3 foods that are surprisingly bad for the environment

Certain foods hit the headlines frequently for their environmental impact. 

For example, we know that palm oil and coffee beans cause deforestation, the meat and dairy industry is responsible for greenhouse gas emissions (especially when it comes to cattle farming)  and that certain types of fish contribute to overfishing, therefore destroying our oceans. However, we may not realize that  some of our pantry staples are actually harming the environment. 

Here are 3 everyday foods that you might be shocked to learn are particularly unsustainable…

Avocados

Avocados are indigenous to Central and South America, and have long been a staple food of the region. However, due to the rise in demand for avocados in Millennial culture, the price of the fruit has risen. This poses a serious issue to local food security as local communities have been and continue to rely on the nutritional benefits of avocado. 

Additionally, avocados are highly susceptible to extreme weather events such as wind and rain. With climate change aggravating, the speed of wind will decrease, resulting in more humidity in the air which negatively impacts avocado trees. 

Moreover, although avocados are grown around the globe, according to Statista, around 2.4 tons of avocados were harvested in Mexico as of 2020, making it the world’s top producer (1). Increasing international trade comes with a significant carbon footprint. According to Evening Standard, two small avocados in a packet leaves a carbon footprint of 846.36 grams (almost twice the amount of a kilo of banana) (2). Mexican avocados also have to travel 5555 miles to reach the UK. Therefore, given the long distances, the fruit is picked up before it is ripe and shipped in a temperature-controlled storage which is extremely energy intensive. (3)

With this information, I am not saying you have to stop eating avocado toast and  guacamole forever, it is just to clarify common misconceptions about avocados: although they have health benefits, they are not necessarily ‘sustainable’.

Bananas

As a swimmer, bananas are my go to, energy fueling snack that I consume right before a big race. If you don’t know already, bananas are an extremely versatile food that can be implemented into a sweet dish such as banana bread, or a savory dish such as banana fritters. They are also filled with fiber and potassium (4) which help promote healthy bowel movements and blood sugar (5). However, most people  forget about the fact that bananas are extremely quick to spoil and are often thrown out.

Studies have shown that these yellow fruits make up the biggest source of grocery waste. The reason for this is mainly due to its quick ripening process which turns the bananas brown and mushy, causing many people to not purchase the perfectly edible fruit (6).

Adding on, the banana industry consumes more agrochemicals than almost any other crops (7). According to WHO, the industry uses hazardous chemicals such as chlorpyrifos and thiabendazole which are toxic insecticides (8). These chemicals pose a threat to the local environment, local communities, as well as workers through pollution in soils and water supplies. 

If you want to avoid harmful chemicals in your fruit, you could opt for organic or ‘free trade’ certified bananas which has the added benefit of aiding in reducing harsh plantation conditions and unreasonably low wages for workers (9).

Rice

Living in an Asian household, I would always have steaming rice readily cooked in a rice cooker. Growing up, I would practically eat rice with every single one of my meals either plain or with add-ons, I honestly never thought about where the rice  came from and how it is produced. 

Recently, I came across a report from Oxfam which found that rice production accounts  for a third of our annual water usage globally. One kilo of rice takes 2,497 liters of  water to produce (10). At first I was quite surprised as it is a plant based food so I never knew it would use so much water to produce, however, I thought about the fact that rice is a staple food in half  the world population so I began to understand (11).

The bigger issue of rice production is the traditional  methods of rice farming where rice is grown in flooded fields called rice paddies. The rice paddies have a negative impact on the environment as they stop oxygen from reaching the soil, creating perfect conditions for anaerobic decomposition where bacteria and microbes build up and emit methane (12). Rice production forms 12% of total methane global emissions, making it a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions (13).

However, exciting developments are underway within the agricultural industry to find new, more sustainable methods for rice-farming. One farmer involved in an innovation named the ‘SRI system’ describes the farming method as “keeping the rice plants alternately wet and dry rather than flooded, result[ing] in yields that were increased by between 20 and 200%, while water use was halved” (14). By not growing rice in traditional paddies, farmers have greatly reduced the problem of methane emissions. With this exciting news, the future of rice cultivation and sustainable farming is something to be hopeful about.

Sources

(1) https://www.statista.com/statistics/593211/global-avocado-production-by-country/

(2) https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/revealed-the-enormous-carbon-footprint-linked-to-eating-avocado-a3591501.html

(3) https://sustainablefoodtrust.org/articles/why-our-love-for-avocados-is-not-sustainable/

(4) https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/bananas-good-or-bad

(5) https://oldedelmarsurgical.com/blog/fiber-potassium-benefits

(6) https://www.foodandwine.com/news/bananas-food-waste-supermarket

(7) https://www.bananalink.org.uk/the-problem-with-bananas/

(8) https://www.ewg.org/news-insights/news/banana-cultivation-pesticide-intensive

(9) https://www.bananalink.org.uk/the-problem-with-bananas/#

(10) https://s3.amazonaws.com/oxfam-us/www/static/media/files/more-rice-for-people-more-water-for-the-planet-sri.pdf

(11) https://www.thenewhumanitarian.org/report/91012/asia-key-facts-about-rice

(12) https://www.reutersevents.com/sustainability/why-sustainable-rice-overlooked-challenge-climate-action

(13) https://www.climatechangenews.com/2019/12/07/can-grow-climate-friendly-rice/

(14) https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/jan/30/miracle-method-sustainable-rice-scientists-dismissed