Food and Farm

350 Food and Farm

Food, and how we produce and consume it, presents both a challenge and a solution to climate change. Food systems, particularly in developed countries, represent one of the top sources of greenhouse gasses. This makes a lot of sense, considering how food is a core part of human life, and because climate change is so linked to the ways in which we humans have become accustomed to live.

But yes, food can be a solution: food and farm-related climate actions are fun, they bring people together, and they show everyone that eating right is a real, personal, everyday way to fight global warming. Join in on the fun and host a 350 event on your farm, at your local community garden, or with neighbors in your backyard garden. Or, host an eat-in: a public potluck to bring people in your community together to share local food. All you need to do is take a 350 photo (and send it to us)!

 

For more information about the links between climate change and food and farming, read on:

Food shortages and climate impacts

In many world regions, access to food is still a severe problem and food costs are rising. Overall, the aggregate global price of food has doubled in real terms over the past eight years, while in many places the workers with the lowest incomes are seeing wages fall. As if this weren't enough, climate change impacts weather patterns, leading to increased rainfall in some places and decreased rainfall in others. The African continent is especially harmed and, as drought impacts growing regions, farming and grazing for livestock compromises yet more peoples' access to food. More info from Oxfam's Grow campaign

Locally produced food as a solution

The concept of "food miles" and the carbon footprint of food is becoming more widely known. The basic concept is: as we have increasingly globalized our food supply, we use more petroleum flying food all over the world. Locally produced food doesn't bring this problem, and it also provides many additional benefits. More info from Slow Food USA

Livestock

Factory farms require huge carbon inputs and produce huge carbon outputs in the form of methane. It takes more than a calorie of fuel to produce every calorie we eat and, in industrial meat production, the ratio of calories-in to calories-out can be as high as 58:1. Eating livestock from your local community lessens this problem, but it still has a higher carbon output than a vegetarian diet. More info from Food and Water Watch

Industrial agriculture

Growing commodity food on an industrial scale requires huge carbon inputs in the form of pesticides and fertilizers. Many fertilizers are petroleum-based. Small- and mid-scale diversified farms are actually carbon-negative: they store carbon in the soil. More info at Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy