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."

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3. Go for organic
Organic farming is better for the environment and for your health because no chemicals and pesticides are used. Pesticides have been linked with increased risk of cancer, organ damage and neurological impairments, such as Alzheimer's disease, Suzuki writes in his book David Suzuki's Green Guide (Douglas & McIntyre, 2008). Where nature is concerned, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service report that pesticide exposure is responsible for the deaths of millions of birds and fish every year.

There are more upsides to going organic. It provides the assurance that food doesn't contain genetically modified ingredients or organisms, and that meat is free of growth hormones and antibiotics. To learn more about organic practices and principles, visit the Canadian Organic Growers's website at cog.ca.

The downside to buying organic food is it's still more costly than conventional food products. If your budget won't allow a 100 per cent switch, then go organic with only the items that are most contaminated with pesticides. According to The Environmental Working Group, these foods include:
-peaches
-apples
-bell peppers
-celery
-nectarines
-strawberries
-cherries
-kale
-lettuce
-grapes
-carrots and;
-pears.

4. Choose sustainable seafood
Our oceans are in trouble. They're over-fished and that means we're taking out more food than they can sustainably provide -- and their ecosystems are being destroyed, according to SeaChoice, a Canadian program that raises awareness of threats to oceans. Researchers estimate that if we continue to demand and consume seafood at our current rate, the world's seafood supply will be gone in 30 years.

You don't have to give up fish for life. Rather, answer the urgent call to choose sustainable seafood -- species that haven't been fully exploited or depleted, or caught in ways that damage marine ecosystems.

Visit Seachoice.org for a list of the most eco-friendly fish to eat, and pick up a copy of A Good Catch (Greystone Books, 2008) by Jill Lambert for delicious, sustainable seafood recipes. Fish isn't typically labelled, so ask questions to find out where it's from and how it was caught. Then, you can buy an eco-sound choice when you shop.

5. Ditch bottled water
When you're thirsty, fill up your canister or cup rather than buying bottled water from the store. "A jaw-dropping 1.5 million barrels of oil go into making the plastic for water bottles every single year," says Vasil. "Plus, only 35 per cent of them are actually recycled in Canada (the rest end up clogging landfills)."

If you buy bottled water because you prefer purified over tap water, consider installing a good filtration system at home. The best reusable bottles and cups are those made of stainless steel. Vasil suggests avoiding clear and hard plastic ones, which can contain the hormone-disrupting chemical bisphenol A.

Choosing eco-friendly foods and drinks significantly lightens your footstep on the earth. If the environment could talk, it just might thank you for greening your diet. Happy Earth Day!

Visit Eco Logic for daily tips on how to live greener and be kinder to the earth.