A World Economic Forum piece highlights the urgent need to position nutrition and food quality at the heart of global health strategies to improve lives worldwide. Billions of people still lack access to healthy diets, and diet-related chronic diseases continue to drive mortality and healthcare costs. Central to the discussion is the Periodic Table of Food Initiative, an effort to systematically map the molecular composition of foods to better understand how specific compounds affect health outcomes, enabling more precise, science-driven nutrition strategies. Moving beyond broad dietary advice to evidence-based, molecularly informed approaches can help shift global food systems toward better health and prevention-focused policies. Collaborations across sectors can help elevate food quality and nutrition as foundational elements of public health, economic resilience, and sustainable food systems.
