The food and agriculture system is one of the largest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions,  but not all foods are created equal. While meat often requires lots of land and water, with only a small return-on-investment in terms of the amount of food you can get, plant foods, like the wheat used to make pasta, are much more sustainable. 

 

The carbon footprint of pasta is only 15.5 oz CO2eq/lb (34.44g CO2eq/kg), much lower than many other foods. (For comparison, Red meat has a whopping 359.3 oz C02eq/lb carbon footprint!) Even among plant foods, grains are environmental champions, requiring only small amounts of land and water. For example, grain production uses 0.51 liters of water to produce 1 calorie of food, compared to 1.34 liters per calorie of vegetables, 2.09 liters per calorie of fruits, and 10.19 liters per calorie of red meat. In fact, a  new study in  Science finds that "impacts of the lowest-impact animal products typically exceed those of vegetable substitutes," further emphasizing the importance of including more plant-based foods, like pasta, in the diet.

 

Shifting to more plant-based meals, like pasta, is a sure-fire way to make your diet more sustainable. Whether you are committed to embrace a fully plant-based diet, or you just want to reduce your meat to smaller portions, pasta can accommodate any number of toppings, and is a satisfying meal in its own right.