, these will determine whether integration translates into results. The framework offers a practical tool for policymakers, commitment-makers and practitioners to link science and evidence to policy by making interdependencies, trade-offs and delivery requirements explicit.

As Independent Expert Group Co-chairs, we call for governments, donors, multilateral organisations, civil society and the private sector to use the framework, coordinate action and strengthen accountability across food and health systems. We present this report as a contribution to renewed momentum towards healthy diets for all.

Dr Shibani Ghosh and Dr Giacomo Zanello

Co-chairs of the Independent Expert Group