Buying food from other places around the world has a huge affect on our global co2 emissions. It takes a lot of energy to transport said food by boat, truck, plane as well as keeping the food refrigerated, thus creating a lot of carbon. Gardening is a really fun but also contributes way less to your carbon footprint. here are a few benefits; Plants create oxygen, creating more space for biodiversity in your neighbourhood, reduces CO2 emissions from shipping, because now you have grown it yourself instead of buying it from somewhere else, you will not be intaking pesticides from your produce, its good for your mental and physical health, and you will get the satisfaction of growing something yourself. Not everyone has the space or time to garden but it is always good to buy local. By stopping at your local farmers market, not only are you reducing your shipping emissions but also supporting your community and local farmers. Also when shopping at grocery stores you can check to see where the food was grown/made and if it's organic. It makes an impact what you buy. That be said no one can be expected to make and grow everything they eat by hand or to eat entirely locally, and many people rely on transported food to survive. But it's always a good thing to think about when buying food.

Hi, there are still some people who can't grow all their food at home because of the weather, for example. It's not possible to grow a lot of food where I live due to the weather, so it's okay to buy food from other countries. But I also agree with you that we should try to grow as much food as we can ourselves.

I think we might be in the same school Guðrún.
You can absolutely grow potatoes, carrots, beets, probably onions, during summer break, you could grow tomatoes and even grapes year round with a grow lamp, if you have a potato storage room you could even set up a mushroom growing place (please wear a respirator or some kind of a mask) and you could potentially also you could keep 2-4 chickens by making a small chicken coop and you can feed them scraps, leftovers and/or seeds and you can get up tp 4-5 eggs per week per chicken, (this is all assuming you live in a house with your own garden and not an apartment) but if you live in an apartment you can join or get some other people to pitch in to create some kind of a community garden focused on growing homemade food and maybe keeping small livestock (this could cost a bit of money though so i understand if this is not realistic). this is all obviously a ton of work and its much easier to buy local food and vegetables, its very fun if you have the time.

going shipping uses  lots of gas and causes pollution, the food can get squished, lost , and get rotten on its way from farms to  stores so you should try to buy locally grown food and all grocery stores should bring locally grown groceries to sell so they are cheaper and better for and it’s also harder to check if groceries from somewhere else are 100% organic.

I totally agree with this. Food that was not locally grown was likely shipped by plane or boat, both of which emits a lot of greenhouse gasses, increasing our carbon footprint. Locally grown food would not have to be transported as far. The downside to this, is depending on where you live, locally grown food is not always available. Where I live Its really easy to go to a farmers market in the summer to buy locally grown produce, but in the winter, most things are imported. This makes it more expensive during winter months to buy local organic foods. I think that it should be made easier, and more cost efficient to buy local produce for everyone.

I totally agree with this MHRC. To add onto what you were saying about the accessibility of locally grown food. If everyone budgeted to buy from local businesses, their profits would increase, which would intern allow them to potentially attend more farmers markets, or if many people are enjoying the produce the word would  spread. However, some people can’t budget for this because of financial reasons. Which is where the government should come in and even out the prices of organic versus non-organic produce or food. This would decrease the amount of carbon emissions produced from the process of shipping non organic foods overseas if everyone shopped for organic products.

While growing your own food reduces your carbon footprint, there are downsides to growing your own food. While growing your own food seems to be a great way to lower your carbon footprint, you don't have to buy imported food, or use transportation to get to the store, there are downsides. The main downsides are that most people can't afford to, or don't have the time to grow their own food. Growing your own food requires time for them to grow, and most people also can't get the same things for several days or weeks at a time, and you have to wait for them to grow. For some people, they can't afford the seeds, dirt, and water needed to raise the plants. Sometimes people's only options are to go to the store.

i agree with TLee11. although growing your own food would benefit the climate largely, people are tight on space. it might be hard to grow your own food if you live in an apartment, or if you live in somewhere with extreme weather conditions or not much soil for growing produce. this is why clubs that give you opportunity's to grow food are such great ideas. because it can teach you the benefits of organic food, that wasn't made or transported through large factories.

