t’s not easy being green — particularly when you hear about a study that showed the commercial growing and transport of lettuce creates more greenhouse gases than the production of bacon.
This astonishing figure is based on the calorific value of each food. As lettuce is low in calories, scientists estimate that consumers needed to eat more lettuce than bacon to get the same calories, which — perhaps a little unfairly — pushes up its environmental footprint.
The study suggested greenhouse gas emissions from the production, transport and storage of lettuce were three times higher per calorie than for bacon.
Now, not even the most committed vegetarian relies on lettuce for calories (or kilojoules) but the finding underlines the hidden energy costs involved in bringing food to the table.
Other vegies with high greenhouse…
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Good Organic Gardening (Digital) - 1 Issue, Issue #14.1