Diet
How can what you eat and drink help the planet?
- Tea or coffee?
Does tea or coffee have more emissions? Tea and coffee are amongst the most popular drinks consumed across the world. Around 2 billion cups of coffee and 5 billion cups of tea are drunk everyday worldwide. They create a carbon footprint through their production. If you are indifferent between drinking either of the drinks, choose… Read more: Tea or coffee? - Beer or wine?
Beer and wine are the most popular alcoholic drink. In the UK, 68 litres of beer and 11.88 bottles of wine were drunk per person in 2022 in the UK. So how do carbon emissions compare between beer and wine? Research by Bridle (2020) showed beer and wine as a drink have the same carbon… Read more: Beer or wine? - What should a diet in a net zero world look like?A diet that is suitable for a net zero world is quite different from a typical diet people eat today. Today’s diet is meat rich, with more saturated fat, sugar and salt than we should be consuming. In the UK alone, poor diet accounts for 13% of deaths as it causes diabetes, cancer, high blood… Read more: What should a diet in a net zero world look like?
- Carbon emission reducing snacks
Carbon emission reducing snacks What snacks should you eat if you want to reduce your carbon footprint? Professor Bridle’s book ‘Food and climate change without the hot air’ analyses typical snacks we eat and suggest ways we can make small changes in our snacks to change our footprint. Chocolate Chocolate bars will vary in their… Read more: Carbon emission reducing snacks - Myth busting: Organic food
Do you need to buy expensive organic food to be eco-friendly? The answer is NO. This is a big myth that needs dispelling. First, it is not clear why organic food is ‘eco-friendly’. Second it is usually significantly more expensive than food that is not organic and does not last as long. No wonder people… Read more: Myth busting: Organic food - Treat cheese like a meat
Eating less meat is a route to reducing your carbon footprint. Cutting it out altogether can reduce your carbon footprint by 1 ton a year. But there is an exception is this argument. A vegetarian meal is not automatically better for the environment if it contains lots of cheese. Cheese contains cow’s milk. Dairy cows… Read more: Treat cheese like a meat - Eat seasonally to reduce carbon footprint
Where our food comes from can greatly change the carbon footprint of our dish. Although it is more important what we eat rather than where it comes from, it is worth considering that using certain fruit and vegetables can significantly increase the carbon emissions of our meals at certain times of the year. This is… Read more: Eat seasonally to reduce carbon footprint - The carbon footprint of fish
Fish can be part of a healthy, low emissions diet. It is a good substitute for meat with high emissions, such as beef and lamb, and a good source of protein. But there are issues to consider when choosing which fish to eat. The problem of over-fishing affects the population of some species, and some… Read more: The carbon footprint of fish - The carbon footprint of meat
We often hear we need to cut down on meat to reduce our carbon emissions. This may be hard if you love eating meat but with the right information of different types of meat, we can cut down our emissions by making easy substitutions in meals we enjoy. Beef and lamb are the worst meat… Read more: The carbon footprint of meat - Plant-based breakfasts
We should all be eating plant-based breakfasts in a net zero world. But what is a plant-based breakfast like? In some cases, it will be simple substitutions to what you already have, because only dairy products need to be substituted out. In other cases, it will mean being more creative with ingredients. Making your breakfasts… Read more: Plant-based breakfasts - Plant based lunches
What would lunch in a net zero world look like? Plant based lunches contain less meat and dairy and are mostly made up of plants. Meat should only make up a third of the meal at the maximum and should be a garnish to the meal rather than the main thing. Pescatarian, vegetarian and vegan… Read more: Plant based lunches - Plant based dinners
Plant-based meals are what we should be eating in a net zero world. If we reduced the amount of meat and dairy we eat, it would reduce deforestation and carbon emissions dramatically. Less land would be required to grow our food because raising animals and feeding them takes up so much land. If everyone switched… Read more: Plant based dinners - Health benefits of a plant-based diets
There are a huge number of reasons to adopt a plant-based diet. Not only is it good for the planet and saves you money, but it also improves your health significantly. This is the diet backed by evidence from research centres around the world, such as the Harvard Medical School, and the verdict of such… Read more: Health benefits of a plant-based diets - Where to start with a plant-based diet
If you are a heavy meat eater, it is hard to know how to switch over to a plant-based diet. A plant-based diet is essential in a Net Zero world as it will halve the carbon emissions from our diet. There are also many benefits to adopting a plant-based diet: you will save up to… Read more: Where to start with a plant-based diet - How cheese lovers can reduce the impact of cheese
Cheese as a food product produces large amounts of carbon emissions. Most of the emissions in cheese production comes from the burps of cows. The way cows digest food mean that they produce methane, which is a greenhouse gas which contributes to global warming. Climate change scientists, such as Professor Bernes-Lee, argue cheese should be… Read more: How cheese lovers can reduce the impact of cheese - Ways to reduce the carbon footprint of your favourite beefy meals
Do your favourite meals include beef, such as Spaghetti Bolognese or a burger? Beef has the highest carbon footprint of all meat because it is the main cause of deforestation in the world and the main reason for the destruction of the Amazon rainforest. Cows also produce methane when they digest food, which is another… Read more: Ways to reduce the carbon footprint of your favourite beefy meals - Non-ecofriendly reasons to adopt a plant-based diet
A plant-based diet is the most compatible diet with a Net Zero world. Only diet can sustain a world population that could grow to 10 billion people in the future. In a plant-based diet, plants make up to at least two thirds of your diet and meat only makes up to one third. Plants do… Read more: Non-ecofriendly reasons to adopt a plant-based diet - The Power of 30+ Plant Foods a Week
Our guest author, Leticia Drier, nutritionist discusses the benefits of a plant-based diet and how we can use it to improve our health. You might have heard about the idea of eating 30+ plant foods a week to improve your health. It comes from research by The British and American Gut Project (2018) which revealed… Read more: The Power of 30+ Plant Foods a Week - Can you get the right amount of protein on a plant-based diet?
