Leena Watts
Making your diet more sustainable can benefit your health, your budget, and the planet. A sustainable diet should be nutritionally adequate, safe, healthy, culturally acceptable, and economically affordable. Food production significantly contributes to climate change, so making small changes to your diet can have a big impact on the environment. For example, you could adopt a plant-based diet once a week, such as on Meatless Monday, and reduce your intake of red meat and processed food. You could also buy local and seasonal produce, reduce food waste by planning meals in advance, and cut back on overeating.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Reduce meat consumption | Beef has the biggest impact on the environment, followed by lamb and pork. |
| Choose fish wisely | Pelagic fishes like herrings and sardines have low carbon footprints. Farmed bivalves such as mussels, clams, scallops, and oysters are the lowest carbon emitters of all seafood. |
| Explore alternative proteins | Shift to more plant-based foods like beans, lentils, nuts, and meat alternatives such as mycoprotein. |
| Reduce dairy intake | Opt for lower-fat and lower-sugar dairy options such as milk and yogurt. |
| Choose local and seasonal produce | Buying local reduces the carbon footprint of your food choices and cuts back on air pollution created by shipping. |
| Reduce food waste | Plan meals in advance, buy frozen produce, freeze leftovers, and use all parts of the food you buy. |
| Avoid ultra-processed foods | Ultra-processed foods are typically high in fat, sugar, and additives, and their production, transportation, and consumption contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. |
| Reduce portion sizes | Cut back on overeating and serve smaller portions. |
| Reuse containers | Use refillable bottles and reuse glass bottles and jars. |
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What You'll Learn
Reduce meat consumption
Reducing meat consumption is a key aspect of making your diet more sustainable. Meat, especially beef and lamb, has a high carbon footprint. According to the World Resource Institute, wealthy nations should reduce their beef, lamb, and dairy consumption by 40% to meet global emissions goals for 2050. This does not mean you have to give up meat entirely, but rather reduce your intake and be mindful of the environmental impact when you do consume meat.
One way to reduce meat consumption is to adopt a plant-based diet once a week, such as on Meatless Monday. This can be a delicious way to explore new recipes, such as a vegetarian butter chicken made with chickpeas, cinnamon, garam masala, and coconut milk. You can also focus on adding more plant-based meals to your weekly menu, such as black bean tacos or avocado toast.
Another strategy is to limit yourself to a certain number of meals with meat per week. For example, you could aim for two to three meat-inclusive meals per week, with the rest of your meals being plant-based. You can also try to keep your daily diet around 80% plant matter and 20% meat, dairy, and seafood. This might look like going vegan during the day and allowing yourself a small amount of meat or cheese with dinner.
When you do eat meat, focus on chicken, pork, and local seafood, which tend to be less taxing on the environment than beef and lamb. You can also support sustainable agriculture by purchasing produce from local farmers within a 100-mile radius of where you live, reducing transportation costs and environmental impact.
Reducing meat consumption has benefits not only for the environment but also for your health. Overconsumption of red and processed meat has been linked to an increased risk of non-communicable diseases, including coronary heart disease, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and certain cancers. By reducing your meat intake, you can lower your risk of these health problems while also helping to protect the planet.
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Choose plant-based alternatives
Choosing plant-based alternatives is one of the most effective ways to make your diet more sustainable. Plant-based diets are better for the environment and can also improve health outcomes.
A 2021 review indicated that human and global health could significantly improve by swapping animal-based foods with plant-based alternatives. Plant-based diets are nutrient-dense and lower in fat and calories. They are also better for the environment, as they have a lower carbon footprint than meat products. For example, producing 100 grams of protein from peas emits just 0.4 kilograms of carbon dioxide equivalents, whereas emissions to get the same amount of protein from beef would be nearly 90 times higher.
Plant-based diets also require much less land than farming animals for food. According to the World Economic Forum, producing food by farming animals ties up an enormous amount of land compared to the space required for plant-based food products. This is important, as the agricultural sector is already responsible for 70% of the world's water consumption and 30% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
You can start by adopting a plant-forward diet that still includes meat and meat products but emphasizes plants. This approach is more sustainable and realistic than adopting a strictly vegan diet, and it still supports environmental and physical health. You can find plant-based recipe ideas online at Meatless Monday and BBC Good Food.
