On World Heart Day (29 September), Animal Advocacy and Food Transition (AAFT) joined 19 other organisations in calling on the European Commission to put healthy diets, especially plant-based foods, at the heart of its upcoming EU Cardiovascular Health Plan.
Europe’s biggest killer is preventable
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the single largest cause of death in Europe, responsible for more than one in three deaths each year and costing the EU economy an estimated €282 billion annually
While treatments have advanced, prevention remains by far the most effective and cost-efficient strategy, and diet is one of the strongest determinants of cardiovascular risk.
Unfortunately, Europe’s current food system pushes consumers in the wrong direction. Animal products, particularly red and processed meat, full-fat dairy, and foods high in saturated fat, dominate EU production and subsidies. This creates an environment where unhealthy foods are cheap, abundant, and aggressively marketed, even though they are strongly linked to high cholesterol, obesity, and hypertension, the leading risk factors for CVD.
Eating less meat, eating more plants
The evidence is clear: shifting towards plant-rich diets is one of the most powerful ways to prevent heart disease and improve population health. Diets centred on fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, and whole grains can lower blood pressure, improve cholesterol, reduce obesity rates, and help prevent type 2 diabetes.
Promoting such diets delivers multiple benefits:
Better health – reducing rates of CVD, obesity, diabetes, and cancer.
Fairer societies – making healthy food accessible and affordable for all, especially vulnerable groups.
Lower costs – reducing the need for costly lifelong medication, surgeries, and hospital stays.
Sustainability – reducing pressure on land, water, and ecosystems while addressing climate and biodiversity goals.
A unique opportunity for the EU
In a joint letter to Health Commissioner Várhelyi, we all urged the European Commission to ensure the EU Plan for Cardiovascular Health includes strong commitments to:
- Develop sustainable, equity-proof food systems that enable plant-rich diets and reduce overconsumption of animal products.
- Roll out mandatory, colour-coded nutrition labelling across the EU.
- Revise school food schemes to guarantee all children, especially from vulnerable backgrounds, access to free or subsidised healthy plant-based meals.
- Redirect EU subsidies and promotion funds away from unhealthy products like meat and alcohol, and towards fruits, vegetables, legumes, and nuts.
- Use fiscal policies, including health taxes and subsidies, to rebalance affordability in favour of healthy, plant-based foods.
The EU Cardiovascular Health Plan is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to protect millions of lives, cut health costs, and make healthy, plant-based diets the easy, affordable choice across Europe. Reducing meat consumption and investing in plant-based foods is not only essential for Europe’s heart health but also for a sustainable and fair food future.