14 July 2018

Quartzy: Beyond the straw ban—three easy ways to eat with the planet in mind

This one is a little counter-intuitive, but many frozen fish actually have a smaller carbon footprint than fresh fish. “It’s much better, and much cheaper actually, to go to the frozen section where you have vacuum-packed things like sockeye salmon,” Paul Greenberg, author of The Omega Principle, Seafood and the Quest for a Long Life and a Healthier Planet, told Terry Gross on Fresh Air. Greenberg explained that fish that are processed and frozen on fishing boats, like much of the Alaskan salmon catch, can be held at temperature for long periods with very little additional energy input, especially in contrast to the expense of flying fresh seafood around the world. [...]

As Dana Gunders, author of Waste-Free Kitchen Handbook, told Quartzy earlier this year,  “No matter how organically or sustainably the food was grown, if you’re not eating it, it was all for naught.” Americans waste about a pound of food a day per person and people with the healthiest diets tend to waste the most—about half of all produce ends up in the trash, and food is the single biggest contributor to landfills. [...]

While we’re talking about banning straws—which while wasteful, are irreplaceable for some folks with limited mobility or sensory issues—let’s talk about disposable coffee cups. Americans use more than 100 million disposable hot coffee cups each day. That doesn’t even take iced lattes into account. Fancy reusable coffee cups, like the one from Yeti, may seem a bit much, but at around $30 each you’re much less likely to lose it than a cheaper model. Their BPA-free plastic lids actually get clean, are supposedly leak-proof, and don’t hold the grossly lingering flavor of stale coffee, so they can double as your seltzer cup once you’ve caffeinated. Yeti also makes a separate straw lid that is reusable and perfect for keeping your wine spritzer ice cold.  Stay up-to-date with Quartzy on Facebook  Follow us

No comments:

Post a Comment