Making Food Sustainable

Sustainable food isn't all about packaging. Think more about what it went through before it got into your hands and the impacts it had during that time. Read on to find out more!

When people think "sustainable food" the first thing someone thinks of is packaging. If it's in plastic it can't be sustainable right?! From personal experience in the beginning of my journey I thought this exactly because I fell into that rabbit hole that eco-friendly sustainable living was solely focused on plastic pollution

“The future of our nation depends on the ability to produce food and fibre to sustain the world.” - Phil Bredesen

This quote takes you less than a second to read but is represents the extreme importance of sustainable food and sustainable agriculture.

Beyond Packaging

How can you look beyond packaging? Let's start with the farmers who grow your produce. Now and days it is said that many farmers are transitioning to pesticide and herbicide free farming. However too little farmers are doing this and the pesticides the are used have a HUGE effect on not only the produce itself but the soil and ecosystems around it.

Soil degradation: is the physical, chemical, and biological decline in soil quality.

This is one of biggest issues we face as soil degradation as the quality on soil declines due to the extensive use of pesticides. When these toxic chemicals and pollutants enter our soil the risk for soil degradation increases as does the risk of less crop. With the number of pesticidal based farming on the rise soil degradation will become a recurring thing. Not only that but we have to take into account the rise in population. By 2050 we are said to have a population of ov er 9 billion people. Less food from soil degradation does not align well with more people.

The second way you can look beyond packaging is by simply looking at where your produce was grown. Take a look at the apple in your cart, kale bunch in your fridge, and potato under your sink. Look at the sticker and see where it is from. Our produce is often grown all over the world and shipped to us. This not only has an affect on the nutritional values that food holds but also the amount of emissions created in the production of it. These are called "food miles" and are often calculated based on the distance that food had to travel to get to you.

The last way I advise you to consider when looking beyond packaging is to cut down on meat and dairy consumption. If you are not new to the sustainable movement you probably know that the animal agriculture industry is responsible for an immense amount of global emissions. It is said that a one pound burger takes the same amount of water for six months of showering. Crazy right? Not to mention that the industry is the leading cause of deforestation.

So yes... take a look at the packaging but go further than that. Sustainability doesn't stop at the question of plastic or paper.