Newsletter Archive

Eating for the Environment

What should I eat? Each time we ask ourselves this question we have an opportunity to lessen our impact on the earth.

Most of the food produced and consumed in the United States today is part of a highly mechanized, industrial system where the highest value is placed on producing crops and meat as cheaply as possible. However, the hidden costs of the system include air and water pollution, land erosion, and loss of wildlife habitat, not to mention human health risks associated with pesticide exposure and antibiotic resistance. We pay these costs through tax dollars used to clean up "factory farm" pollution and health care bills from treating agriculture-related illnesses.

The good news is you have another way to spend your food dollars, by supporting farmers who take care to raise animals and crops responsibly. With that in mind, here are some environmentally friendly answers to the question "What should I eat?"

Buy locally produced food.

Most food sold in the United States travels an average of 1,300 miles from the farm to the supermarket. Purchasing locally produced food reduces agriculture's contribution to fossil fuel use and pollution and supports the many regional small-scale farmers who share a commitment to environmental conservation and land stewardship. Farmers' markets, roadside stands, membership-based farm groups known as Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs), and even some supermarkets offer opportunities to buy local vegetables, fruit, cheese, eggs, and meat.

Consider eating less meat.

Raising food for animals exacts a greater toll on natural resources than other types of food production. Most meat, eggs, and dairy products come from animals raised part or all of their lives on factory farms--facilities that crowd animals into tightly confined spaces, creating an ideal breeding ground for animal diseases (which is one reason why the animals are fed a steady diet of antibiotics). Factory farms pollute our air and water by generating enormous amounts of animal waste. Growing grain to feed animals depletes water resources and pollutes ecosystems with large quantities of pesticides and fertilizers. Consider reducing your consumption of meat and, when you do eat meat, buying from farmers you know or looking for labels you can trust--such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) organic seal.

Choose organic products.

The USDA organic seal identifies foods that have been produced using practices that are less destructive to farmland and surrounding ecosystems. Organic farms do not use synthetic pesticides and fertillizers, antibiotics, growth hormones, or genetically engineered seed or feed.

Make informed seafood choices.

Farmed or wild? Atlantic or Pacific? Consumers today enjoy a wide array of seafood options, but much of it has been harvested in ways that severely damage ocean ecosystems and threaten species with extinction. Printable wallet-sized guides, such as the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch program (see sidebar), will help you choose seafood that has been harvested to maintain healthy supplies of fish and other marine life.

In the end, some of these decisions might cost you more money, but there will be far fewer hidden costs to humans, animals, and ecosystems. In addition, your dollars will support farmers who go the extra mile to protect the environment and public health. Learn more by visiting the USC Web site (www.ucsusa.org) or those listed below.

Jenn Palembas is outreach specialist for the Food and Environment Program.

© 2005 Union of Concerned Scientists

Reprinted from Catalyst, Vol. 4, No. 2, Fall 2005, published twice a year by the Union of Concerned Scientists. www.ucsusa.org