Foodprint

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A foodprint refers to the environmental pressures created by the food demands of individuals, organizations, and geopolitical entities. [1] Like other forms of ecological footprinting, a foodprint can include multiple parameters to quantify the overall environmental impact of food, including carbon footprinting, water footprinting, and foodshed mapping. Some foodprinting efforts also attempt to capture the social and ethical costs of food production by accounting for dimensions such as farm worker justice or prices received by farmers for goods as a share of food dollars. [2] Environmental advocacy organizations like the Earth Day Network and the Natural Resources Defense Council have publicized the foodprint concept as a way of engaging consumers on the environmental impacts of dietary choices. [3] [4]

Contents

Methodology

Existing frameworks

Foodprinting can incorporate multiple parameters. Foodshed mapping can be used to give a land area estimate for a geographic region, but similar analysis can be employed to specific food products. Water footprinting and carbon footprinting are also used to compare the impacts of different food choices. This type of comparison is commonly used to differentiate between products that have high environmental footprints and their alternatives, like dairy [5] and meat. [6] [7]

Life Cycle Assessment is one analytical framework frequently used to incorporated multiple dimensions of foodprinting, though it comes with particular challenges. Life cycle assessments for industrial products have discreet inflows and outflows that are easily measured and modeled. As biological systems with high variability, however, agricultural processes are more difficult to model. [8]

Existing research

Geographic foodprinting

On a city scale, researchers have conducted foodprint analyses for cities like Paris and Melbourne. [9] [10] Researchers have also used a foodprint model to map the land required for feeding the United States. [11]

Dietary patterns

Foodprinting has also been applied to dietary patterns as a way of predicting impacts of consumption and production shifts on the environment. The EAT Lancet commission, for example, analyzed possible dietary patterns for impacts in GHG emissions, land, water and fertilizer use, and biodiversity, ultimately recommending the "Planetary Diet" that has a low foodprint in those parameters. Similar analysis from the IPCC focuses on carbon footprints of dietary patterns. [12] Other carbon-focused research determined that supplying and consuming the calories that fuel global obesity adds an additional 700 megatons per year of CO2 equivalents to the atmosphere, approximately 1.6% of global carbon emissions. [13]

The whole-diet models used to establish estimates of land requirements for the standard American diet can also be used as a comparison for projecting the land requirements of dietary shifts. [14] Using these techniques, researchers have compared the land-area foodprint of high and low-quality diets, and found that high-quality diets could use significantly less land than current consumption patterns. [15]

Use in environmental advocacy

Various organizations have publicized the concept of a foodprint, largely as a tool for understanding the impacts of consumer food choice on the environment. Non-profit organizations like FoodPrint educate consumers on environmental issues within food systems and provide resources for reducing personal foodprints. [16] The NRDC and other organizations have released similar initiatives. [4]

Foodprints are also increasingly referenced by sustainability advocates within the food industry: the California-based Zero Foodprint initiative, for example, adds a voluntary surcharge to restaurant bills to pay for soil health–related projects on participating farms. The non-profit was recognized with a Humanitarian of the Year Award from the James Beard Foundation. [17] [18] Other companies reduce foodprints of restaurants and other businesses reducing food-related waste. [19] [20] Restaurant chains like Panera and Chipotle have also embraced the concept of the foodprint, adding environmental impact scoring systems to their menu items. These initiatives vary in scope, however, and may struggle to communicate and contextualize the full range of environmental and social issues surrounding food production. [21]

See also

Related Research Articles

Dieting is the practice of eating food in a regulated way to decrease, maintain, or increase body weight, or to prevent and treat diseases such as diabetes and obesity. As weight loss depends on calorie intake, different kinds of calorie-reduced diets, such as those emphasising particular macronutrients, have been shown to be no more effective than one another. As weight regain is common, diet success is best predicted by long-term adherence. Regardless, the outcome of a diet can vary widely depending on the individual.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Local food</span> Food produced within a short distance of where it is consumed

Local food is food that is produced within a short distance of where it is consumed, often accompanied by a social structure and supply chain different from the large-scale supermarket system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diet (nutrition)</span> Sum of food consumed by an organism

