#environmental tip

Environmental tip:

Have you ever thought of how far your meal had to travel to get to your dinner table? Every bite, every munch, and every sip had to come from somewhere. According to CUESA,  a meal travels an average of 1500 miles to get to your dinner table at home. 

Everyday items such as apples travel an average of 1555 miles, lettuce at 2055 miles, and grapes at 2,143 miles. From District of Columbia, that could very well mean that the apples are from Denver, Colorado, the lettuce from Panama, and grapes from Las Vegas, Nevada. 

Little do we know that our foods have huge carbon footprints, requiring millions of gallons of gas every year. Dangerous amounts of carbon emissions are released, and preservatives have become necessary for these food imports.

Here are a few ways to decrease your food’s carbon footprint:

Support your local farmers: Go to a local farmer's’ market and gain the experience of knowing where your food is from.

Check food labels: Going to a farmer’s market can be too much of a burden to some, but next time you’re at a supermarket, check the labels on food items and choose whatever is grown most locally.

Eat what is in season: This way, food won’t have to travel thousands of miles to get to your supermarket.

Grow your own produce: There is no shorter distance from farm to plate than from your own backyard. 

Plan your grocery lists in advance - don’t buy more than you think you can eat.

Make sure you store everything properly so it doesn’t go bad. Keep in mind that expiration dates aren’t concrete, they’re estimates! A lot of food is thrown out the second it hits the sell-by dates, even though it’s unnecessary. If you use your common sense you should be fine. (Avoid being risky with milk and meat products, though.)

Making your refrigerator more energy efficient