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Food and Climate Change Without the Hot Air

Sarah Louise Bridle

Food and Climate Change Without the Hot Air

18min

18min

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Climate change is wreaking havoc on our planet, causing flash floods, droughts and many other extreme weather conditions, and part of the responsibility lies with the food industry. In fact, a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions come from food production. Sarah Bridle believes that changing the way we eat can help reduce the impact: from breakfast to dessert, through mid-morning or afternoon snacks, Food and Climate Change Without the Hot Air presents a few alternative menus, which do not require great sacrifice, just a degree of reflection and awareness about the importance and the impact of the choices we make.

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Analysis and key concepts

01.

To save the planet we must reduce greenhouse gas emissions, even those emitted by the food industry

02.

Climate change and global warming are caused by an increase in carbon dioxide in our atmosphere

03.

Climate change has an enormous impact on the availability and consumption of food

04.

Around a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions come from food production

05.

Food substitutes for breakfast: tea instead of coffee, and jam instead of scrambled eggs

06.

Substitutes for lunch with lower emission values: plenty of seasonal vegetables but go easy on the cheese

07.

Alternative snacks that produce less emissions: dried fruit is better than desserts that contain butter and cream

08.

Dinner alternatives that are better for the planet: pulses instead of meat, and no wine

09.

Food waste is responsible for a large amount of the emissions caused by its production

10.

Food is not a problem, it is part of the solution, and swapping high impact foods for low impact options can help reduce emissions

11.

Every change we make could make an enormous difference: lots of small changes are easier than more drastic ones

12.

Quotes

13.

Take-home message

01. To save the planet we must reduce greenhouse gas emissions, even those emitted by the food industry

As a student of physics and climate change, Sarah Bridle was inspired to write this book by her mentor, David MacKay, who wrote Sustainable Energy Without the Hot Air, in 2008. Bridle chose to focus on nutrition and food production, with particular focus on good practices for more sustainable health for human beings and the planet.

Food and Climate Change Without the Hot Air offers a series of suggestions on how we can better plan our meals, by making small decisions that make a big difference. The assumption of her work is that every single meal we eat contributes to climate change, and she explains which foods cause the biggest emissions, and then suggests universal alternatives. Of course, the availability and variety of foods does differ from one continent to the other, but there are general rules and assumptions that can be universally applied.

Bridle firmly believes that, in order to make conscious decisions, we must first be made aware of how things are. In this way, the decisions we make will not be based on gut feeling, but on solid facts. Climate change is real, so action is required to reverse it.

02. Climate change and global warming are caused by an increase in carbon dioxide in our atmosphere

03. Climate change has an enormous impact on the availability and consumption of food

04. Around a quarter of greenhouse gas emissions come from food production

05. Food substitutes for breakfast: tea instead of coffee, and jam instead of scrambled eggs

06. Substitutes for lunch with lower emission values: plenty of seasonal vegetables but go easy on the cheese

07. Alternative snacks that produce less emissions: dried fruit is better than desserts that contain butter and cream

08. Dinner alternatives that are better for the planet: pulses instead of meat, and no wine

09. Food waste is responsible for a large amount of the emissions caused by its production

10. Food is not a problem, it is part of the solution, and swapping high impact foods for low impact options can help reduce emissions

11. Every change we make could make an enormous difference: lots of small changes are easier than more drastic ones

12. Quotes

13. Take-home message

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Many useful tips to:

  • Appreciate which foods have the highest impact on our environment.
  • Help you select the most flavoursome foods, and the ones which are least harmful to the environment.
  • Increase your awareness of the role we play in climate change.

Sarah Louise Bridle teaches Food, Climate and Society at the University of York. She has a degree in physics, and previously worked as a professor of extragalactic astronomy and cosmology in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at the University of Manchester. Bridle led various projects, and was responsible for the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope from 2013 to 2017. She has always worked in the field of sustainability and climate change, and has received numerous awards for her research.

Publishing house:

Uit Cambridge Ltd

Year:

2020

Pages:

256

ISBN:

978-0857845030