We can take small and steady steps
If you are reading this column, there’s a good chance that you have an urge to do ‘the right thing’. You’re the sort who’s first to help in a crisis. You were the first to raise the subject of climate change. And the first to actually do something about it! And what better first step than to start making educated choices in the way you shop? No more plastic bottles and dodgy packaging. You started shopping locally, avoiding waste, noticing how sustainable food might or might not be. And you are right. But it’s complicated, isn’t it? Take milk as an example. To produce it from a cow is incredibly destructive. A study by Oxford University tells us that producing a glass of dairy milk results in almost three times the greenhouse gas emissions of any nondairy milks! It takes approximately 120 litres of water, 150 square centimetres of land and produces 0.6 kg of carbon emissions to produce one 200ml glassful.
For almond milk, however, the figures are 78 litres of water, a mere 10 square centimetres of land and 2kg of CO2 emissions. It sounds like a no-brainer, until you drill down – which is exactly what they have had to do in California! The Golden State is responsible for 80 per cent of the world’s almond production, which requires enormous plantations which slowly deplete and dry the soil.
Farmers drill ever deeper to quench their thirsty crops, bringing up saltier water. This speeds up desertification, which in turn leads to fires, and the strong possibility of no more almond trees.
Oh dear! Does this mean we’ve been wrong with all this careful shopping decision and ethical choice? Far from it. In a game of sustainability stakes, almond milk still trumps cows! Hemp milk is even better – and oat milk actually trumps the lot. It needs little irrigation, a small land area and unsurprisingly, produces far fewer emissions than cows. And it’s grown here in the UK, so transportation is minimal. What was that about sourcing our food locally? Oats R It!
Our progress towards minimising our impact on the planet will be sure if we take small, steady well-chosen footsteps.
The whole idea of saving the planet depends on us learning to question the bells and whistles of advertising or propaganda. We can all ask ourselves, “Who is sharing this information, and why?”
Here at Greener Living Network: Sussex Green Living you can find step by step guides to making simple, informed decisions, plus lots of other resources for a healthier, hopeful, happier lifestyle.
Also see: sussexgreenliving.co.uk/ shop-smart-shop-local
bbc.co.uk/news/scienceenvironment-46654042