Definition
“Food’s carbon footprint is the greenhouse gas emissions produced by growing, rearing, farming, processing, transporting, storing, cooking, and disposing of the food we eat. Transport, house, and food have the three largest carbon footprints.” Source: Green Eatz
Benefits
- Changing the food you serve can have a big impact on your event’s carbon footprint
- Fruit, vegetables, beans, and nuts have much lower carbon footprints
- Moving towards a mainly vegetarian menu can have a large impact on both health and the environment
Key Questions to Ask Your Caterer
- Do you have a low carbon menu?
- If not, what items on the menu are low carbon?
- Do you have a plant-based menu?
- Can we work together to design a low carbon menu for the event?
Food Facts
- Tea is the lowest carbon beverage followed by wine, coffee, beer, and milk
- The highest carbon food is beef because it includes the methane they produce
- The lowest carbon foods also tend to use the least amount of water to produce
- Low carbon foods support the local community by not shipping
- Sustainable seafood that is wild-caught is low carbon