The growing, processing, transport, refrigeration, and cooking of food have major environmental impacts. Food is now estimated to be the #2 source of greenhouse gas emissions for the average American (just behind our cars!).

Environmental Issues

The largest environmental impact categories for food are meat, dairy, and packaged snacks and soft drinks.

Organic foods in general have a lower overall environmental burden than conventionally grown foods. They dramatically reduce the amount of pesticides going into the environment, and into you. However, organic dairy products may actually result in increases in certain environmental impacts such as methane emissions and land use changes.

Locally produced food is often, although again not always, environmentally preferable. When you do buy foods that have been produced elsewhere, always try to avoid foods that have been transported by air. (If you are seeing fresh berries in your grocery store in the depths of winter, they were likely flown in.)

Driving to the grocery store has a significant environmental impact as well.

Despite all this bad news, there are a number of simple steps you can take to reduce the environmental impacts of your food choices.

10 Simple Tips

1. The biggest thing you can do to reduce the environmental impact of your food consumption is to eat less Beef, Pork, and Lamb. Instead, focus your protein consumption on chicken, fish, and eggs.

• Beef ‘s carbon footprint is 3 to 7 times larger than chicken’s
• Producing 1 pound of beef uses up 29 times more water than 1 pound of chicken and 50 times more water than 1 pound of soybeans
• One pound of beef requires 3 liters of oil to produce

2. Eat out at restaurants less. Cook for yourself at home more. And waste less.

• Studies show that the US wastes anywhere from 25 to 50% of its food every year.
• Plate waste is the single largest source of loss, at 11–13% of the amount of food served
• In the UK, 30-40% of all food is never eaten.
• Restaurants also require greater energy use for the lighting, cooling, and operation of the restaurant, not to mention, the energy used to drive there.

3. Eat fewer dairy products.

• Together with meat, dairy products are responsible for the emission not just CO2, but also nitrous oxides and methane which have significant global warming potential.
• Cheese has energy inputs similar to certain types of meat due to the low value of whey, a byproduct from the cheese industry.
• Ten litres of milk are used for one kilogram of cheese

4. Drink fewer soft drinks.

• Soft drinks are carbonated sugar water in a plastic bottle. No nutritional value. Big environmental impacts. Need we say more.
• Okay, you need more…last year over 200 billion beverage containers were sold – and over 130 billion of those ended up in landfills or were incinerated. Beverage container recycling rates have actually declined in the US from 54% in 1992 to less than 33% today.
• If all of the beverage containers discarded last year had been recycled, 15.6 million metric tons of greenhouse gases would have been avoided – the equivalent to emissions from 36.2 million barrels of oil.

5. Drink less bottled water. Choose filtered tap water instead.

• Producing the bottles for annual US consumption of bottled water requires the equivalent of more than 17 million barrels of oil
• Bottling this water produced more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide
• It takes 3 liters of water to produce 1 liter of bottled water
• Bottled water is not necessarily safer or cleaner than tap water in many parts of the US.

6. Eat fewer packaged snacks and junk food.

• The boxes, bags and packets that contain our food account for 10-12% of the value of all food products.
• Overall, more than half of all plastic packaging is used to package food.
• Up to a third of the total energy inputs for our food consumption is related to snacks, candy and soft drinks, items with little nutritional value
• Candy in particular can have a large energy inputs, from 18 to 44 MJ per kg

7. Eat fruits and vegetables that are in season. And eat locally grown food when possible.

• Importing food by airplane has a carbon footprint 6 times larger than getting your food by road transport
• The typical American prepared meal contains ingredients from at least five countries outside the United States.
• Within the fruit category, there are substantial differences between fruits of different origin. The main difference is transportation energy use, a function of distance and vehicle efficiency.

8. Walk to your local farmer’s market or grocery store, rather than driving. If you have to drive, combine your trips and make less stops.

• The food on the typical American family’s dinner table has traveled an average of 1,500 miles. An average food item in the US now travels 25% farther than in 1980.
• A Canadian study estimated that sourcing 58 selected food items locally and regionally rather than globally could reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 49,485 tons annually, the equivalent of removing 16,191 vehicles from the road.

9. Upgrade to an energy efficient refrigerator.

• Your refrigerator is likely your biggest energy sink in your house (unless you are living large with a jacuzzi!). A refrigerator can use up to 5 times as much energy as a television.
• Switching to an Energy Star certified refrigerator will save you money and reduce your CO₂ emissions.

10. Eat wild fish that are not threatened, rather than farmed fish. For a list of the best fish to eat click here.

• High-tech fishing practices are depleting fish stocks, endangering entire species, damaging habitats, and producing wasteful by-catch.
• The US Commission on Ocean Policy reported that "25% to 30% of the world’s major fish stocks are overexploited.”
• Some farmed fish have been found to contain concerning levels of PCBs and dioxins.
• Check out the great work of the Monterey Bay Aquarium to find sustainable seafood, and Environmental Defense to find healthy seafood. 

View our Environmental Footprint slideshow »