In nutrition, diet is the sum of food consumed by a person or other organism. The word diet often implies the use of specific intake of nutrition for health or weight-management reasons. Although humans are omnivores, each culture and each person holds some food preferences or some food taboos. This may be due to personal tastes or ethical reasons. Individual dietary choices may be more or less healthy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plant-based diet</span> Diet consisting mostly or entirely of plant-based foods

A plant-based diet is a diet consisting mostly or entirely of plant-based foods. Plant-based diets encompass a wide range of dietary patterns that contain low amounts of animal products and high amounts of fiber-rich plant products such as vegetables, fruits, whole grains, legumes, nuts and seeds. They do not need to be vegan or vegetarian, but are defined in terms of low frequency of animal food consumption.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Environmental vegetarianism</span> Type of practice of vegetarianism

Environmental vegetarianism is the practice of vegetarianism that is motivated by the desire to create a sustainable diet, which avoids the negative environmental impact of meat production. Livestock as a whole is estimated to be responsible for around 15% of global greenhouse gas emissions. As a result, significant reduction in meat consumption has been advocated by, among others, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in their 2019 special report and as part of the 2017 World Scientists' Warning to Humanity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Food loss and waste</span> Food that is discarded, lost or uneaten

Food loss and waste is food that is not eaten. The causes of food waste or loss are numerous and occur throughout the food system, during production, processing, distribution, retail and food service sales, and consumption. Overall, about one-third of the world's food is thrown away. A 2021 meta-analysis, that did not include food lost during production, by the United Nations Environment Programme found that food waste was a challenge in all countries at all levels of economic development. The analysis estimated that global food waste was 931 million tonnes of food waste across three sectors: 61 percent from households, 26 percent from food service and 13 percent from retail.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable food system</span> Balanced growth of nutritional substances and their distribution

A sustainable food system is a type of food system that provides healthy food to people and creates sustainable environmental, economic, and social systems that surround food. Sustainable food systems start with the development of sustainable agricultural practices, development of more sustainable food distribution systems, creation of sustainable diets, and reduction of food waste throughout the system. Sustainable food systems have been argued to be central to many or all 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Western pattern diet</span> Modern dietary pattern

The Western pattern diet is a modern dietary pattern that is generally characterized by high intakes of pre-packaged foods, refined grains, red meat, processed meat, high-sugar drinks, candy and sweets, fried foods, industrially produced animal products, butter and other high-fat dairy products, eggs, potatoes, corn, and low intakes of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, pasture-raised animal products, fish, nuts, and seeds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Low-carbon diet</span> Diet to reduce greenhouse gas emissions

A low-carbon diet is any diet that results in lower greenhouse gas emissions. Choosing a low carbon diet is one facet of developing sustainable diets which increase the long-term sustainability of humanity. Major tenets of a low-carbon diet include eating a plant-based diet, and in particular little or no beef and dairy. Low-carbon diets differ around the world in taste, style, and the frequency they are eaten. Asian countries like India and China feature vegetarian and vegan meals as staples in their diets. In contrast, Europe and North America rely on animal products for their Western diets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Environmental impacts of animal agriculture</span> Impact of farming animals on the environment

The environmental impacts of animal agriculture vary because of the wide variety of agricultural practices employed around the world. Despite this, all agricultural practices have been found to have a variety of effects on the environment to some extent. Animal agriculture, in particular meat production, can cause pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, disease, and significant consumption of land, food, and water. Meat is obtained through a variety of methods, including organic farming, free-range farming, intensive livestock production, and subsistence agriculture. The livestock sector also includes wool, egg and dairy production, the livestock used for tillage, and fish farming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sustainable diet</span> Diet that contributes to the broader environmental and social sustainability

Sustainable diets are "dietary patterns that promote all dimensions of individuals’ health and wellbeing; have low environmental pressure and impact; are accessible, affordable, safe and equitable; and are culturally acceptable". These diets are nutritious, eco-friendly, economically sustainable, and accessible to people of various socioeconomic backgrounds. Sustainable diets attempt to address nutrient deficiencies and excesses, while accounting for ecological phenomena such as climate change, loss of biodiversity and land degradation. These diets are comparable to the climatarian diet, with the added domains of economic sustainability and accessiblity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pescetarianism</span> Dietary practice of incorporating seafood into an otherwise vegetarian diet

