Introduction – Carbon Footprint Of Foods
The carbon footprint of a product or activity is a measure of the total amount of greenhouse gases produced to directly and indirectly support it. Understanding the carbon footprint of different foods is important because it helps us to identify which foods are more environmentally friendly and which are more damaging to the environment. ShrinkThatFootprint is creating a carbon foodprint database of different foods using peer reviewed scientific resources.
Carbon Footprint Database – Links To Our Food Categories
We group the food types into major categories and list them together for ease of comparison. Below are links to the different categories. Stay tuned as we continue to add to this database.
Meat – Carbon Footprint Database
Dairy, Cheese – Carbon Footprint Database
Processed Agricultural Products – Carbon Footprint Database
Non-Processed Agricultural Products – Carbon Footprint Database (nuts, fruits, vegetables, legumes)
Fish – Carbon Footprint Database
Estimation Is Inherently Difficult
Estimating the carbon footprint of foods is difficult due to the many processes and stages involved in producing them. For example, when calculating the carbon footprint of meat, one must take into account the emissions generated from animal feed production, transportation of animals and supplies, manure management, and slaughtering.
Similarly, when calculating the carbon footprint of dairy products, one must take into account the emissions generated from feed production, transportation of dairy cows and supplies, and processing the milk. Furthermore, the carbon footprint of plant-based foods must also be taken into account, taking into account the emissions generated from fertilizer production and transportation, as well as the energy used to grow and process the plants.
For our estimation, we used Petersson et al 2021 Scientific Data, peer-reviewed and published resource.
Anne Lauer
Anna Lauer is a writer, gardener, and homesteader living in rural Wisconsin. She has written for Mother Earth News, Grit, and Hobby Farms magazines. Anna is writing a new book about growing your food for free and an ultimate guide to producing food at little to no cost. When she’s not writing or gardening, Anna enjoys spending time with her husband and two young daughters.