Thank you to all those attending our January 2020 event and for the lively discussion afterwards. There were lots of great ideas about how we can reduce our impact on the planet by making positive choices about the food we eat.
The recently published Committee on Climate Change (CCC) Land Use report calls for at least one-fifth of agricultural land to be released by 2050 for actions that reduce emissions and sequester carbon, and notes that this will require rapid changes in farming practices and consumer behaviour. The report recommends eating at least 20% less of the carbon intensive foodstuffs like beef, lamb and dairy (modest reductions compared with government nutritional guidelines), while being aware of food waste and the carbon footprint of products in our stores.
The theme of Veganuary cropped up, and it was noted that some would like support to help shift to a more plant based diet at least for some meals during the week. Some schools and households had already adopted meat free Mondays, and some have food gardens in place.
On the subject of sustainable food, an app called Giki aims to help consumers better understand food’s environmental impact; information about Ealing’s food waste collection service can be found here.
Ealing Transition has more ideas about local and sustainable food on its Locally Grown Food page here, if you would like to find out more.