Climate Change and Lifestyles Guidebook - UNEP

Food
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Get Active!
Examine your food habits. Answer the
following questions and see where you can make
positive changes:
In more developed nations, growing your own
food has increased in popularity in recent years.
• How do you choose what to eat?
• Where does your food come from?
• Do you get to make the choices of what you
eat and where you get it from?
• What can you do to change your food habits?
Food choices are very complex because it is
not always easy to uncover the full story about
the food we eat, and even less about how it
contributes to climate change. There are many
different campaigns and initiatives that are geared
towards helping us make these choices. Here are
some of the leading ideas and what they might
mean for you.
Local food
Because of the growing awareness of food
miles, there have been many campaigns
aimed at persuading consumers to buy food
that is produced locally instead of food that is
transported from hundreds or even thousands of
kilometres away. In many cases, it is possible to
find local alternatives, but sometimes, they are
more expensive and there may not be enough
to provide for everyone. In general, buying local
and seasonal foods will reduce the use of fossil
fuels, boost local economies and increase people’s
awareness of where their food comes from.
Across the world, millions of people are growing
their own food. This is especially true in
developing countries where even the smallest
of spaces are put to use to grow crops or keep
animals. In large cities like Mumbai in India, it is
not unusual to see small plots of land producing
food for the local people. However, this can be
challenging for some developing countries, which
do not produce enough local food, and as a result,
they rely heavily on imported foods.
îCase study
Since 1991, The Food Project has been
engaging young people in personal and
social change through community supported
agriculture. It uses rooftops, greenhouses
and suburban vegetable plots in the several
American towns and cities. Youth work as
local producers by growing the food and then
distributing it through farmers markets and
organizations that help to feed the hungry.
The young people gain valuable job experience
and a personal connection to food systems and
issues of food justice.
Meat-free meals
The high environmental impact of meat based
diets has led experts calling for more people
to reduce their meat consumption, or adopt a
vegetarian or vegan diet.
Global meat production is projected to more
than double from 229 million tons in 1999/2001
to 465 million tons in 2050. By reducing
meat consumption, this will help decrease
the greenhouse gas emissions released from
livestock.
Flickr: Christiana Care
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