Growing food at home is very cost efficient and uses less resources and is less wasteful, and also compost can be used as fertilizer and to grow you're a homegrown food, which reduces waste and causes the compost to be used for something resourceful.

I agree. Growing your own food reduces the use of vehicles that release carbon to transport the food from the farm to the grocery store and from the grocery store to your home. Additionally, I also agree that using compost as fertilizer can reduce the use of new materials that have to be made.

I agree.  Growing food at home is a great way to reduce your carbon footprint. This will help smaller businesses who grow local and organically and reduce the sales of large  companies that use preservatives and other toxic substances. By growing food at home ypu are also benefitting your fertilizer which can help your garden and plants thrive!

while growing your own fresh produce is a great way to be more energy efficient, there are some downsides. For instance, the cost of watering your garden every day can add up, from initial energy bills, to buying the correct equipment like a watering can or hose. Gardening also requires a lot of time and energy, which is great if thats what you're looking for, but if you're a very busy person this isn't always suitable. Sometimes it's just easier to buy locally grown foods, this way you can support a local business, and empower "not-overseas" shipping methods.

I totally agree with your statement, I think that a solution could be the government paying and providing more money and space for more home grown gardens. This way financial stability would not be such a big deal and people can grow whatever they want, without all the pollution and shipment fees. People would also be living a healthier lifestyle discovering more organic and whole foods. In Vancouver we also have something called community gardens, this way your community can help to maintain, cover some costs of your garden fees, and provide the space. This is a great "Program" and I think that it would be great if other places could also do something similar.

Food choices overall affect both our health and the environment around us in many different ways. Eating locally produced foods can help with the climate problems we, as a society, are facing. However, unlike what most people think, its impact is much smaller than the expected amount. When someone purchases food locally, it can help cut down on "food miles", as long-distance food transportation does result in greenhouse gas emissions. But for the environment, the type of food and how it's produced frequently have a greater impact than distance alone. Eating food that is grown nearby has several advantages as it helps preserve farmland, helps the community and local farmers, and results in fresher, healthier produce. This makes it positive for both the environment and your own health. In addition to reducing packaging waste, growing your own food or purchasing from local farms can also help promote healthier eating practices. I do have a food garden at home. This garden is mainly maintained by my grandma and my father as they use it to grow many fruits and vegetables (to name a few: Eggplants, strawberries, pomegranates, oranges, apples, okra, etc). I have also recently gotten into assisting my family members in this process, as it is both an enjoyable and instructive way to help the environment.

Growing your own food at home can be very good for the environment, it reduces your carbon footprint, can lead to less waste, and can reduce the amount of harmful pesticides used for producing food. It is also good for the individual tending to the farm, gardening has been shown to reduce stress, can be exercise, the food often tastes better, and it increases the persons food security. However, starting a new garden is a large investment at first and you have to pay a lot of money up front before you can start saving money in the long run, and a lot of people cannot afford that. I found some websites that have lots of tips on ways to save money when starting/maintaining a garden: https://zerowastehomestead.com/dirt-che … -a-budget/ and https://www.accidentalhippies.com/start … p-or-free/  . These sources can be very helpful to anyone who wants to start growing their own food, so feel free to look at & share them.

I think that this is a very good idea however most people in my opinion are far to lazy to do this instead of just going and buying food from the store. So I suggest that if possible find a way to do this in a way that takes less effort to make it a lot more appealing to people.

I don’t see enough people composting when gardening. It will reduce landfill waste, greenhouse gas emissions, and improve soil health. Although more people are starting to do it, compost rates are still low. The best part about it is that it is easy to do! All you have to do is take your waste natural materials and layer them in a bin. Then, just let it air out! And now, you have compost. Just work it into the soil before planting or adding a layer of compost on the soil. There are no side effects, and it leads to better soil! So, overall, it will give you better produce which you can use to make any meal you desire.

