Eat Like an Eco-Warrior

1st May 2024, Carin Clegg, APD

We eat multiple times a day, every day of our lives so it is not surprising that the food we eat is the biggest single source of environmental degradation.

From deforestation for food production, to processing, transport, storage, the use of chemicals to grow food, the effect of these washed into our oceans, carbon, water, soil footprints and all the food and packaging waste, sometimes it can be hard to know where to start to try to make a change let alone a difference.

However, one of the biggest impacts you can make is to reduce food waste, especially avoiding food and packaging going to landfill.  One kilogram of carbon is released for every kilogram of waste, not to mention the effect of all the mix of materials on the surrounding areas. Making changes to reduce food-related waste going to landfill can far outweigh any other changes you make so it is a great first place to start.

Eat What Your Body Needs

The best way to avoid food waste is to only buy what you and your family needs. This involves a bit of organisation with meal planning, making shopping lists, checking your home food stock, knowing how to care for your food, and cooking most of your meals at home. This will not only save you money but help you to be in control of what is in the foods you buy, where these ingredients come from, how much they are processed and portion control.

Australians consume 30% of their energy intake from discretionary foods, which, in itself, is a huge  a waste.  It is a waste of all the resources put into these highly processed and packaged foods as they contain little nutrients and the added fats and sugars, that our bodies do not need increasing our risk for preventable health conditions.

Eating what you need requires nutrition education about the 5 core food groups and reducing your discretionary food intake. Eating this way has protective effects against heart disease, diabetes and some cancers as well as other chronic diseases. Eating more plant-based shows even more benefits.

The core 5 food groups are:

• Wholegrains
  • Choose foods less processed grains which are also higher in nutrients such protein, B vitamins, and minerals like iron and zinc.
  • The slow release carbohydrates and fibre also fill you up to avoid excess eating soon after your meal.
• Fruit
  • Stick to 2 serves daily, preferably whole, unpackaged for

• Vegetables
  • Choose at least 5 serves (1/2 cups) or more daily, preferable whole and less processed/packaged. A great source of fibre for gut health and fills you up to avoid being hungry soon after eating.
•  Iron rich protein foods
  • Include 1-2 serves of these daily
  • Choose free-range organic eggs
  • Opt for local, organic nuts and seeds
  • Explore the wide world of legumes such as beans, lentils, chickpeas and tofu.
  • Eat fish and seafood form sustainable sources
  • Reduce and choose lean meat and poultry with lower carbon and water footprints such as game meats and regenerative/grass farmed produce.

• Calcium rich protein foods
  • Because humans are living longer, to keep our bones strong, it is recommended to include 2-3 serves calcium rich protein foods daily.
  • Including dairy foods can be a balancing act when considering the health benefits and environmental impacts
  • Relating to environmental impacts goats milk/cheeses may be a more eco-friendly option than cows milk.
  • There are many plant based dairy milk alternatives available which are fortified with calcium however, some can lack protein, so you may need to increase your protein food serves.
  • Soy milk and soy yoghurts are a great direct dairy substitute nutritionally as is fish with brittle bones.

Shopping

You can also help farmers reduce their food waste as there are now more organisations selling imperfect produce such as Good and Fugly, Funky Food and Harris Farm.

There are plenty of local farms with produce at farmer’s markets such as the Gosford City Farmer’s Markets and Reko Ring.  And for the most local and organically sourced co-ops on the Central Coast check out Food Integrity Group and The Peninsula Environment Group- Food Network.

In The Kitchen

Other food waste reduction strategies at home include:

• Caring for your food
  • Moving foods from the bench to the fridge to prolong their life, such as fruit, particularly tomatoes and bananas, and bread.
  • Freezing food to prolong its life such as citrus, banana and berries, bread, meat, meals like soups or casseroles.
  • Planning to eat leftovers, portioning and allocating who is eating what, when. Preserving foods like drying herbs or fruit, pickling or fermenting vegetables
• Eating
  • Not peeling or de-seeding vegetables: Try Jamie Oliver’s rustic mash potatoes, roasting pumpkin seeds, making potato skin chips, and making zebra stripes to get the kids used to eating a little skin.
  • Freezing ends, peels, and soon to be expired vegetables, then making vegetable stock.
  • Feeding food scraps to pets such as chickens
• Gardening
  • Regrow vegetables like potatoes, sweet potatoes, bok choy, shallot, celery and pineapple to name a few
  • Compost: an essential life skill. You can do this with a regular compost bin, worm farm, bokashi fermenting compost bin or you can use the Share Waste app to find a compost bin near you or even when on holidays.

Join me at the Central Coast Harvest Festival at my Eat Like An Eco Warrior Workshop series to learn more about sustainable eating and get inspired to make changes to you and your family’s eating for a better world.