Which dishes have the most CO₂ emissions and which ingredients are mainly responsible for this? There was pizza, burgers and spaghetti Bolognese, analyzed by Eaternity, a Zurich-based company that calculates the footprint of food. The unit of measure that Eaternity uses for calculations is called CO₂ equivalents. This is a unit of measurement used to standardize various greenhouse gases.
This begs the question of what you can do as an individual – if you want – to reduce your CO₂ footprint. With food, you can make a difference because, according to the WWF, about 37 percent of CO₂ emissions come from the global food system.
1. Beef Hamburger
The main reason for the high CO₂ emission of hamburgers is ground meat. This is mainly due to animal husbandry, i.e. animal feed production and deforestation to obtain more pasture land. In addition, there is methane gas, which is harmful to the environment, emitted by cows.
For those in the mood for burgers, there are countless more eco-friendly alternatives. A variety of veggie burgers with plant-based patties are particularly popular. These are usually based on legumes such as black beans or kidney beans. Other variations include chickpeas, lentils or sweet potatoes. However, if you don’t want to forego the taste of meat, you’ll also find veggie burgers that taste like meat but are made with plant-based ingredients like peas or soy.
2. Spaghetti Bolognese
Spaghetti Bolognese has the second highest CO₂ emissions. Minced beef is also responsible for this dish. Most of the meat products we find in grocery stores come from far away. Often even from other continents. Not only transportation, but also animal husbandry is complex. According to the WWF, approximately 5 to 20 kilograms of animal feed should be produced and fed per kilogram of beef.
As research by WWF has shown, a Swiss person’s dietary footprint will decrease by 24 percent if they switch to a vegetarian diet.
There are many alternatives to a similar but more environmentally friendly spaghetti bolognese recipe. For example, you can get a near-perfect Bolognese consistency from cauliflower. Vegan “minced meat” made from sunflower seeds is very popular with vegans. Sunflower mince is of vegetable origin and contains plenty of protein.
3. Pizza Margarita
With 1852 g CO₂e, Pizza Margherita has the smallest footprint of the three dishes. Mozzarella accounts for most of the output, followed by wheat flour and tomatoes.
Does sustainable pizza really exist? Naturally. One step in the right direction is to stop buying frozen pizza. Making an eco-friendly Margherita pizza doesn’t take much: the wheat flour can come from your local mill or neighborhood farm. Tomatoes can come from your own garden or from the easily accessible organic section of the grocery store. And mozzarella from a local cheese dairy.
Unlike the other two dishes, Pizza Margherita is vegetarian, but not vegan because of the mozzarella cheese. Therefore, if you want to be even more environmentally friendly, replace the mozzarella with a vegan product.