Growing your food at home is really beneficial to your health along with the health or the environment. When you buy food from a store or order it or your door it is still producing carbon emissions. How you might ask? Because of the shipping done by vehicle to get to that store or the machines used to harvest or kill depending on the food product, are all producing carbon emissions. This could be prevented by growing your food at home  either through a garden or hydroponics. My family has been doing both and since then our health has gone up because the amount of fruit that was added to our diet as well as our carbon footprint going drastically down by almost never having to buy food from stores anymore. Overall this is a change many people should be doing if the have the facilities to do so and the funds.

Growing your food at home is really beneficial to your health along with the health or the environment. When you buy food from a store or order it or your door it is still producing carbon emissions. How you might ask? Because of the shipping done by vehicle to get to that store or the machines used to harvest or kill depending on the food product, are all producing carbon emissions. This could be prevented by growing your food at home  either through a garden or hydroponics. My family has been doing both and since then our health has gone up because the amount of fruit that was added to our diet as well as our carbon footprint going drastically down by almost never having to buy food from stores anymore. Overall this is a change many people should be doing if the have the facilities to do so and the funds.

I believe that the topic of Home Grown foods is very relevant today and can be incredibly beneficial for the environments that we live in. I grow foods at home like oranges, lemons, chilis, and various herbs. During the time that I have been growing these foods, I have learned how important it can be for others. Not only does it reduce carbon emissions as people will need to travel less for the products that they grow, it can also give people a sense of security because they can know for sure where their food comes from. Home growing also encourages healthier eating and can save money. It's inspiring to see how small actions like planting herbs or vegetables at home can contribute to a more sustainable future.

I also agree with this because growing home grown food saves time and reduces the amount of plastic used when purchasing items from the store.

I agree with this post because I think that it is very important to grow food at home because of the reason that you stated, the less carbon emissions, the sense of security, the healthier eating habits, and the saving of money. Lastly, I would like to add that growing food at home, can be more enjoyable than buying it from the store.

Eating locally-grown food helps the climate change problem because if the food is locally grown, then it doesn't have to be transported long distances. This then limits the amount of carbon emitted from trucks and other vehicles, that are transporting the food. Eating locally-grown food will also benefit the farmers from your local community. I have a food garden in my own home and it is very beneficial because it provides me with fresh food as well as saving money on buying food.

Home grown foods are a way to both save money and the world. Using home grown foods rather than the store bought foods can result in a drop in plastic waste from the packaging. Planting and growing your own garden can also have healthier benefits than all the processed and chemically enhanced foods you can find in the supermarket. Not only that it can also help with the production of oxygen as you would be planting more plants. Also the carbon emissions of actual going to go to the supermarket would be much less.

Is growing your own food at home better than buying food in stores? yes, growing your own food at home can be better because of multiple reasons, plants use CO2 to grow and make fruits and vegetables which helps even just a little bit with all the CO2 in the air. Also it doesn't require driving to  grocery store twice a month. Instead all you need to do is walk to your backyard or where ever you decide to plants your plants.

People tend to buy fruits and veggies from supermarkets, farmers markets, and other wide world markets for those types of produce. But what if I told you that you could make your own, without having to go to the supermarket, but instead have your own at your house, for free. It's simple, all you have to do is plant some fruit or veggie seeds at your house, take good care of them, and soon enough, you will have your own fruits and veggies, for free. Also, it is way better for the environment.

Is growing your own food at home better than buying food in stores? yes, growing your own food at home can be better

I know this may sound crazy, but having a home farm is actually a more useful impact to lowering the global CO² levels. I'm not talking about having cows and pigs, but just having even a little bit of home-grown fruits or vegetables can greatly impact the global CO² levels. Because the vast majority of global food packaging is made with non-biodegradable plastics, which all will eventually just end up in our oceans. Making a home garden will prevent at least 50 plastics from being used per person, which will keep our oceans clean. Another bonus to a home garden is that none of the food that you grow will be processed, and not add any unnessesary ingredients, any artificial flavors, or any possible exposure to harmful chemicals, such as glycidyl esters, from infecting the food.

