Eating organic reduces carbon foot-print
BY JULIE SEAMERMONDAY, SEPTEMBER 22, 2008
Eating an organic diet helps you tread lighter on the earth – according to German studies. Germany's Institute for Ecological Economy Research (IOeW) has been studying how eating habits affect carbon emissions and diets low in meat and dairy are best, with organics significantly reducing carbon load and improving carbon credits.
It was established that over a year, a non-organic carnivorous diet could produce equivalent greenhouse gases as driving a medium range car over a distance of 4, 758km – that would be further than Sydney to Darwin. By cutting out non-organic meat and dairy products, consumers can cut 4,129 km from their yearly intake.
If sticking to a vegetarian and organic diet carbon foot-prints can be reduced even more – up to a 17th of a conventional meat eater, which would be a car tip of 281km – almost 7% of the original journey. And if you're looking to convert to only a few organic options, milk, cheese and potatoes reportedly offer the best savings.
From an agricultural perspective organic systems (and synthetic chemical-free farming) produce food that can provide a significant trade off for our diet-related gases. Scientists in Italy have found wine producers who move to organic methods can halve their environmental impact. This means organic wine drinkers can carbon-consciously enjoy two glasses to every non-organic glass!
Abundant Earth produces a range of delicious organic foods to both honour your health and hopefully, even in the smallest way help lighten your carbon load.
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