food pyramid

American  

noun

Ecology.

food pyramids plural

1. successive levels of predation in a food chain represented schematically as a pyramid because upper levels normally consist of decreasing numbers of larger predators.

2. a diagram that represents a healthy diet by placing food groups in a pyramid according to the number of servings from each group to be eaten every day.

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food pyramid Scientific  

1. A graphic representation of the structure of a food chain, depicted as a pyramid having a broad base formed by producers and tapering to a point formed by end consumers. Between successive trophic levels, total biomass decreases as energy is lost from the system.

2. See more at trophic level

3. A pyramid-shaped diagram representing a set of dietary guidelines for humans, typically based on a recommended number of servings from each of several food groups. Foods along the broadest row, at the bottom, are considered basic to human nutrition and have the highest recommended number of servings. Foods in the narrowest part, at the top, are considered to be nonessential and have the fewest number of recommended servings. In the middle row or rows are foods whose recommended servings fall between those two groups.

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• food pyramids
  plural

Etymology

Origin of food pyramid

First recorded in 1945–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

food pyramid

A recent update of the federal dietary guidelines recommended Americans consume more protein and put beef atop the new food pyramid.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 19, 2026

Protein’s sheer prevalence prevails in the new year, especially in the wake of new dietary guidelines that place red meat at the very top of the food pyramid.

From Salon ● Jan. 17, 2026

It also brought back the iconic food pyramid from the 1990s — but inverted it to underscore the value of protein and vegetables in a healthy diet.

From MarketWatch ● Jan. 10, 2026

To be sure, the food pyramid adding $7 billion in market value to Deere feels like a stretch.

From Barron's ● Jan. 8, 2026

Then Dad and Michael’s dad talk for a long time while Michael and I try to make the food pyramid out of all the snacks.

From "Mockingbird" by Kathryn Erskine