Something that I have noticed after taking the carbon footprint test, is that mine significantly lowered after my selection of the option that I buy locally grown food. This made me realize that if we as a society lower the over importation of food and open more local community gardens for everyone, we could eventually be able to lower the carbon footprint of hundreds of people thought the world. Yes, some things would still need to be imported, but if our governments could lower that by at least 30% that could effectively benefit our environment greatly.

Buying groceries from a different place needs shipping which uses gas and causes pollution, on the way from shipping, the food can get squished, lost , and get rotten from the time needed to ship so you should try to buy locally grown food and all grocery stores should bring locally grown groceries to sell so they are cheaper and better for and it’s also harder to check if groceries from somewhere else are 100% organic.

Growing my own persimmons has shown me that home-grown food is better than store bought ones. Unlike often flavorless ones from the store, the persimmons from my persimmon tree often turn out very ripe and have large amounts of sweet flavor. Along with that, knowing they have no pesticides helps add peace of mind since there are no harmful chemicals. This experience has taught me how homegrown produce is often more fresh, higher quality, healthier, and cheap compared to store bought produce along with showing the value of connecting closely to our food source.

Yes, home grown is better quality but how does this information relate to how others can do it? Not everyone can go and grow their own produce at home but how does this say about helping the environment? Sure it does help put you at a peace of mind but can this help inform others besides the flavor and knowing that there are pesticides? How does this show the importance of home grown food?

Home grown is very beneficial for the environment. I think homegrown can impact the environment positively because it reduces the carbon emissions. Carbon emission trap the sun's heat which causes climate change. Homegrown also offers more nutrients because you don’t have to worry about pesticides that are on local grown produce so, you will be eating pure grown produce. Homegrown overall just helps society because it makes people less sick and helps our global warming situation.

I agree with you, home growing really has many advantages. It reduces carbon emissions and encourages us to eat healthier and grow fresh food. I also think it’s important to mention that if most people start growing and buying local food, they will support their country and local farmers.

My family has been growing vegetables and fruits for many years now and I have seen major improvements in our health. Grocery store vegetables always look bland and raises the concern of where the produce has gone and been through. Having a home garden seriously improved my well being by the fact that I know I have grown something that can feed my family and my neighbors.

I agree with you, but I think it's also important to buy local produce. I live in a city surrounded by farmlands, so there are a lot of fresh crops out for sale. Additionally, there's a farmers market every week at a church near my house, and I think it'd be better if my family went there to buy produce instead of at a store like Costco, since we're supporting our community and preventing more carbon emissions and waste.

What should someone do if they do not have the space or money to grow foods at home? Some people do not have the space to grow their own food due to many conditions and not everyone can afford or to spend time to keep their plants healthy or harvest them in time.

its important to grow home grown food to stay away from gmo and micro plastics and its much more healthier than massive farms that spray there vegetables with pesticides it is better to just spray dish soap water and vinegar

Homegrown food has many benefits. I will say two of many. First of all, it's better for our planet. It cuts packaging waste, uses fewer chemicals, supports biodiversity, and encourages sustainable eating. Second of all, it taste so much better. It is fresher and grown without long storage or transport that can dull flavor. I can confirm that because most of the vegetables I eat is grown in my garden and it taste amazing. What do you think? Can you come up with other benefits?

I agree with this take, as I think the benefits of homegrown food completely out weigh the parts to buying and consuming packaged foods. I also think another benefit of homegrown food is that it is most likely healthier than packaged and store bought foods. It provides human with better nutritional benefits than store foods, and as I can recall, when I was a child I used to eat a lot of homegrown foods, which always left me energized and left me feeling good in terms of my body, but with store bought foods it would sometimes cause me to be tired and to even be less focused during school. Another benefit I would add is that it can save people money as they can spend less to grow food on their own instead of buying it straight up from a store. Any other benefits anyone can think of?