The ultimate guide to eco barbecuing

Heat up the BBQ, not the planet, with our eye-opening advice and tips

And just like that, BBQ season is back! Since the time of eating outside has officially begun, it is now more than acceptable to hold three BBQs a day. Burgers for breakfast, anyone? At Vegan Life, we adore BBQ food and all the fun that comes with holding a party that puts it front and centre. There is just something about that smoky flavour that BBQs give, as well as the happiness that accompanies munching outdoors. If you're new to veganism, you might be wondering why and how vegans could ever enjoy BBQs, with meat traditionally a big part of them, but you would be mistaken — BBQs don't need meat, just some fresh veg, careful seasoning and a super-hot grill!

As much as we love holding a BBQ gathering, they can come at a cost to the Earth, creating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and waste. For instance, a typical summer BBQ for four people is equivalent to 800 balloons full of CO², that is more GHGs than a 90-mile car journey! (ecovibe.co.uk)

So, how can we host a BBQ that has as little impact on the planet as possible? Follow our ideas, tips and tricks for a lowimpact barbie that will impress all, without harming the environment or animals.

Think about food and drink

Eat vegan

As we saw above, the average BBQ creates quite the amount of GHGs (800 balloons worth). On its own, a single, 100g beef burger is responsible for around 60 balloons of CO², or six miles in a car… If you're hosting a BBQ for a large group of people, and each person has at least one burger, along with other meat and dairy products, consider the GHG emissions that will be created… It will amount to a lot.

Luckily, there is an easy way to reduce that volume — by hosting a vegan event. Whilst a meat BBQ creates emissions to the equivalent of about 200 balloons of CO² per head, a vegan BBQ only equates to around 80 per head, more than halving the GHG emissions of the party. (ecovibe. co.uk).

“A single, 100g beef burger is responsible for around 60 balloons of CO2, or six car” miles in a

Cook from scratch

Instead of buying pre-made foods, like plant-based burgers, skewers and dips, why not make your own? Not only will it mean eliminating plastic packaging from your spread, but you will also know exactly what is going into your food, enabling you to tailor taste and nutritional value. It's easy to create your own beany burgers, TVP patties, dairyfree mayo and side salads — head to our recipe pages for inspiration! Likewise, avoid buying pre-chopped fruit and veg — even if it does save time, it will

be packaged in needless plastic that can be avoided.

Buy loose, plastic-free fruit and veg Yes, packaged fruit and veg is a bit more convenient to grab when shopping, but the packaging really isn't needed. We all know how bad single-use plastic is, so opt for loose produce whenever possible. Most supermarkets stock loose foods now, but if yours doesn't, head to or order from a zero-waste, plastic-free or bulk food store.

Go for ‘ugly' or yellow sticker food

Food waste is a progressively worsening issue, but a lot of the food that is grown doesn't even make it to our homes in the first place. According to Oddbox, in the UK alone, more than three million tonnes of fruit and veg are wasted before they even leave the farm. The reason? They are branded ‘too' big, ‘too' small, ‘too' many. And when this food goes to waste, so too does all the energy, water and time that went into growing it (oddbox.co.uk). In the UK, our food system has come to prize uniformity over taste and planet — produce that doesn't look quite right by supermarket standards is thrown. But, by buying this ‘ugly' fruit and veg, we prevent it from going to waste. Supermarkets including both Tesco and Sainsbury's now sell some ‘imperfect' produce, which you can usually buy cheaper than the ‘perfect' items they sell. Likewise, numerous ‘wonky' veg box schemes have arisen in the last few years, including Oddbox and Wonky Veg Boxes (wonkyvegboxes.co.uk). So, when you shop for your BBQ food, opt for supermarket ‘imperfect' veg or buy through a wonky veg box scheme.

On top of this, food is often wasted simply because it is never bought, or because it has passed its ‘best-before' or ‘sell-by' dates. As produce nears these dates, it is reduced in price and graced with a yellow sticker. A lot of shoppers dislike buying produce that is nearing expiration, being under the impression that it won't ‘taste good' and might be ‘bad' for them. This is not the case — as long as food isn't past its ‘use-by' date. By purchasing yellow sticker reduced food, not only are you saving items from landfill, but also money — great if you are catering for a large BBQ party.

Meal plan

According to Eco Vibe (ecovibe.co.uk), Britons typically throw away £4.28 million GBP of BBQ food each August — that's a lot of wasted food and money. To combat making too much food, why not create a BBQ meal plan? Work out how many people will be at your gathering, how much each person is likely to eat, and plan each BBQ dish accordingly. If you do still end up with leftovers, send guests home with a Tupperware of goodies to save it being thrown.

