The EAT-Lancet Commission has proposed a global benchmark diet to guide the shift towards healthy and sustainable dietary patterns. Yet, it is unclear whether consumers��� choices are convergent with those guidelines. Applying an advanced statistical analysis, we mapped the diet gap of 15 essential foods in 174 countries over 1961-2018. We found that countries at the highest level of development have an above-optimal consumption of animal products, fats, and sugars, but a sub-optimal consumption of legumes, nuts, and fruits. Countries suffering from limited socioeconomic progress primarily rely on carbohydrates and starchy roots. A gradual change towards healthy and sustainable dietary targets can be observed for seafood, milk products, poultry, and vegetable oils. We show that if all countries adopted the EAT-Lancet diet, water footprint would fall by 12% at the global level but increase for nearly 40% of the global population.