Among the excess of issues North Americans are currently facing, climate change, health, and nutrition are some of the most pressing. These issues, however, are actually inherently interrelated and interconnected. Year after year, the U.S. and Canada alike have seen rising obesity rates, making healthy lifestyle and nutrition choices evermore vital. At the same time, alarming and undeniable climate changes are happening across the globe, with food waste alone contributing greatly to global carbon levels. Prolonging fruit and vegetable shelf life and reducing produce loss across supply-chains and households can therefore decrease carbon emissions and increase the affordability, accessibility, and availability of fresh produce, enabling and promoting healthy diet choices across populations.
It is known that, of the 2.2 million tonnes of edible food wasted each year in Canada (1.3 billion tonnes globally), 30% is vegetables and 15% is fruit. From production to consumption, this amounts to a staggering portion of greenhouse gas emissions. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimated that each year, U.S. food loss and waste embodies 170 million metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (million MTCO2e) greenhouse emissions (excluding landfill emissions)—equal to the annual carbon dioxide emissions of 42 coal-fired power plants. To put this into perspective, 1.3 gigatons of edible food wasted releases 3.3 gigatons equivalent of carbon dioxide, meaning that for every 1 kilogram of food waste, just over 2.5 kilograms of carbon dioxide is emitted.
Moreover, studies show that a diet rich in fresh produce can lower blood pressure, reduce the risk of heart disease and stroke, help protect against diabetes and some types of cancer, lower the risk of eye and digestive problems, and have a positive effect on blood sugar, which helps keep appetites regular. In fact, consuming three or more fruits and vegetables per day, compared to less than one per day, has been linked to a 27% lower stroke incidence, a 42%
lower stroke mortality, 4% lower ischemic heart disease mortality, 27% lower cardiovascular disease mortality, and a 15% lower all-cause mortality.
However, as we know, inflation and rising food costs make fresh fruits and vegetables evermore inaccessible to various socio-economic groups. Instead, energy-dense foods composed of refined grains, added sugars, or fats represent the lowest-cost option to consumers, effectively contributing to rising obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and even mental health disorder rates. Studies show that, due to the high cost of fresh produce, lack of transportation, and low-quality products, individuals in low-income areas consume fewer servings of fruits and vegetables than suggested by Dietary Guidelines.
A global shift to a fresh, healthy produce-rich diet is needed now more than ever, for the health of both our populations and our planet. The startling climate-driven events we have witnessed over recent years, including global warming with record-high temperatures, catastro-phic floods, and treacherous fires, paired with concerning health statistics serve as a needed wake-up call to populations, corporations, and governments. We must treat each pressing issue at the source–innovating and re-imagining the methods, practices, and technologies we rely on for consumption into sustainable, greener, and circular processes.
About the Author
With a Bachelor of Agriculture degree and Post-Graduate Diploma in Soil Reclamation and Soil Fertility from Al Minya University in Cairo, Egypt, Roshdy has dedicated both his personal and professional life to researching, developing, and patenting clean technologies that work to solve the climate crisis at its root. From innovations that capture and recycle carbon, methane, and corporation byproducts to those that reduce food waste, advance agricultural methods, and improve animal health, Roshdy’s passion lies in creating and sustaining a truly carbon-negative, circular green economy.
Comments