Avoid single-use items

Single-use products are a plague on our planet, with most of them heading to landfill, polluting our environment and harming wildlife. Luckily, there are lots of opportunities to evade single-use items at your BBQ:

Don't use disposable grills: these can't be recycled or composted properly, meaning that for each one sold in the UK (which is estimated at over a million each year), new waste is committed to landfill, where it will eventually release harmful GHGs or get blown away, plaguing wildlife. Instead, choose a reusable grill, or if you need one that is easily portable, invest in a small, foldable, compact camping grill that you can use again and again.

Refuse single-use plastic cutlery, plates and cups: the Ocean Conservancy lists plastic cutlery among the items ‘most deadly' to sea turtles, birds and mammals. Rather than disposables, use the cutlery, cups and plates you already have, or if there would be way too much washing up, choose bamboo products that are produced sustainably and are biodegradable.

Don't buy decorations: single-use bunting and balloons might look great, but after you've finished your party, what happens to them? Even though latex is 100 per cent natural, balloons made from this material, unless in the ideal conditions, will take years to decay, and will thus, more often than not, end up in the stomachs of wildlife or littering the environment. The case is the same with bunting, which, if made from plastic, will take decades to degrade and may not ever. So instead, make your own decorations out of things like scrap fabrics and recycled paper, or borrow some from a friend.

“Whilst a meat BBQ creates emissions to the equivalent of about 200 balloons of CO2 per head, a vegan BBQ only equates to around head” 80 per

BBQ consciously

Consider your grill

There is a large debate on which type of BBQ is better for the environment, gas, coal or other. Sadly, a solid answer is hard to come by, since all grills have a lot of negatives. Here is what is known, to hopefully enable you to make an informed decision.

Charcoal

A lot of charcoal is sourced from extremely unsustainable sources, linking the fuel to mass deforestation in lowincome countries, causing biodiversity loss, the destruction of homes, habitats and sources of income, and climate change. As well as this, when burned, charcoal is a big source of GHG emissions as well as volatile organic compounds, which are harmful to Earth. In addition, most charcoal that can be bought from high-street shops or supermarkets has toxic chemicals added to it to make it burn better, like paraffin.

On the other side of the coin, many people like to use charcoal because it is technically renewable. If sourcing charcoal is handled sustainably in line with good forest management, it can be considered carbon neutral. Burning charcoal releases carbon that was tied up temporarily in the tree it was made from, with new trees grown to reabsorb that CO2.

If you use charcoal, choose a UK-grown, sustainably sourced and certified green variety, or lump charcoal, which has no additives or chemicals and releases less gas and soot emissions.

Gas

The other option, gas, is favoured by many because using it to fuel a BBQ produces less carbon dioxide and zero carbon monoxide emissions when compared to charcoal. According to Build with Rise, running an energy-efficient gas grill for an hour will release an average of 5.6 pounds of CO2 into the atmosphere. The bag of charcoal briquettes needed to keep that same grill hot for an hour will release upwards of 11 pounds of CO² (buildwithrise.com).

On top of this, a 2009 study discovered that charcoal barbecuing has almost three times the total carbon footprint as that of gas (LPG) grilling (sciencedirect. com). This isn't solely down to emissions though, the main reason for this huge difference is that gas is much more efficient than charcoal in both production and when used to fuel cooking. You also don't need additional firelights or lighter fluids made from refined petroleumbased kerosene and paraffin, which are terrible for the planet.

Yet, the gases used to fuel BBQs are sourced from unrenewable fossil fuel stocks, the sourcing of which — fracking — is wreaking havoc on the environment, destroying habitats and ecosystems. Additionally, burning natural gas also releases other unhealthy fumes, such as nitrogen oxides, leading to smog. Plus, extracting and transporting natural gas results in methane leakage, a highly potent global warming gas.

Other types of grills

The most eco-friendly outdoor BBQ is an electric one, ideally powered by renewable energy, like solar. The downside to these grills is that they are very expensive, in line with top-of-theend gas grills, making them an unrealistic purchase for most households.

Another, more accessible option is to use biomass pellets on your existing BBQ, created from recycled hardwood sawdust and other waste wood materials. These pellets do not cause additional deforesting, preserving trees, do not give off toxic fumes and prevent materials from going to waste, bringing their carbon footprint right down. These biodegradable pellets also burn hotter and more efficiently than charcoal, so less burning time will be required to cook your food.

As well as being more eco-friendly, wood pellets are a great way of adding a smoky flavour to food and can be used on all types of grills.

Other considerations:

• If you need to use firelights, opt for wood-based, electric or natural instead of petrol-based.

• When your grill isn't being used for cooking, turn it off. Many people leave it on for long periods between cooking different batches of food.

• Dome grills are the best style; they have been designed to capture and retain BBQ heat produced by your fuel, so less fuel needs to be burned.

• Keep the lid on your BBQ, it will help it to cook food faster and more evenly, so less fuel is used.

• Adjust your BBQ's vents to keep heat and moisture in, which cooks food more evenly.

• Only put on as many firelighters and pellets as you need to cook your food.

And our final tip… Don't forget to recycle all those empties!