Do you consider your carbon footprint when buying foods?

C

caseydog

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I've noticed that some members will buy imported foods more than others. I tend to buy from as close to home as possible. Part of that is supporting local and Texas businesses, but I also consider how much fossil fuel gets burned to get the food to me.

Example, Kerrygold butter is in all the stores around me. But, that has to make its way across an ocean on a ship, and then several states by truck to get to my store. I can get perfectly good butter from US suppliers, and even suppliers right here in Texas. Same with rice. I'm not going to buy rice from Asia when rice is a major crop 200 miles away from me in Texas.

I wonder what your thoughts are, especially in light of the extreme weather that is becoming common all over the world due to global warming.

CD
 
I do try. Strangely perhaps its easier in the USA as generally speaking the main produce available is USA grown and raised. Having said that the US is a huge country so moving stuff around internally impacts on the carbon foorprint.

In Europe generally, a lot of produce sold is produced within the specific countries. Italians tend to eat Italian produce etc. Obviously not everything though. Same in Australia and New Zealand.

Then we have the UK, this tiny island which has a huge range of imported food and drink. I can get almost anything I want here and the average supermarket is stocked with huge amounts of produce from around the globe.
 
Morning Glory said:
I do try. Strangely perhaps its easier in the USA as generally speaking the main produce available is USA grown and raised. Having said that the US is a huge country so moving stuff around internally impacts on the carbon foorprint.

In Europe generally, a lot of produce sold is produced within the specific countries. Italians tend to eat Italian produce etc. Obviously not everything though. Same in Australia and New Zealand.

Then we have the UK, this tiny island which has a huge range of imported food and drink. I can get almost anything I want here and the average supermarket is stocked with huge amounts of produce from around the globe.
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It is true that buying produce in the US is easy, because of the sheer size and diversity of climates and conditions we have here. But it is also true that sometimes that doesn't mean it has a small carbon footprint. We get a lot of produce from Mexico, and that is closer to me in Dallas than similar produce from California, making the imported more carbon efficient than the domestic.

I am very happy to hear that you do think about it when you make your purchase decisions. I am in the habit of looking at where my foods come from. Sometimes I don't have a choice, but when I do, I like to buy as close to home as possible.

CD
 
For our business operations we try to source everything within 150 miles of DC. We pride ourselves on it and have made some great relationships with local suppliers/farmers along the way. Of course there are goods that just can't be gotten locally, but we do try.

I take the same approach with home cooking. Not only for the carbon footprint angle, but, things that are closer are fresher, and fresher is better.
 
I usually try to buy things that are produced closer to me, but being frank about it, it has to do with freshness and quality, not the carbon footprint.
 
TastyReuben said:
I usually try to buy things that are produced closer to me, but being frank about it, it has to do with freshness and quality, not the carbon footprint.
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I wasn't sure which way you would go on the carbon footprint. On one hand, you have voiced a "I do what I want" perspective, but then... you drive a Cinquecento. Yeah, that's imported, but it uses very little fuel. BTW, I drive an imported MINI, but I figure the 13 years of low fuel consumption more than offset the shipping to the US.

CD
 
caseydog said:
I wasn't sure which way you would go on the carbon footprint. On one hand, you have voiced a "I do what I want" perspective, but then... you drive a Cinquecento. Yeah, that's imported, but it uses very little fuel. BTW, I drive an imported MINI, but I figure the 13 years of low fuel consumption more than offset the shipping to the US.

CD
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I have the car I drive because I like it, the fuel economy is a bonus. :wink:
 
I try to buy as local as possible. Mostly for the support to local businesses (and it tastes so good the fresher something is...), and partially for the footprint. Also there are some places with business practices I don't really approve of - I try NOT to get farm raised shrimp for that last reason.

I do end up with some Australian and New Zealand lamb - having grass/pastured finished is very important to me. (I have bought half a lamb at a time from a local farmer, but this is not always practical - hey, what's the freezer space there today???)

Then, there are things that are SO far away. Avocadoes and citrus doesn't grow here. I have tried doing small citrus trees, but they haven't done all that well even though I bring them indoors in the winter.
 
Mountain Cat said:
I try to buy as local as possible. Mostly for the support to local businesses (and it tastes so good the fresher something is...), and partially for the footprint. Also there are some places with business practices I don't really approve of - I try NOT to get farm raised shrimp for that last reason.

I do end up with some Australian and New Zealand lamb - having grass/pastured finished is very important to me. (I have bought half a lamb at a time from a local farmer, but this is not always practical - hey, what's the freezer space there today???)

Then, there are things that are SO far away. Avocadoes and citrus doesn't grow here. I have tried doing small citrus trees, but they haven't done all that well even though I bring them indoors in the winter.
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I generally have no choice but to buy Australian lamb, because American lamb is really hard to find, at least where I live. Beef is not a problem in Texas. There are a few hundred head of cattle grazing a few blocks from my house.

I definitely avoid farm raised shrimp, which comes mostly from China and Southeast Asia. There is an abundance of good, wild caught shrimp from the Texas Gulf coast available. It does cost more, but farm raised seafood from many Asian countries is raised with very few regulations. Catfish farms in Louisiana produce some excellent fish. Better than wild caught, IMO. They eat a much cleaner diet. Catfish are bottom feeders, so the wild caught catfish can have a pretty "dirty" flavor.

Avocados here come mostly from Mexico, which is not that far. We have citrus growing in Texas, in the Rio Grande valley. Out Ruby Red grapefruit is better than grapefruit from Florida.

CD
 
I have no carbon footprint, my friends say but you guys have V8s and V6s you should be saving the planet, my response is they're still making gas aren't they, I throw paper rubbish out of my car window, my thinking is it keeps council workers busy.
BUT lately my grandkids have put pressure on me. We recycle now as much as possible, I don't throw paper out of my vehicles anymore, I've sold my V8, and as a bonus I've been preserving for years tomatoes onions and lots of other foods so not a lot of packaging anymore.
But my experience with food bags I find absolutely shocking the amount of rubbish, bubble pack, small amounts individually wrapped, three sprigs of coriander/ cilantro, indivually plastic sealed just for that.
So I help if I can now.

Russ
 
rascal said:
I have no carbon footprint, my friends say but you guys have V8s and V6s you should be saving the planet, my response is they're still making gas aren't they, I throw paper rubbish out of my car window, my thinking is it keeps council workers busy.
BUT lately my grandkids have put pressure on me. We recycle now as much as possible, I don't throw paper out of my vehicles anymore, I've sold my V8, and as a bonus I've been preserving for years tomatoes onions and lots of other foods so not a lot of packaging anymore.
But my experience with food bags I find absolutely shocking the amount of rubbish, bubble pack, small amounts individually wrapped, three sprigs of coriander/ cilantro, indivually plastic sealed just for that.
So I help if I can now.

Russ
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Well you are moving in a good direction. Excess packaging is a huge waste.

CD
 
I am one of those members buying some imported products, I tend to buy British products I miss since I lived there once in a while. And I buy Asian foods too as that's part of my heritage.

However, that's the main amount of imported stuff I buy. My weekly shop is actually local produce only Onze producten | Crisp online supermarkt . I order food from an online supermarket specializing in local, seasonal, and mostly organic food. We prefer this because we want to support local suppliers, and also because of climate conciousness. That's also a reason we only eat organic meat.
 
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