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The True Impact Of Your Diet

6/25/2020

The current population of the USA stands at over 328 million people and every day all of those people must eat — it’s a fact of life. Agriculture though along with meat and dairy production has come to be the third biggest contributor to greenhouse emissions around the globe. It is calculated that approximately 150,000 tonnes of food are discarded across the nation daily.

It appears sustainability regarding food is often overshadowed; the more obvious greenhouse/carbon emissions issue we are forced to see in our everyday lives is that of burning fossil fuels for electricity and the overabundance of cars on our roads. These sectors are naturally the first and second biggest contributors to harmful greenhouse gasses accordingly.

But, were you even aware that agriculture fits into third place?

In Australia, Dianne McGrath is amongst a long list of experts that offers guidance and consultancy on the subject of sustainably sourced food. As such there is no real formal definition of what sustainably sourced food encompasses, instead she states that it can be labelled as,

“the sourcing and provision of food that satisfies our needs today while allowing our future generations to have similar access".

An obvious environmental impact of meat production is the overwhelming C02 being produced by the immense numbers of cattle there are around the globe. However, alongside this aspect, you also have the social and economic issues that are raised with mass production of meat and processed foods. Farmers and food producers being unfairly treated by the bigger corporations, and this is happening right before us. Australian dairy farmers are currently doing it tough, often having to sell their produce at an extremely thin profit margin. Yet the demand for milk is as high as ever: think about how many flat whites and lattes are being poured every morning around the country, and indeed the world.

The very connection we have with our food is also being lost it would appear; we often see it clean and shiny in a plastic packet under a bright supermarket light, not as the soil crusted, rustic nutrient-rich mineral that it is. 'Food miles' as McGrath explains is an obscene procedure of moving food from one area of growth to another for processing, after it is then moved to an area to be sold — which can often be where it was originally grown.

The very connection we have with our food is also being lost it would appear; we often see it clean and shiny in a plastic packet under a bright supermarket light, not as the ‘soily’, rustic nutrient-rich mineral that it is. Food miles as McGrath explains is an obscene procedure of moving food from one area of growth to another for processing, after it is then moved to an area to be sold —which can often be where it was originally grown.

So how does somebody take on the task of mitigating their environmental impact, whilst also getting what they want on their fork? Greg Howell director of Climate Wave Enterprises, a sustainable events consultancy on the Gold Coast, Australia muses this, “our local food markets are worthy places to buy our food, rather than supporting multi-national conglomerates. Whether local food reduces our environmental impacts, it should be furthermost reducing food miles.“ When asked about the local farming scene and the surrounding region's vast potential in producing good quality food he replies, “I think we benefit from good nutritious soil and the hard-working farmers who believe in what they do and put in the hard yards!”

He certainly isn’t wrong either. The several local farmer’s markets every week showcasing excellent and delicious in the city speak for themselves. Organic food has seen a huge demand and therefore sector increase, at present Australia has the largest area of certified organic growing land than any other country, a gigantic twenty-two million hectares.

No other country comes close — both the USA and China currently has less than 3 Million hectares each.

‘Popping to the shops’ is, of course, fast and convenient. Yet, for the discerning shopper who actively chooses to acknowledge the moral responsibility of their food choices, they are surely rewarded with something greater than just good tasting fare?

What can we do to reduce our impact with flying?

Lastly..

The 10 Best Coworking & Coliving Spaces Near Surf in 2019

The Undiscovered Waves of the Pacific, Panama​

The Undiscovered Waves of the Pacific, Panama