# Influence of Mediterranean Diet and Incidence of Global Warming on Food Habits and Plant Growth in Northern Mediterranean Latitudes: Narrative Review

## TL;DR

This review explores how climate change is enabling Mediterranean plants and diets to spread to northern Europe, affecting food habits and agriculture.

## Contribution

The paper connects climate change with the northward shift of Mediterranean agriculture and diet patterns in Europe.

## Key findings

- Mediterranean plants like olive trees and almonds are already growing in northern European latitudes due to climate change.
- Climate change is expected to increase the consumption of Mediterranean diet-associated foods in Northern Europe.
- Adaptations in agriculture, food production, and cooking are needed as Mediterranean climate zones expand.

## Abstract

Background: Climate change has consequences for farming, food diversity and availability, and diet habits. There is now evidence that the Mediterranean climate is rapidly spreading to the Northern European latitudes. Objective: This narrative review aims to identify relevant studies related to climate change that could favor the progression of the Mediterranean climate in the northern latitudes of Europe, mainly in France, and to predict what the consequences of these changes on the human diet could be, especially using the concept of the Mediterranean diet, with subsequent impacts on health, farming, and eating habits. Methods: This narrative review was realized by consulting the PubMed, Scopus, Science Direct, and Google Scholar databases. Results: The key points developed in this review are as follows: investigating the Mediterranean diet as a healthy diet, with evidence supporting health benefits and perspectives; similarities with other places in the world at the same Mediterranean latitudes; climate change and the resulting consequences on plant growth, farming, and food habits; and perspectives on the need for societal adaptations of populations towards agriculture, food, and cooking changes. As climate change facilitates the development of new farming practices with more or fewer environmental impacts, the growth of Mediterranean plants in the highest latitudes of Europe, such as olive trees, pomegranates, and almonds, has already begun for economic reasons. Future perspectives: In the near future, besides economic interests, climate change will favor the consumption of several products associated with the Mediterranean diet in the Northern European latitudes. In this context, producers and consumers play major roles.