Background
Food production and supply chains are responsible for 26% of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions.1 While we must all eat, there is great variation in the emissions impacts of the foods we choose to eat. Beans, for example, have a low carbon footprint because they require few agricultural inputs and they enrich the soil with nitrogen. Beef, on the other hand, has a high carbon footprint due to the methane (many times more potent greenhouse gas than CO2) produced in a cow’s stomach during fermentation and the cutting of trees and burning of grasslands to increase pastureland for beef production.2 Yet there are other factors at play: farming practices, energy use for greenhouses, food miles, and others. Making informed choices for sustainable and climate-friendly food can be challenging, especially when there may be trade-offs involved. Is a locally-grown greenhouse tomato better than one grown in Mexico and flown here, for example?
Food Services at the University of Waterloo is looking to develop a climate-impact food label and communication tool to help patrons make more sustainable food choices. This work relates to the University of Waterloo Sustainability Strategy objective O12 to increase awareness of healthy and sustainable food choices, and also supports the UN Sustainable Development Goals 2, 3, and 13.
Scope of Work Could Include
- Reviewing existing food labels used by Food Services on campus.
- Researching best practices for roughly quantifying the climate impacts of different foods.
- What types of food have the highest and lowest carbon footprints?
- What are the major factors involved?
- How stable are these factors over time?
- Are there any established protocols that could easily be adopted?
- Researching best practices from other institutions for quantifying and communicating the climate impact of the different food options. The focus should be on the entire menu item, rather than individual components (eg including the bread, tomato, lettuce, cheese, and meat patty for a hamburger).
- Developing and testing a simple and easy to implement assessment tool for estimating the climate impacts of the food options served by Food Services in EV3’s Evergreen Café.
- The goal isn’t a quantitative value for climate impact but an assessment of how each food choice generally scores compared to alternatives.
- Developing a labeling and communication strategy for the new food labels, including print at customer point of sale and media/electronic
- The strategy and accompanying media should be aligned to the UW Food Services Farm to Campus Fresh brand, sustainability goals and UW food services mission and core values.
- Any visual media (print or digital) should be accessible and editable so that UW food services can adapt it to new menus/dishes and add any required logos or branding needed to launch in actual food service locations on campus.
- Make recommendations for how to easily measure the impact of that communications strategy on food choices on campus.
Resources
Data is available through the Sustainability Office for plant-based purchases from Food Services from 2020 onward. The Sustainability Office can also make connections with Food Services staff as needed. Some additional resources to check out include the World Resource Institute Cool Food program and Cool Food Pledge as well as the Humane Society Forward Food program. UBC also has a great example of a climate friendly food label program (news item about UBC’s program).
Stakeholders
- Sustainability Office
- Food Services
Proposed Deliverables
The details of the deliverables are flexible but must meet the requirements set out by the course instructor. Some proposed deliverables include:
- A work plan early in the term outlining key milestones and responsibilities.
- Updates on progress at least once during the term.
- A final report outlining the outcomes of the research, assessment tool, and further recommendations.
- A final meeting to review the outcomes of the report and answer questions.
1 Poore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987-992.
2 https://ourworldindata.org/food-ghg-emissions