Making changes to eat and live more sustainably can feel like a minefield, so we’re highlighting the most common misconceptions to guide you through
words GOOD FOOD TEAM
While there are other ways of looking at how our choices affect the planet, we’re talking about carbon emissions here and we acknowledge that this is a complex and nuanced subject. We always consult experts on sustainability and used the Reewild app for this feature to measure how much CO2 certain recipes produce. If you missed last month’s issue where we talked about our food carbon footprints and what a carbon calorie is, catch up by visting: goodfood.com/howto/guide/carbon-calorie-recipe-collection
MYTHFood miles and commercial transportation are always a big factor
REALITYMost food carbon emissions come from the farm stage (fuels, fertilisers, feed, seasonality), with transport only making up a small percentage of the overall footprint – an average of five per cent. Some modes of transport do affect a product’s footprint more (air-freighted food produces the highest emissions) and shipping, while the most common mode, produces the least. Eating local and seasonal food has many benefits, including supporting local farmers and better agricultural practices, and it’s seasonality that has a more substantial influence on an item’s carbon footprint than transport itself. Food grown out of season usually requires more energy to produce, such as tomatoes.
MYTHSustainable diets are more expensive
REALITYEating more sustainably can simply mean fewer animal-based ingredients and more plants, which are cheaper and healthier (eating 30 different types of plants a week is also recommended for gut health). Legumes, beans, potatoes, vegetables and fruits are low-impact and generally more affordable. In fact, a recent study found that plant-based diets actually reduce food costs by up to one third. We have hundreds of plant-based recipes on our website, goodfood.com. Stick to what’s seasonally available and they’ll be even better value.
WHAT COUNTS AS A PLANT
Fruit and vegetables (even potatoes – particularly if you eat the skin), wholegrains, pulses, seeds, nuts, mushrooms, beans, herbs and spices. (If you’re trying to eat 30 plants a week, then juice and oils don’t count as they don’t contain plant fibre.)
TOMATOES
A tomato grown in season in an open field in Spain has a lower carbon footprint than a tomato grown out of season in an industrial greenhouse in Britain, despite the added transport from Spain. In short, what you eat
