Discussion:Bringing Home the Bacon?
Investigate different diets from around to world to look at and compare their ecological impact. You can learn more about the energy put into different food products in the below resources:
• Food System, Energy Use In (Note: Try to understand the tables and follow the arguments made, but do not worry if all of the numbers and equations do not make sense.)
• Diet, Energy, and Greenhouse Gas Emissions
• Food and Life Cycle Energy Inputs: Consequences of Diet and Ways to Increase Efficiency
Use these sources and your own research to think about different diets and the related natural resource consumption. Then select a specific dietary choice (see the note below for clarification) and discuss the average natural resource consumption required for the components for a typical meal (For comparison's sake, focus on a typical dinner or lunch rather than breakfast) for that diet, such as type of protein, vegetables, and side dishes, including drinks. Then comment on what changes you think could be made to a typical diet in the United States to reduce the ecological impact and what changes you think people would be able to abide by.
Note: This can be a diet from a different culture, a diet based on protecting animal rights or local sourcing, a diet based on a specific production style (e.g., organic), or any fad diets. Ensure that you read through your classmates' posts so that you are not covering a diet that someone else has already researched.