Pescetarianism is a dietary practice based on the consumption of fish and shellfish to the exclusion of land-based meats. The practise incorporates seafood into an otherwise vegetarian diet, and may or may not include other animal products such as eggs and dairy products. Approximately 3% of adults worldwide are pescetarian, according to 2017–2018 research conducted by data and analytics companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Individual action on climate change</span> What people can do individually to stop global warming

Individual action on climate change can include personal choices in many areas, such as diet, travel, household energy use, consumption of goods and services, and family size. Individuals can also engage in local and political advocacy around issues of climate change. People who wish to reduce their carbon footprint, can take "high-impact" actions, such as avoiding frequent flying and petrol fuelled cars, eating mainly a plant-based diet, having fewer children, using clothes and electrical products for longer, and electrifying homes. Avoiding meat and dairy foods has been called "the single biggest way" an individual can reduce their environmental impact. Excessive consumption is more to blame for climate change than population increase. High consumption lifestyles have a greater environmental impact, with the richest 10% of people emitting about half the total lifestyle emissions.

A foodshed is the geographic region that produces the food for a particular population. The term is used to describe a region of food flows, from the area where it is produced, to the place where it is consumed, including: the land it grows on, the route it travels, the markets it passes through, and the tables it ends up on. "Foodshed" is described as a "socio-geographic space: human activity embedded in the natural integument of a particular place." A foodshed is analogous to a watershed in that foodsheds outline the flow of food feeding a particular population, whereas watersheds outline the flow of water draining to a particular location. Through drawing from the conceptual ideas of the watershed, foodsheds are perceived as hybrid social and natural constructs.

Land footprint is the real amount of land, wherever it is in the world, that is needed to produce a product, or used by an organisation or by a nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mike Berners-Lee</span> British ecologist and academic

Mike Berners-Lee is an English researcher and writer on carbon footprinting. He is a professor and fellow of the Institute for Social Futures at Lancaster University and director and principal consultant of Small World Consulting, based in the Lancaster Environment Centre at the university. His books include How Bad are Bananas?, The Burning Question and There Is No Planet B and he is a contributing author to The Climate Book created by Greta Thunberg. He is considered an expert on carbon footprints.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Climate-smart agriculture</span> System for agricultural productivity

Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is a set of farming methods that has three main objectives with regards to climate change. Firstly, they use adaptation methods to respond to the effects of climate change on agriculture. Secondly, they aim to increase agricultural productivity and to ensure food security for a growing world population. Thirdly, they try to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture as much as possible. Climate-smart agriculture works as an integrated approach to managing land. This approach helps farmers to adapt their agricultural methods to the effects of climate change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture</span> Agricultures effects on climate change

The amount of greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture is significant: The agriculture, forestry and land use sector contribute between 13% and 21% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Agriculture contributes towards climate change through direct greenhouse gas emissions and by the conversion of non-agricultural land such as forests into agricultural land. Emissions of nitrous oxide and methane make up over half of total greenhouse gas emission from agriculture. Animal husbandry is a major source of greenhouse gas emissions.

Climatarian diet is a diet focused on reducing the climate footprint.

Nutritional epigenetics is a science that studies the effects of nutrition on gene expression and chromatin accessibility. It is a subcategory of nutritional genomics that focuses on the effects of bioactive food components on epigenetic events.

