Summary of ZOE Science And Nutrition Podcast Episode: How your food choices affect the planet
— Description —
Climate change is causing extreme weather events impacting food production and potentially leading to shortages and conflicts Food contributes about a third of all climate change, with factors like deforestation, methane emissions from livestock, packaging, transportation, and wasted food playing a significant role Reducing animal product consumption can lower the demand for growing food and its total climate impact
Different meats have varying climate impacts, with beef and lamb at the higher end due to methane emissions Cooking methods and transportation also affect the climate impact of food Air freighting food causes about 100 times as much climate impact as bringing the same type of food by boat
Water consumption in food production, packaging, and food waste are crucial factors to consider Advocating for systemic change, reducing food waste, and minimizing the quantity of foods that cause the most climate change are key actions to reduce the impact on climate change.
How your food choices affect the planet
Key Takeaways
- Climate change is causing extreme weather events impacting food production and potentially leading to food shortages and conflicts.
- Food contributes about a third of all climate change, with factors like deforestation, methane emissions from livestock, packaging, transportation, and wasted food contributing to climate change.
- Reducing the consumption of animal products can significantly reduce the demand for growing food and the total climate impact, with different meats having different climate impacts.
- Cooking methods and transportation significantly affect the climate impact of food, with air freighting causing about 100 times as much climate impact as bringing the same type of food by boat.
- The impact of water consumption in food production, the importance of considering the source of water, and the climate impact of packaging are crucial factors to consider.
- Food waste has a massive impact on climate change, and a sustainable diet can be affordable, especially if people focus on plant-based foods like beans.
- Advocating for systemic change, reducing food waste, and minimizing the quantity of foods that cause the most climate change are key actions to reduce the impact on climate change.
- Jonathan Wolff emphasized the need for significant reduction in animal products consumption, reducing food waste, and air miles, while Sarah Bridle stressed the importance of considering air freighted foods and questioning the necessity of having certain foods available in all seasons.
Food's Impact on Climate Change
- Climate change is causing extreme weather events like droughts, floods, and wildfires, impacting food production and potentially leading to food shortages and conflicts.
- Food contributes about a third of all climate change, which is bigger than transport or heating.
- Producing food involves various factors like deforestation, methane emissions from livestock, packaging, transportation, and wasted food, contributing to climate change.
- Reducing the consumption of animal products can significantly reduce the demand for growing food and the total climate impact.
- Different meats have different climate impacts, with beef and lamb at the higher end due to methane emissions, while chicken and pigs have a smaller impact but are inefficient in converting human-edible food into meat.
- Dairy and its byproducts like cheese have a significant climate impact, and plant milk alternatives have about a factor of two or more better climate impact than dairy milk.
- The quantity of food consumed is important, as larger consumption of animal products or milk can significantly increase the climate impact.
- Cooking methods also affect climate impact, with ovens being less efficient compared to microwaves, pressure cookers, or slow cookers.
- Air freighting food causes about 100 times as much climate impact as bringing the same type of food by boat.
- The climate impact of producing food like bananas is relatively small compared to the impact of transportation, even if it's shipped across the ocean.
Challenge Food Transportation Assumptions
- Sarah Bridle emphasizes the importance of considering air freighted foods and questioning the necessity of having certain foods available in all seasons.
- Jonathan Wolff highlights the distinction between food miles and air miles, and the significance of air miles in the environmental impact of food transportation.
- Sarah Bridle expresses dissatisfaction with the public perception of food miles as the main concern, and suggests bringing air miles more into focus.
- Jonathan Wolff discusses the connection between food processing and local availability, and the potential overlap with the impact of transportation.
- Jonathan Wolff questions the assumption that lamb from New Zealand has a greater environmental impact than lamb from the United Kingdom, to which Sarah Bridle responds that it is absolutely wrong.
Food Transportation Impact on Climate
- Study from 10 years ago found that lamb from New Zealand had lower greenhouse gas emissions than in the UK at that time, making it better to bring it from New Zealand.
- Food transported by truck within the country is not as big a problem as food flown in from another country, due to the higher global warming impact of burning fossil fuels at altitude.
- Majority of the climate impact of flown-in asparagus comes from the flight itself, comparable to low-impact meat like chicken, but not as bad as beef.
- Avocado production's impact on climate depends on whether it involves cutting down rainforests or if the tree has been there for a long time, making it a net positive in terms of climate impacts.
- The impact of water consumption in avocado production is often talked about, but the overall impact on the planet depends on how the avocados are produced.
Consider the Climate Impact of Food
- Sarah Bridle emphasizes the importance of considering the source of water used for growing food, highlighting the potential depletion of underground aquifers and rivers.
- Sarah Bridle explains that the climate impact of packaging, such as plastic versus glass versus aluminum, is fairly similar, and that proper management is crucial to avoid environmental damage.
- Jonathan Wolff and Sarah Bridle discuss the surprising climate impact of canned food, which tends to come out well compared to fresh produce, and the benefits of consuming frozen plant-based foods in terms of climate impact and food waste reduction.
- Sarah Bridle stresses the massive impact of food waste on climate change, with roughly 10% of all climate change attributed to wasted food.
Embrace Affordable Plant-Based Diet Now
- Sarah Bridle emphasizes that a sustainable diet can be affordable, especially if people focus on plant-based foods like beans, which are not particularly expensive.
- She suggests three key actions to reduce the impact on climate change: reducing the quantity of foods that cause the most climate change, minimizing food waste, and advocating for systemic change rather than just individual change.
- Jonathan Wolff highlights the complexity of the topic and the need for significant reduction in animal products consumption, as well as the importance of reducing food waste and air miles.
Join ZOE for Personalized Nutrition
- Sarah Bridle thanked for joining the podcast. Jonathan Wolff encouraged listeners to subscribe and leave a review. He also invited them to send in questions for future episodes. Jonathan explained ZOE's mission to improve health through personalized nutrition. He offered a discount for personalized nutrition program at joinzoe.com/podcast. Jonathan signed off and mentioned the production team.