There has been a lot of attention being paid to healthy eating these days. We have been less likely to visit fast food restaurants and more likely to visit the farmer's market in town. Not only are we thinking about the health of our families, we are also thinking about ways to reduce our environmental impact.
Taking into consideration our eating habits, there are a number of ways that we can be more environmentally responsible. Here are some things to think about as your shop for groceries and prepare food for your family.
- Eat Food Grown Close To Home
- Increase Consumption Of Fruits and Vegetables
- Eat Raw And Organic Foods
- Grow It And Can It
- Eat Less Meat
- Know Your UPC Codes
One of the better ways to reduce your carbon footprint is to eat locally grown produce, meat and dairy. A great source of these foods is a local farmer's market or you can shop local grocery stores, trying to avoid the big chain stores that truck their food in from long distances. Buying local means fresher and probably better tasting too.
By eating more locally grown fruits and vegetables you will be doing your health a great favor as well as lessening your carbon footprint. This should be the food category that you consume most often. Shop for fruits and vegetables that are in season and avoid summer fruits available in the winter. They were probably shipped great distances.
Raw and organic foods mean less pesticides, less growth hormones and antibiotics, less petroleum based fertilizers, etc. In the case of raw foods, these are more easily processed by your body and will lead to better health. They also do not need cooking which lessens impact also. While price is always a consideration, think about buying those things that will make the biggest difference in your footprint.
Gardens are becoming very popular as we seek ways to supplement our grocery bills. After some time to get established, a large garden can feed a family all year, especially if the produce is canned or otherwise preserved. A compost pile will also help avoid trash in the can and landfill while serving as a natural, organic fertilizer.
Cattle farms make a huge impact on our environment and a very effective way to lessen this impact would be to reduce, if not eliminate, meat from your diet completely. A recent Mother Nature Network online article warns:
"There will not be enough water available … to produce food for the expected 9 billion population in 2050 if we follow current trends," Malin Falkenmark and colleagues at the Stockholm International Water Institute stated in the report. By their estimation, there should be just enough water to go around if humans derive just 5 percent of their calories from animal-based foods by mid-century, instead of the 20 percent of calories that they currently get from meat, eggs and dairy."
Remember "Meatless Mondays"?
Finally, we found a promising resource to help us avoid GMOs and lead us to healthier food choices. While these PLU Codes may not always be reliable, they are worth learning. Organic Authority online has a good article on the subject.
Let's keep talking about making positive choices that benefit ourselves as well as our planet. When you are ready to start a discussion about green living, don't hesitate to contact us so we can explore together.
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