Believe it or not, food choices largely influence the carbon footprint you leave behind. As a study from Vox (https://www.vox.com/2014/7/2/5865109/st … nt-in-half) points out, food production emits approximately 25% of the greenhouse gases that are heating the planet. With these statistics, it is crucial to be conscious of the impact your food has and ways in which you can better this effect. Vox claims that eating vegetarian can reduce your food carbon footprint by half. The article "Food's Carbon Footprint" (http://www.greeneatz.com/foods-carbon-footprint.html) proves that the highest contributors to carbon emission are meat and cheese. For example, the carbon impact of one kilogram of beef is equivalent to driving 63 miles in a car. With the majority of society eating loads of meat in every single meal, these negative impacts add up quick. For vegetarians, items such as beans, vegetables, fruits, and lentils all have lower carbon emissions than meat. Wether or not you eat a vegetarian diet full time, even just eating  plant based for one day a week or limiting red meat is an important step in the right direction. In addition, eating organic and locally grown foods is so beneficial to the wellbeing of our environment. As greeneatz explains, almost 11% of greenhouse gas emissions regarding food stems from the transportation. So, buying from local farmers markets or businesses can go a long way. Organically grown foods do not use the terrible chemicals and hormones used in conventional methods, so checking the labels on food items is very important. Although it is difficult to completely transform your diet at once, beginning to implement these ideas is so crucial. Not only is it better for the environment, but it's better for you! Take it one step at a time, and you will already be making a difference.

While I do agree that going vegetarian would help the planet, it is a hard task to complete. Vegetables and beans are lower volume than meat, and don't fill you up as much. So that just means more plants that needed to be planted and harvested, which can cause soil erosion. What I do think is a good solution, is buying locally grown food and meat. This would reduce people's carbon footprint, because food is not being transported as far. This is definitely a possible solution that could be looked into. Not only that, but I personally like locally grown food better. For some reason it tastes better to me. You are helping out the environment, and your local people and community.

Sami, 15
North Carolina

I think people going vegetarian is a great idea! I am personally vegetarian and I think people make it harder than it needs to be. I still get the protein I need while still getting the right amount of food in my system to fill me up. Being vegetarian will help the planet along with making you feel better about yourself. It sure does make me feel better!! Although it may be hard for some people I think it needs to be tried out before assuming that it is just a hard task.

I really agree, food can impact a lot.  Not only in the environment, but for your health.  Your food choices impact everything, so choose wisely one what you eat.  I think you made some great points, and I like how you put link for more data.

the plants are good because its fresh

I like vegetarian food. My mother cooks Spiced tomato soup with flatbread. You should try it!

Going vegeterian

In my opinion, I think going vegetarian is a great idea and way to get our bodes in check. It will not only improve your health but will help the environment in multiple ways. Planting vegetables, fruits, and many other plants will help with the environment's air quality and will improve your immune system. However, on the other hand, it's quite hard for humans to stay on this diet. Meats, eggs (many dairy products), fish, etc. is apart of most humans eating lives. Plus, protein is quite good for you, and your body needs some type of protein to function. In addition, plants is probably not as filling to our bodies. But consuming more amounts of plants could solve that problem. In conclusion, people should go vegetarian to benefit both you and the environment. Doing this could also influence your carbon footprints.