Eating for Cleaner Air

Eating for cleaner air

Did you know... About a third of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions are linked to food.^{Reference page number 6}

What we eat, and how that food is produced, affects our health but also the environment.

Food needs to be grown, transported, sold, prepared, consumed, and even disposed of. All of these actions contribute to air pollution and climate change; impacting the health of you, the health of your loved ones and the health of the planet.^{Reference page number 7}

Making some small changes to your regular diet habits can make a big difference in reducing your impact on the environment, and allow your community to breathe in cleaner air.

How can you do this?

Click below to find out how we can support you in eating for cleaner air:

Reducing animal products

Shop locally

Reduce food waste

Reducing animal products

The environmental impact of food varies from product to product. However, studies have shown that animal-based foods tend to have the largest impact on the cleanliness of our air. This is because animal-based foods tend to require much larger amounts of land, compared to products such as beans, peas and tofu.

Swapping out one or two meals each week for vegetarian or vegan options is a great way to reduce your impact on the environment; it can also be fun to get creative in the kitchen and try out some new recipes.

Find great recipes here

Shop locally

The term 'food miles' refers to the distance your food has travelled from when it was produced, to when it landed on your plate. Food miles are responsible for around 6% of the world's greenhouse gas emissions.^{Reference page number 4}

Help your local area! Choose locally-produced food, benefit your local economy and help to improve the quality of air on our planet.

You can find some great local produce suppliers located around the Borough.

Find out more about some great local produce suppliers located around the Borough.

Reduce food waste

Did you know...

36 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions could be prevented by saving food from our bins in UK homes.^{Reference page number 5}

Making a few changes to your food habits will not only help the planet, but they will also reduce overall air pollution levels supporting your health and help to save you a few pennies too!

Do you plan before you buy?

Making an effective shopping list will help to ensure you buy just the right amount of what you need:

Make a weekly meal plan.
Check your fridge and freezer to know exactly what you have and need.
Make a note of who is in or out of your household the next week to plan your meals.

Storing your food for freshness

Storing your food in all the right places makes sure it will stay fresh for as long as possible. Giving you plenty of time to cook delicious meals throughout the week.

A few kitchen rules will keep you stocked up with nourishing food:

Check your fridge temperature, it should always stay below 5°C, to keep your food fresh and tasty!
Keep an eye on your fresh food. Having a 'Eat me First' shelf makes the most vulnerable foods easier to see and stops them from being forgotten at the back of the fridge.
Make the most of your freezer. Most of the food that gets binned is fresh food. Freeze food, such as bread and some fruit and veg, that you won't need until the end of the week. This stops food from going bad and free's up more space in the fridge, so you can see all that's on offer for the week easily.

Don't let your food shop control you!

Learning some simple shopping habits will help to reduce your supermarket stress, save you money and help you to only buy the food that you need.

Remember your shopping list.
Set your food shop budget and stick to it.
Use the 'quick scan' hand-held scanning tools provided by supermarkets. These total up the cost of your shop as you go around, keeping you on track. You can also save time on packing too!