3 eating tips to help save the planet

1. Meat has a heavy environmental footprint

Producing animal protein requires up to 17 times as much land as vegetable protein, up to 26 times as much water, and up to 7 times as much phosphate, a dwindling natural resource¹. Compared to plants, meat demands a lot from the environment.

2. Out-of-season produce requires a lot of energy

One study shows that an Austrian winter tomato has 12 times the emissions of a summer one².

3. Flown foods weigh heavily on the planet

Food miles are complex. However, regardless of how you crunch the data, flying food comes with a big footprint. Air transport emissions are around 100 times those from shipping³. The usual suspects are fresh beans from Africa, asparagus from South America and fresh tropical fruits. Fresh seasonal produce grown in Europe or dried or canned equivalents have much lower food miles.

References:
¹Quantification of the environmental impact of different dietary protein choices – The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
²Contrasted greenhouse gas emissions from local versus long-range tomato production
³The Validity of Food Miles as an Indicator of Sustainable Development