Eat For The Planet – Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Through Your Diet


While many people understand the impact their vehicle has on the environment, they rarely consider the impact their diet has. When one stops to consider that globally automobiles produce 10% of all CO2 emissions and livestock produce 18% of all CO2 emissions it is easy to see the importance of an environmentally friendly diet.

Evaluating Your Carbon Footprint

Your personal carbon footprint measures how many pounds of global warming causing CO2 you produce annually through activities in your daily life. Once you understand your personal carbon footprint and its implications on the environment at large, most people begin to wonder what can they do to reduce their footprint?

According to the United States Department of Energy, the average American produces about 20 tons or 40,000 pounds of carbon dioxide each year. How does your carbon footprint compare to the national average?

Using Your Diet to Reduce Your Carbon Footprint

When you consider the global environmental cost of livestock the implications of our diets on the environment become clearer. Each item we consume has a life cycle that effects the environment. The dietary choices we make, give us control over these environmental effects.

Five Environmentally Dangerous Foods

A recent Los Angeles Times article lists the following environmentally dangerous foods. (The items are listed from most dangerous to least dangerous.)

  • Beef/Steak
  • Foreign Cheese
  • Fresh Tuna
  • Domestic Cheese
  • Shrimp

Can Gourmet Food Be Environmentally Friendly?

Can gourmet food be environmentally friendly? Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay thinks so and he doesn’t stop there. According to a recent BBC interview Ramsay went on the record to say “restaurants should be fined if they serve fruit and vegetables which are not in season.” Ramsay feels “it would cut carbon emissions as less food would be imported and also lead to improved standards of cooking.”

Simple Dietary Changes Are The Solution

Reducing your consumption of these environmentally dangerous foods is can be easier than you think. Why not replace your beef with chicken? You would need to consume nearly 10 servings of chicken to cause the same environmental damage as a single serving of beef. Are you willing to try something new? Why not consider replacing your hamburger with something vegetarian such as a portabello burger or a black bean burger for even more dramatic environmental results. Instead of environmentally expensive exotic fruits and vegetables consider locally grown, seasonal produce. If you are unsure where to start your local farmers market can provide you a wide variety of locally produced fruits, vegetables and even proteins.

May 18 2008 03:42 pm | Environment


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