Is it possible to get enough protein in your diet if you reduce the amount of meat you eat? Can carbon footprint of your diet still be low if you are eating plants as a substitute that have come from abroad? This article was inspired from a comment I saw on Instagram about someone expressing… Read more: Can you get the right amount of protein on a plant-based diet? - Plant based diets improve skin health
Are you concerned about your skin? Research consistently shows plant-based diets can really help with the most common chronic skin conditions and reduce the ageing process. Plant based diets are the most compatible with Net Zero scenarios and it can bring so many benefits to our health. The diet is particular good for our skin… Read more: Plant based diets improve skin health - Can Net Zero help you lose weight?
In a Net Zero scenario, the global population cannot afford to be on the diet that they are on today. The reason being that there is not enough space to raise animals to feed 10 billion people on a meat-rich diet in 2050. Research from ‘Our World in Data’ shows almost half of the world’s… Read more: Can Net Zero help you lose weight? - Sustainable alternative diets to veganismThere has been a bit of a backlash to veganism lately and the number of people reporting to be vegetarian or vegan has gone down. It used to be a growing trend in the UK and around the world, but this trend has gone into reverse with populism and culture wars spreading misinformation about diets… Read more: Sustainable alternative diets to veganism
- Which coffee has lower carbon emissions?
Coffee is big business with two billion cups consumed every year. Coffee drinking is set to change a lot over the coming decades because it is an industry heavily impacted by climate change. We mostly consume two types of coffee beans, Arabica and Robusta, and 75% of them are made in five countries Ethiopia, Vietnam,… Read more: Which coffee has lower carbon emissions? - Carbon emission reducing snacks
What snacks should you eat if you want to reduce your carbon footprint? Professor Bridle’s book ‘Food and climate change without the hot air’ analyses the most popular snacks we eat and suggest ways we can make small changes in our snacks to change our carbon footprint. Chocolate Chocolate bars will vary in their carbon… Read more: Carbon emission reducing snacks - How to cut dairy from your diet
Changing your diet is probably the easiest way to cut down your carbon footprint. We have more control over the food options available to us than any other area of our lives, such as how we travel and the energy efficiency of our home, which would require much more effort and investment. So, what changes… Read more: How to cut dairy from your diet - The worst thing you can possibly eat
It is widely understood that eating meat is bad for the environment. It is recommended by climate change policy makers that we should cut our meat intake by 2050. But there is one particularly effective way that reduces your carbon footprint in your diet. There is no meat that produces as high carbon emissions as… Read more: The worst thing you can possibly eat - The carbon emissions of popular desserts
Which desserts have a lower carbon footprint? What makes a big difference is individual ingredients in desserts. Dairy ingredients such as milk, butter and cream increase the carbon emissions of a dessert because they are cow-related products. Cows produce the largest number of emissions out of any animals and therefore any product that comes from… Read more: The carbon emissions of popular desserts - Sandwiches and their carbon footprint
It is lunchtime, and you are going to choose a sandwich from the coffee shop. Which sandwich has a lower carbon footprint that others? You probably think that a vegetarian sandwich is always the best option over sandwiches with meat. But this is not always the case and the research into the carbon emissions of… Read more: Sandwiches and their carbon footprint - The carbon emissions of Indian and Chinese takeaways
In the process of cutting our carbon footprint, we still want to treat ourselves to nice things like takeaways. Indian and Chinese cuisine are amongst the most popular options in the world for a takeaway. How can we reduce carbon emissions when ordering an Indian or Chinese takeout? Indian takeaways and carbon emissions Research by… Read more: The carbon emissions of Indian and Chinese takeaways - Choosing a takeaway pizza and burger
Pizza and burgers are the most popular fast food in the world. Pizza ranks 1st in many countries as the most ordered takeaway and burger chains such as McDonalds dominate the fast-food market. They often feature in our eating habits, so how we can make better choices with pizzas and burgers to lower our carbon… Read more: Choosing a takeaway pizza and burger - Net Zero keeps your body younger
A Net Zero lifestyle can improve your mind and body in so many ways. While climate change scientists recommend that a plant-based diet is the only sustainable diet in a Net Zero world; it is also the best diet for our bodies, according to nutritionists and the medical profession. What is a plant-based diet? It… Read more: Net Zero keeps your body younger - Which drinks have the lowest carbon emissions?
What climate change scientists recommend is that we aim to halve the carbon footprint of our diet by 2030. When it comes to the food we eat; avoiding beef and reducing meat and dairy by 25% would be enough to reach this goal. But can we choose drinks in a way that cuts our carbon… Read more: Which drinks have the lowest carbon emissions? - Veganism is not necessary in a Net Zero world
There are many myths circulating around Net Zero. But one of the biggest myths that people think is that getting to Net Zero requires us to be vegan or vegetarian. This puts many off the idea of adapting to a sustainable lifestyle because it is so restrictive. The path to Net Zero designed by climate… Read more: Veganism is not necessary in a Net Zero world