“We are digging our own grave.” These are the words of the UN Secretary General on CO2 emissions at the world climate summit COP26, which has been taking place in Glasgow since last Sunday and brings together more than a hundred heads of state and government. More clear could not be the Portuguese Antonio Guterres, who asks to reduce emissions by 45%. Greenhouse gases are once again breaking records and their increase worries experts. There are many ways to help reduce pollution on the planet : use public transport, buy local products, consume ecological products, recycle, reduce the consumption of plastics, reduce the use of water and electricity, choose renewable energies. ..Toofollowing a Mediterranean diet , something that would reduce greenhouse gases by up to 72%, as explained by Anna Bach , professor in the Nutrition Area of ​​the UOC’s Health Sciences Studies within the framework of the third cycle of #UPCDialogos Agrifood.
Following the Mediterranean diet can be a strategic element to combat climate change , reducing land use in Spain by 58%, energy consumption by 52% and water consumption by 33%. Not eating a balanced diet full of fruit, vegetables and whole grains can not only destroy our body faster, but also contribute to the wear and tear of the planetbecause replacing these foods with processed products increases the environmental impact and puts life on the planet at risk. So important is what we put on the plate as how we put it and how is the process that food undergoes until we put it on the plate.
Sustainable Development Goal
The reality is that 14% of greenhouse gases come from livestock and 30% has to do with the food system that is far from sustainability criteria. That is why Anna Bach defends the need to align eating habits with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). A third of what we eat ends up in the garbage, and one of the objectives must be to reduce this waste by 50%. Reducing the consumption of animal products can also contribute to the goal of sustainable development. Twenty vegetable dishes are equivalent to one meat dish in terms of emissions.
Twenty vegetable dishes are equivalent to a meat dish in terms of greenhouse gas emissions.
Thus, it is necessary to change the habits of citizens. And do it now. According to statistics from the 2019 Creating a Sustainable Food Future report from the World Resources Institute, 60% of young people are willing to change. Willing to base his diet on plant-based products, to reduce excessive consumption of red and processed meat , to consume fish from sustainable sources and to reduce waste and food packaging waste.
It is necessary to establish a joint plan and carry it out during the next decade. It is not yet necessary to consume insects to have a safe, healthy and sustainable protein alternative to meat, as indicated by one of the lines of research that UOC researchers have put on the table to find solutions to the problem, but to recover the Mediterranean diet yes, it can help, and a lot, to achieve these objectives.
