Food and the Environment: How do our food choices affect the planet? Daniel Cohan 2013 Jewish Food...

Food and the Environment:How do our food choices affect the planet?

Daniel Cohan2013 Jewish Food Summit, Congregation Brith Shalom

How do our food choices impact Earth?

How can we measure those impacts?

Life Cycle Assessment

US EPA

Projected Warming by the 2090’s

IPCC, 2007 A1B scenario; Relative to 1980-1999

Projected Impacts of Warming

6IPCC, 2007

Role of Food in Climate Change

Overall Greenhouse Gas Emissions

By Species

Food and Climate

CO2 (tractors, etc.)

Nitrous oxide (fertilizers, etc.)

Food Transport

Driving

Methane (manure, livestock, etc.)

Food Production

Total U.S. Emissions: 60 tons/household

Lesson 1: Bigger carbon footprint from food than from driving

Lesson 2: What we eat matters more than how far it travels

U.S. Carbon Footprint of Food

Energy in the Food Chain:The inefficiency of meat

Crops for feed, or for food?

Worldwide, 35%of crops for animals

In U.S., most grain grown for livestock and ethanol

Carbon footprint of food

LentilsTomatoes

MilkBeans

TofuBroccoli

YogurtNuts

Peanut ButterRice

PotatoesEggsTuna

ChickenTurkey

SalmonPork

CheeseBeef

Lamb

Equivalent car miles driven per 4 oz. food consumed

What if everyone ate like Americans?

“Earths” of resources consumed

World Wildlife Federation

Food and Water

More water is used for agriculture (irrigation)than all other uses combined

World water use, 2005

Liters per 500g

Liters per 500g Liters per pot

Liters per burger or steak

Liters per literLiters per 500g

Note: For foods typically derived from non-irrigated crops (e.g., coffee), most of the water footprint is natural rainwater. For more on coffee’s footprint, see here.

Water footprint per ton

Total water use

Water Footprint:“Right” choices save 700 gallons by end of lunch

Compare foods in right column with left

Fertilizers, Pesticides, and Ecosystems

Growing Fertilizer Use

Ammonium deposition

Gulf of Mexico dead zone

Fertilizers, livestock are leading causes of…

Take-home Messages

• What we eat is just as important as what we drive or how we power our homes

• Climate, water, land, and ecosystems are all impacted by our food choices

• Simple choices – especially regarding meat – can sharply alter our food footprint

EXTRA SLIDES

Agriculture Direct Contribution toU.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Methane (CH4) Nitrous Oxide (N2O)

US EPA, Inventory of U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Sinks: 1990-2010.

Fertilizer Impacts on Aquatic Ecosystems