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FAO/WHO Global Individual Food consumption data Tool (GIFT): methodological documents

Food groups and subgroups

Year of publication 2022

Place of publication Rome, Italy ;

Pages 24 p.

Author FAO

Publisher FAO ;

Product type Document

Edition 1

Synopsis (short abstract) A major challenge in harmonizing food consumption data relates to the harmonization of the coding of food items. Foods vary between countries and regions in terms of forms, varieties, preparation methods and many other characteristics. It is essential that comparability be maintained, without losing detailed information on what has been consumed. The use of a common food classification and description system among food consumption surveys from different countries – covering different age and sex population groups – contributes to the global harmonization of dietary data. The individual quantitative food consumption datasets shared through the FAO/WHO Global Individual Food consumption data Tool (FAO/WHO GIFT) are coded with the FoodEx2 system. FoodEx2 is a comprehensive and flexible food classification and description system developed by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA). It was first developed to be used at the European level, and was later scaled up to the global level in collaboration with the Food and Agricultural Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO), to enable the description and classification of food items – such as insects, flowers and wild foods – as consumed in other regions of the world. The FoodEx2 classification and description system contains different hierarchies that differently aggregate individual food items with similar characteristics into food groups and comprehensive food categories in a hierarchical manner. The FoodEx2 Exposure hierarchy was designed to facilitate the grouping of food items for dietary exposure calculations, which is a key step in the risk assessment process for food safety. This is the hierarchy that is usually used for coding food consumption data. FAO worked to develop the FAO/WHO GIFT food groups and subgroups for a simpler and more nutrition-sensitive food grouping, which would allow non-specialist users to draw conclusions from the indicators presented in the FAO/WHO GIFT platform in an intuitive way. The development of the food grouping used in the FAO/WHO GIFT platform was based on the food groups used for Dietary Diversity Score indicators, as well as those typically used in food-based dietary guidelines. The food grouping was meant to reflect the role of foods in the diet. It was also reviewed by food composition specialists, and compared with the food grouping used by the FAO/WHO Chronic Individual Food Consumption Database – Summary Statistics (CIFOCOss), now integrated into the FOSCOLLAB platform, to ensure maximum possible coherence with other similar classifications.

Language English

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    FAO/WHO GIFT (Global Individual Food consumption data Tool): a global repository for harmonised individual quantitative food consumption studies 2019
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    Knowing who eats what, understanding the various eating habits of different population groups, according to the geographical area, is critical to develop evidence-based policies for nutrition and food safety. The FAO/WHO Global Individual Food consumption data Tool (FAO/WHO GIFT) is a novel open-access online platform, hosted by FAO and supported by WHO, providing access to harmonised individual quantitative food consumption (IQFC) data, especially in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC). FAO/WHO GIFT is a growing repository, which will serve as the global FAO/WHO hub to disseminate IQFC microdata. Currently five datasets from LMIC are available for dissemination, and an additional fifty datasets will be made available by 2022. To facilitate the use of these data by policy makers, ready-to-use food-based indicators are provided for an overview of key data according to population segments and food groups. FAO/WHO GIFT also provides an inventory of existing IQFC data worldwide, which currently contains detailed information on 188 surveys conducted in seventy-two countries. In order for end-users to be able to aggregate the available data, all datasets are harmonised with the European Food Safety Authority's food classification and description system FoodEx2 (modified for global use). This harmonisation is aimed at enhancing the consistency and reliability of nutrient intake and dietary exposure assessments. FAO/WHO GIFT is developed in synergy with other global initiatives aimed at increasing the quality, availability and use of IQFC data in LMIC to enable evidence-based decision-making and policy development for better nutrition and food safety
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    FAO/WHO Global Individual Food Consumption Data Tool (FAO/WHO GIFT): Developing Capacities at Country Level to Produce Dietary Data to Support Evidence-Based Policy Making - TCP/INT/3706 2023
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    To make informed policy decisions ensuring food and nutrition security for all, it is crucial to have access to relevant dietary information Beyond information on country and household level food availability, data on individual quantitative food consumption ( is crucial to assess the nutritional adequacy of the population’s diet For this purpose, FAO and the World Health Organization ( have developed a global database on IQFC data under a joint initiative, the FAO/WHO global individual food consumption data tool (FAO/WHO GIFT) The platform is intended to support evidence based policymaking by providing harmonized information on food consumption As of yet, this tool is underutilized by governments given its limited dissemination scope and lack of harmonization of country datasets The project was designed to enable national institutes from Kenya, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nigeria and the Philippines to collect and harmonize their IQFC data and support informed decision making to improve national nutrition policies These four countries were chosen given their recent or planned IQFC surveys and the interest from governmental partners The project provided capacity building trainings to data managers in dietary data collection and harmonization in order to share the most recent data on the FAO/WHO GIFT platform In addition, it encouraged government counterparts to leverage these harmonized datasets to develop food based dietary guidelines FBDGs).
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    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    Know what people eat - Global Individual Food consumption data Tool (FAO/WHO GIFT) 2017
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    FAO/WHO GIFT (Global Individual Food consumption data Tool) consists of a global database, containing individual quantitative food consumption data from any country disregarding their level of income, made freely accessible online through an interactive web platform. FAO/WHO GIFT aims to be a multipurpose tool, providing information on specific indicators that are needed to inform nutrition-sensitive agriculture and food security policies by improving nutrition and food systems. The use of simpl e and accurate food-based indicators, derived from sex and age disaggregated data on individual food consumption, strengthens nutrition information systems and helps to promote the consumption of healthy and nutritious foods, based on local food systems and biodiversity. Quantitative individual food consumption data are also needed for food safety risk analysis, natural resources’ management and to mitigate climate change.
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