Abstract

Background:

The term ‘food literacy’ has gained momentum globally; however, a lack of clarity around its definition has resulted in inconsistencies in use of the term. Therefore, the objective was to conduct a systematic scoping review to describe the use, reach, application and definitions of the term ‘food literacy’ over time.

Methods:

A search was conducted using the PRISMA-ScR guidelines in seven research databases without any date limitations up to 31 December 2019, searching simply for use of the term ‘food literacy’.

Results:

Five hundred and forty-nine studies were included. The term ‘food literacy’ was used once in 243 articles (44%) and mentioned by researchers working in 41 countries. Original research was the most common article type (n=429, 78%). Food literacy was published across 72 In Cites disciplines, with 456 (83%) articles from the last 5 years. In articles about food literacy (n=82, 15%), review articles were twice as prevalent compared to the total number of articles (n=32, 12% vs. n=10, 6%). Fifty-one different definitions of food literacy were cited.

Conclusions:

‘Food literacy’ has been used frequently and broadly across differing article types and disciplines in academic literature internationally. However, agreement on a standardised definition of food literacy endorsed by a peak international agency is needed in order to progress the field.

Thompson, C., Adams, J., & Vidgen, H.A. (2021). Are we closer to international consensus on the term ‘food literacy’? A systematic scoping review of its use in the academic literature (1998-2019). Nutrients, 13(6) 2006-30. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu13062006