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Cut food waste
Food waste makes up 30 to 40 percent of the food supply, according to the FDA. To cut back on waste, plan your meals for the week in advance so you only buy what you need. Be mindful of expiration dates and use up perishable items first. You can also freeze leftovers and use all parts of the food you buy, such as making stock with bones from meat or fish.
Another way to reduce waste is to buy local and seasonal produce, which cuts down on the air pollution created by shipping food over long distances. You can also try buying fish and some fruits and vegetables frozen, so they last longer and there's no risk of them going bad.
You can also reduce waste by serving yourself smaller portions and eating off a smaller plate. That way, you're less likely to have leftovers that might go to waste. If you do have leftovers, freeze them for an easy meal later in the week.
Finally, try to buy fewer processed and packaged foods, as these are bad for both your health and the environment. Choose whole, unprocessed foods instead, and take advantage of recycling programs in your area.
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Eat local and seasonal produce
Eating local and seasonal produce is a great way to make your diet more sustainable. It is a return to a more sustainable, healthy, and economical way of eating. It offers numerous benefits for your health, the environment, and the economy.
Firstly, eating local and seasonal produce reduces your carbon footprint and energy consumption. Food that is locally grown doesn't have to travel as far, reducing the use of fossil fuels. According to research by Nature Food, almost 20% of overall food production emissions come from transportation. Eating local and seasonal produce also helps preserve farmland that supports wildlife and encourages crop rotation, protecting biodiversity and reducing pesticide use.
Secondly, consuming local and seasonal food enhances the nutritional value of your diet. Local produce is fresher, so the vitamin and mineral content stays intact. Fruits and vegetables start to lose their nutrients as soon as 24 hours after picking, so the fresher the better. Seasonal produce is harvested at its peak, ensuring you enjoy the most nutrient-dense foods available.
Thirdly, buying local and seasonal produce supports the local economy and farmers, ensuring economic stability. It also tends to be more cost-effective due to lower transportation costs and seasonal abundance.
Finally, local and seasonal food often tastes better. It is picked when ripe, giving it a more authentic and better flavour. Fruits, in particular, benefit from ripening on the vine.
Overall, incorporating local and seasonal produce into your diet is a great way to make your diet more sustainable, support local farmers, and improve your health.
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Opt for fish and poultry over beef
Opting for fish and poultry over beef is a great way to make your diet more sustainable. Beef has a high carbon footprint, and researchers have found that swapping it out for other foods has the biggest impact on reducing an individual's carbon footprint. If you chose poultry or pork instead of beef, your average carbon footprint would decrease by over 48%, and your water scarcity footprint would decrease by around 30%.
Fish is also a more environmentally friendly choice than meat. Seafood generally has a lower carbon footprint than meat, and chicken has the lowest carbon footprint of all meats. Small pelagic (open water-dwelling) fishes like herrings and sardines have low carbon footprints. Farmed bivalves, such as mussels, clams, scallops, and oysters, are the lowest carbon emitters of all seafood and actually benefit the environment by sequestering carbon and cleaning the water around them. These creatures also don't require feeding, antibiotics, or other chemicals to support their growth, making them an excellent choice for seafood lovers.
You can also make sustainable choices by buying fish that has been caught using sustainable practices. Existing fishery laws outline sustainability standards that aim to protect ocean habitats, prevent overfishing, reduce bycatch, and respect natural habitats. Aquaculture (fish farming) is one way that suppliers can keep up with the increasing seafood demand without overfishing the oceans.
In addition to opting for fish and poultry over beef, you can also make your diet more sustainable by reducing your overall meat consumption. Meat production accounts for twice the greenhouse gas emissions of plant-based food production. The less meat we eat, the more we can reduce emissions.
Remember, small changes can make a big difference. Even if you don't want to cut out meat entirely, simply reducing your intake and making sustainable choices when purchasing fish and poultry can have a positive impact on the environment.
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Frequently asked questions
Eating sustainably can benefit your health, your budget, and the planet. It can also make you feel more confident and empowered about your food choices.
You can start by making small tweaks to your eating habits. For example, you can adopt a plant-based diet once per week, such as on Meatless Monday.
Some easy food swaps include choosing poultry or pork instead of beef, peanuts instead of almonds, cod instead of shrimp, and soy milk instead of cow's milk.
Plan your meals in advance, buy frozen fruits and vegetables, freeze leftovers, and use all parts of the food you buy.
You can buy less packaged food and reuse glass bottles and jars. You can also buy local and seasonal produce to cut back on air pollution from shipping.
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