(Take a few minutes to think about how many plastic sandwich bags you must have used over the years. This might just be what you need to realize why it’s important to figure out a way to eat in an environmentally friendly way. Every small change you make can have the potential to make a difference in the larger scheme of things. From the grocery bags you use to the water you consume, there are a lot of ways you can help clean up the environment and eat in a healthy and green way. You also might be aware of plant-based diets that make you healthier by lowering your risk of heart disease. Research also suggests that lesser intake of animal foods can help save the planet.
A study published by the journal of Nature found that as a result of population growth and the continued consumption of western diets, red meats and processed foods, the ecological pressure of the food system could increase by 90% by 2050.
MEAT BASED DIETS AND NEGATIVE EFFECTS ON THE ENVIRONMENT
It could come as a surprise, but a study published that the production of animal products generates the majority of food-related gas emissions. Specifically, up to 78% of total agricultural emissions. This usually happens due to manure-related emissions, to their “low feed-conversation efficiencies” and to intestinal fermentation in ruminants - a process that takes place in cows’ stomachs when they digest food - leads to methane emissions. This feed-related impact of animal products can also contribute to freshwater use and pressure on the croplands. This overtime could lead to dead zones in oceans and low-oxygen areas where only a few organisms can survive.
CONSUMERS WANT BETTER OPTIONS
Consumer trends have shown us that they are now driving the push for dietary sustainability. And they are encouraging dieticians to get onboard while doing so. Consumers are no longer only looking for what’s on the nutrition facts panel anymore - they have a list of other things they want to know about how they define healthy eating. Supermarkets have also become intersections and ecological concerns. The supermarket dieticians are extremely interested in this as a way to engage their consumers to create value. The supermarket chain conducted testing on consumers that helped shoppers pinpoint 101 ingredients they would not want in their food and are in the process of removing them completely.
A HEALTHIER YOU
To appeal to the various factors of people’s diet choices could definitely help solve the nation’s obesity problem along with the environmental impacts for the production of food. Even the stability of the food supply chain. Decreased consumption of meat could possibly have a major impact on water usage as well. According to a food consultancy in America, people get about 15% of protein from plant-based food. Shifting focus on that 25% could possibly result in enough water savings to accommodate two-thirds of California’s water supply.Published by: Vibhuti Vazirani/ 2020-01-27