References

  1. ↑ Goldstein, Benjamin; Birkved, Morten; Fernández, John; Hauschild, Michael (2016-01-07). "Surveying the Environmental Footprint of Urban Food Consumption" (PDF). Journal of Industrial Ecology. 21 (1): 151–165. doi:10.1111/jiec.12384. hdl: 1721.1/122022 . ISSN   1088-1980. S2CID   155473257.
  2. ↑ "What Is Food Justice and Why Is It Necessary?". FoodPrint. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  3. ↑ "Foodprints for the Future". Earth Day. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  4. 1 2 June 05; Alum, 2013 Dana Gunders- (5 June 2013). "10 Steps to Reduce Your Own Foodprint on World Environment Day". NRDC. Retrieved 2020-03-03.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  5. ↑ "Which Plant-Based Milks are Best for the Environment?". FoodPrint. 2019-01-15. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  6. ↑ Gerbens-Leenes, P. W.; Mekonnen, M. M.; Hoekstra, A. Y. (2013-03-01). "The water footprint of poultry, pork and beef: A comparative study in different countries and production systems". Water Resources and Industry. Water Footprint Assessment (WFA) for better water governance and sustainable development. 1–2: 25–36. doi: 10.1016/j.wri.2013.03.001 . ISSN   2212-3717.
  7. ↑ Fabrique [merken, design & interactie. "Water footprint of crop and animal products: a comparison". waterfootprint.org. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  8. ↑ "History of agricultural LCAs" . Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  9. ↑ Billen, Gilles; Barles, Sabine; Garnier, Josette; Rouillard, Joséphine; Benoit, Paul (2008-07-22). "The food-print of Paris: long-term reconstruction of the nitrogen flows imported into the city from its rural hinterland". Regional Environmental Change. 9 (1): 13–24. doi: 10.1007/s10113-008-0051-y . ISSN   1436-3798.
  10. ↑ Candy, Seona; Mark Turner, Graham; Sheridan, Jennifer; Carey, Rachel (February 2019). "Quantifying Melbourne's "Foodprint": A scenario modelling methodology to determine the environmental impact of feeding a city". Economia Agro-Alimentare (3): 371–399. doi:10.3280/ecag2018-003007. ISSN   1126-1668. S2CID   134220021.
  11. ↑ "U. S. land capacity for feeding people could expand with dietary changes". ScienceDaily. Retrieved 2020-03-03.
  12. ↑ Briggs, Nassos Stylianou, Clara Guibourg and Helen (2019-08-09). "Climate change food calculator: What's your diet's carbon footprint?". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-03-03.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  13. ↑ Magkos, Faidon; Tetens, Inge; Bügel, Susanne Gjedsted; Felby, Claus; Schacht, Simon Rønnow; Hill, James O.; Ravussin, Eric; Astrup, Arne (2019-12-20). "The Environmental Foodprint of Obesity". Obesity. 28 (1): 73–79. doi:10.1002/oby.22657. ISSN   1930-7381. PMID   31858737. S2CID   209428101.
  14. ↑ Peters, Christian J.; Picardy, Jamie; Darrouzet-Nardi, Amelia F.; Wilkins, Jennifer L.; Griffin, Timothy S.; Fick, Gary W. (2016-07-22). "Carrying capacity of U.S. agricultural land: Ten diet scenarios". Elementa: Science of the Anthropocene. 4: 000116. Bibcode:2016EleSA...4.0116P. doi: 10.12952/journal.elementa.000116 . ISSN   2325-1026.
  15. ↑ Conrad, Zach; Johnson, LuAnn K; Peters, Christian J; Jahns, Lisa (2018-01-29). "Capacity of the US Food System to Accommodate Improved Diet Quality: A Biophysical Model Projecting to 2030". Current Developments in Nutrition. 2 (4): nzy007. doi: 10.1093/cdn/nzy007 . ISSN   2475-2991. PMC   6041859 . PMID   30019031.
  16. ↑ "What is a FoodPrint?". FoodPrint. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
  17. ↑ "S.F. nonprofit Zero Foodprint wins James Beard Award". San Francisco Chronicle. 2020-03-13. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
  18. ↑ "Zero Foodprint". Archived from the original on 2023-04-04. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
  19. ↑ "Foodprint Group". Foodprint Group. Retrieved 2020-05-04.
  20. ↑ "FOODPRINT: RACE TO REDUCE" (PDF). Sustainable Restaurant Association. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2022-06-20.
  21. ↑ Held, Lisa Elaine (30 November 2020). "On Restaurant Menus, Environmental Metrics are the New Calorie Counts". FoodPrint. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
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