Everything – yes, everything – we eat has a wider impact on the planet. Read on for all the facts you need to know about sustainability and nutrition.

We are what we eat, and what we eat isn’t always great for the planet (or ourselves) – a staggering number of people worldwide are undernourished, and the food industry is taking an alarming toll on our natural resources.

The discussion surrounding climate change can often feel very doom-and-gloom, but it doesn’t need to be this way. Rather than dwell on what’s going wrong, we want to help set things right – all of us can help change the course of global warming with a few small choices. Read on for 15 stats that show just how closely our diets and the health of the planet are connected.

50%

… is what you could slash your carbon footprint by if you switch to two plant-based meals a day. Switching to just one could cut them by 35%.

Two billion

… people across the globe are are classed as overweight or obese, whilst 800m are considered undernourished.

26%

… of all human-created global greenhouse gas emissions come from the food system. This includes land use, crop production, livestock, fisheries, and logistics.

14.5%

… 14.5% of total greenhouse gas emissions come only from animal-based agriculture. Animal farming takes up a staggering 83% of the world’s agricultural land.

2,350 litres

… of water are needed to make just one burger (& 1,000 to make 1l of milk).

83%

… of the carbon footprint of the average Western diet comes exclusively from meat and dairy.

28-30%

… yet meat and dairy only contribute this percentage of calories. Meat and dairy are part of a balanced diet, but people’s diets in the developed world are disproportionately built around both. We need to include more nutrient-rich plant-based calories in our diets.

11 million

… deaths a year are caused by diseases related to poor diets. Associated health conditions include high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and obesity.

20%

… is how much less likely you’ll be to develop heart disease if you switch to a plant-based diet. A plant-based diet also reduces the risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, and slashes your likelihood of being overweight or obese by 50% and 75%, respectively (vs. someone with an omnivorous diet). 

30%

… of all of the food produced for human consumption is wasted. It’s estimated that this 30% looks something like 1.6 billion (!!!) tonnes of food. Much of it is wasted before it reaches us (during harvest, storage and transportation), whilst at the supermarket, and in our homes. 60% of wastage occurs in the home, with the average person in the UK wasting 30kg a year.

125 litres

… is the amount of water wasted by throwing away a bruised apple. When food is wasted, all of the resources required to produce that food – water, land, fuel, fertilisers and so on – are also wasted.

 Two years

… is the shelf life of unopened GBI Sachet.

Two

… plant-based meals a day is all it takes to slash your carbon footprint by up to 50%.