Why is veganism not always green?

Is veganism always what's best for the planet?

There is no doubt that meat and specifically beef generates an unsurpassable amount of greenhouse gases. Just one kilogram of beef releases the equivalent to 60 kilograms of CO2.

Data from the largest analysis of global food systems found that meat and dairy products use 83% of the world’s farmland but yet provide only 37% of our protein and 18% of our calories. The paper concluded that even the lowest impact meat and dairy products still cause a bigger environmental damage than the least sustainable vegetable and cereal growing.

Veganism is widely considered to be better for the planet, but if you are planning on adopting a plant-based lifestyle driven by environmental motives, you might have to consider that some fruits and vegetables come with a heavy carbon footprint too.

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Source: Angelina Frankowska, Harish KumarJeswani, Adisa Azapagic

Here is a list with some of the most popular foods among vegans which are not always green.

Avocados

Who doesn’t love avocado on toast? 11 billion pounds of avocados are consumed annually worldwide, but do we know the environmental consequences of that consumption?

Mexico, more specifically the Michoacán state, is the biggest producer of the “green gold”. Around 9.5 billion litres of water are used daily to produce avocado which is the equivalent of filling up 3,800 Olympic pools. The staggering 230 litres of water are needed to grow a single fruit.

But it’s not only the extreme water consumption that makes avocados problematic. Shrubs and old trees are taken down to provide avocado trees with sunlight, contributing to deforestation and global warming. As a result, the Michoacán state has seen increasing temperatures, extreme weather conditions and soil degradation.

Transport is also an issue. Avocados’ delicate flesh means that much of the fruit has to be air-freighted to Europe and the US. One study concluded that 2.2kg of CO2/kg are produced when avocados are imported to the UK.

If you want to minimize your impact, make sure the avocados you eat are sourced from Colombia, the Dominique Republic, Indonesia, Brazil or Kenya. This would reduce the water footprint significantly, since these countries have a very low water stress.

Source: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/02/avocado-environment-cost-food-mexico/

Mangoes

It’s not only avocadoes that are water-heavy. Research shows that mangos use 1,000 litres of water per 1 kg mango on average. This water usage is at the high end compared to other more sustainable fruits such as oranges (330 liters/kg), watermelons (378 litres/kg) or tomatoes (64 litres/kg).

What adds to the list of environmental concerns is that after harvesting, some avocados and mangoes are bathed in hot water for over an hour to prevent insect infestations and control decay. Data about the carbon footprint varies but it is estimated that mangoes imported to the UK emit 4.4 kg of CO2/kg.

Cashew nuts

Cashews are high in Vitamin E, magnesium, and zinc. They are one of the main sources of protein for vegans but are very water-intensive. It takes over 14 000 litres of water to produce a single kilogram of cashews. Cashew nuts however, have a relatively moderate carbon footprint. They produce 2.0 kg of CO2/kg or the equivalent to driving a car for 5 miles.

Almonds

Almonds are a great source of protein, fats, fiber, and micro-nutrients, but environmentally speaking they are not as good. The main issues associated with them are water and pesticide use, which may produce long lasting effects on drought-stricken California, where more than 80% of the world’s almonds are grown. Almonds are the top economic-value export crop for California farms, worth 25% of its farm exports in 2015.

The water footprint of one California almond has averaged 12 liters or 10,240 liters/kg. Unlike other crops, almonds must be grown year-round, requiring constant watering or the almond tree would die.

Another major impact that the almond industry has on the planet comes from pollination. Almond farmers rely largely on bees to pollinate their crops, which puts a massive strain on bee populations.

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