Space Travel News  
FARM NEWS
On the menu at a UK restaurant: carbon footprintl
By Valentine GRAVELEAU
Bristol, United Kingdom (AFP) Aug 10, 2022

The menu at The Canteen in southwest England doesn't just let diners know how much a dish costs. They can also check its carbon footprint.

The carrot and beetroot pakora with yoghurt sauce is responsible for just 16 grams of CO2 emissions. The aubergines with a miso and harissa sauce with tabbouleh and Zaatar toast caused 675 grams of carbon dioxide.

As customers weigh their options, the menu at the vegetarian restaurant in Bristol includes a comparison with a dish that it does not serve: the emissions from a UK-produced hamburger.

"Three kilos for a burger, wow! I can't believe it," exclaimed Enyioma Anomelechi, a 37-year-old diner sipping a beer outside in the sunshine.

The menu notes that a real beef burger's emissions is "10 times the amount of its vegan alternative".

The carbon footprints of businesses and consumers have come under growing scrutiny as countries scramble to limit global temperature increases to 1.5 degrees Celsius and to achieve net-zero emission by 2050.

The Canteen became in July the first restaurant to agree to put its carbon footprint on the menu under a campaign spearheaded by UK vegan campaigning charity Viva!

The restaurant's manager, Liam Stock, called the move a way to "see what we are doing; to understand and improve ourselves".

The average British person has an annual carbon footprint of more than 10 tonnes, according to UK government figures.

Britain has set the ambitious goal of reducing harmful emissions by 78 percent by 2035, compared with 1990 figures, in order to meet its international climate change commitments.

- 'Climate emergency' -

Switching to a plant-based diet is one of the most effective ways for an individual to reduce their carbon footprint, experts from the UN's Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change said in April.

The livestock industry replaces CO2-absorbing forests with land for grazing and soy crops for cattle feed. The animals also belch huge amounts of methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

Whether diners will let carbon footprints influence their order choices remains to be seen, but Stock said the menu innovation has stoked interest and support.

"In England if you're a big chain restaurant, it's the law that you have to have calories on (the menu)," he said.

"But a lot of people are saying... they're more interested in carbon."

While Anomelechi noted the "huge" difference in emissions between a hamburger and other dishes, he said he did not necessarily want to be burdened with knowing his order's calorie count or carbon footprint.

"When I go out to eat I just want to enjoy," he added, noting he would be more inclined to change his ways when grocery shopping.

Laura Hellwig, campaigns manager at Viva!, said the carbon footprint figure should become compulsory.

"We are in a climate emergency and consumers have to be able to make informed choices," said the activist.

In her view, "most people would actually choose for the planet" if confronted with a comparison between the carbon footprint of a meat-based meal and a vegan dish.

- 'Cradle to store' -

Stock said he knew his restaurant's dishes would score low carbon footprints, as most of his ingredients are sourced regionally.

"We didn't have to change anything," he said, while admitting some surprises, such as learning that imported spices drive up emissions.

To calculate the dishes' footprints, The Canteen sent its recipes and the source of the ingredients to a specialised company called MyEmissions.

It is able to calculate the carbon impact from "cradle to store", taking into account farming, processing, transport and packaging.

"If I was choosing between two dishes, maybe depending on how hungry I was, I might choose the one with a lower footprint," said Nathan Johnson, a 43-year-old diner at the restaurant.

That day, he opted for the chef's salad, which racks up 162 grams of carbon.

Another diner, 29-year-old Emma Harvey, also backed the idea of increased awareness of carbon footprints "and the ethical effects of the food that we're eating".

"We have to incorporate things (like) that into everyday life," she said.


Related Links
Farming Today - Suppliers and Technology


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


FARM NEWS
Two more grain shipments leave Ukrain
Kyiv, Ukraine (AFP) Aug 9, 2022
Two more cargo ships carrying grain left Ukraine Tuesday, Kyiv said, under a deal with Russia to ease agricultural exports from Ukrainian ports that had been blocked by the war. "Two ships left the port of Chornomorsk carrying a total of 70,000 tons of agricultural products," the infrastructure ministry said in a statement on social media. It said that one of the ships, the Rahmi Yaggi, was bound for Turkey with 5,300 tons of products, while the Ocean Lion was carrying some 65,000 tons of corn t ... read more

Comment using your Disqus, Facebook, Google or Twitter login.



Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle

FARM NEWS
FARM NEWS
Building on Mars or the Luna: You'll need extraterrestrial cement for that

New Year, New Challenges: Sols 3558-3559

NASA's Perseverance cores 12th sample, team assessing rover's coring bit

Ten Earth Years Later On Mars Sols 3553-3554

FARM NEWS
NASA seeks student ideas for extracting, forging metal on the Moon

Additional Artemis I test objectives to provide added confidence in capabilities

Artemis 1 becomes cultural, educational time capsule for trip around moon

South Korea's first lunar orbiter launched by SpaceX

FARM NEWS
Why Jupiter doesn't have rings like Saturn

You can help scientists study the atmosphere on Jupiter

SwRI scientists identify a possible source for Charon's red cap

NASA's Europa Clipper Mission Completes Main Body of the Spacecraft

FARM NEWS
A cosmic tango points to a violent and chaotic past for distant exoplanet

New research on the emergence of the first complex cells challenges orthodoxy

Super-earth skimming habitable zone of red dwarf

How do collisions of rocks with planets help the planets evolve?

FARM NEWS
Northrop Grumman invests in new solid rocket motor manufacturing facilities in Magna, Utah

Private rocket company completes third orbital mission

Blue Origin sends first Egyptian and Portuguese nationals to space

Virgin Galactic secures land for new astronaut campus and training facility

FARM NEWS
Reusable experimental spacecraft put into orbit

China launches six new satellites

China's Tianzhou-3 cargo craft re-enters atmosphere under control

Researchers: Chinese rocket stage to hit Earth in uncontrolled descent

FARM NEWS
Perseid meteor shower peaks Aug. 12, but the full Moon may spoil the show

NASA team troubleshoots asteroid-bound Lucy across the solar system

Modeling reveals how dwarf planet Ceres powers unexpected geologic activity

The plan to unlock the biggest wealth through asteroid mining









The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us.