5 eco-friendly eating habits

If food could talk, it might tell you about the journeys it had before reaching your dinner table. It might recall that it came from Spain or China in a diesel-fuelled plane, boat and truck, or reveal how often it was sprayed with chemicals when it was growing up. It may share the inside scoop about how much oil and energy was used to make its packaging.

A lot of what we eat and drink is produced in ways that are harmful to the environment. This Earth Day, resolve to lighten your footprint by eating a greener diet. Keep reading for five fast ways to give your diet an eco-overhaul.

1. Cut back on meat
There are plenty of environmental reasons to eat less meat. According to environmentalist David Suzuki, just 10 ounces of beef requires 85 times more water than the same amount of potatoes; and our water supply isn't unlimited, so we need to conserve it. Plus, Suzuki reports runoff from livestock also pollutes nearby lakes, rivers and can even contaminate drinking water.

That's not all. While burping and passing wind, "Livestock produce more greenhouse gases than cars, trains, planes and trucks combined," explains Adria Vasil, author of Ecoholic (Random House, 2007).

To lighten your eco-load, go vegetarian at least one day a week. Whittling down on meat also cuts the saturated fat in your diet, and high amounts of this unhealthy fat is linked to stroke and heart disease. Instead of meat, enjoy protein-rich plant foods, such as tofu and legumes, combined with whole grains. For a filling, great-tasting and protein-rich meal, try lentils or chickpeas mixed with barley or whole wheat pasta

2. Eat locally
Much of the food you buy at the grocery store comes from thousands of miles away, delivered by vehicles that guzzle and exude polluting fossil fuels. Help cut back on damaging emissions by choosing food grown within a 100-mile radius of where you live.

Other benefits of eating locally include supporting your regional economy and getting fresher, better tasting produce. "Most importantly, local eating gives people a deeper sense of place -- and that makes them much more likely to care about the landscape they live in," says James MacKinnon, co-author of The 100-Mile Diet: A Year of Local Eating (Random House, 2007).

Not sure how to find foods that were grown close to home? Your best bet is to shop at a local farmer's market; check out 100milediet.org for helpful links. MacKinnon also recommends inviting others to join your new dietary adventure. "Plan a 100 per cent, 100-mile meal with friends, sending each person out to track down different local foods," he says. "It's a great crash course in what's available locally."

Click to continue for 3 more ways to make your diet greener...

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