I am obsessed with food; anyone close to me will concur. I could squeal with joy when biting into a ripe peach or avocado, I do a happy dance when eating fresh hummus and pita, and I frequently geek out while watching the Food Network (and recently the new Cooking Channel) or reading health and food magazines/books (currently Omnivore’s Dlimma by Michael Pollan, which is uh-mazing). Poke fun at me all you want, I just LOVE the feeling of stuffing my face with healthy, delicious grub. I love reading about it, talking about it, and especially eating it. I love learning more about food and sharing my knowledge with others, as well as trading recipes or meal ideas.
So what does food have to do with being eco-friendly? Much of what goes into healthy eating involves organic, fresh, and local foods, meaning no pesticides, fresh ingredients/no preservatives, and a smaller carbon footprint from not sending produce across the ocean or the air. The best advice I’ve acquired in terms of being an eco-friendlier eater and shopper is to shop local (the iPhone app, Farmer’s Market Finder, helps you find farmer’s markets in your area!), shop seasonal, and shop organic as much as possible. This doesn’t mean just shopping at Whole Foods, there are a whole lot of other health food stores and farmer’s markets out there (Real Foods and Rainbow Grocery are my favorite markets in San Francisco, and the Ferry Building hosts a fantastic farmer's market). Or get really adventurous and plant your own garden (I have yet to tackle this task, but I anxiously await the day when I decide to take the plunge)!
This also means refraining from eating so much meat (sorry carnivores), as livestock is a large emitter of the very non eco-friendly CO2 (as well as methane and nitrous oxide), not to mention the amount of fossil fuel that is burned to feed, slaughter, and transport it – I am by no means an expert on this subject, but if anyone is interested in learning about this I definitely recommend Omnivore’s Dilemma (shout out to those who recommended that book to me!). In other words: everything in moderation (although chocolate is a personal exception to this rule).
Also remember to take your reusable shopping bags with you!
Here’s a few of my fave magazines and websites with lots of healthy recipes and information (thank you Ashley for letting me mooch off your magazines):
Self – www.self.com
Women’s Health – www.womenshealthmag.com
Health – http://www.health.com/
Shape – www.shape.com
Cooking Light - http://www.cookinglight.com/
Rachel Ray (feel free to laugh at me for this one) – www.rachaelraymag.com
Food Network – www.foodnetwork.com
The Cooking Channel - http://blog.cookingchanneltv.com/
Happy Little Vegans – http://happylittlevegans.com/wordpress/
Epicurious – http://www.epicurious.com/
Whole Living - http://www.wholeliving.com/
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