Sir, – Maurice J Bergin, (Letters, August 18 th ) suggests restaurant menus should provide more information about the provenance of the food they serve . There is surely more important information that could be provided, such as its estimated climate cost.
The differences are informative. Producing 100 grammes of protein from beef generates about 25 kilograms of CO2 equivalent, compared with about 4kg for chicken, 1.6kg for tofu, and well under 1kg for beans or peas.
Why not put an estimated CO2 equivalent figure beside dishes on restaurant menus? A customer choosing between beef, chicken, and a plant-based meal could then see at a glance the environmental consequences of that choice.
This seems particularly appropriate in this country, where agriculture accounts for almost 38 per cent of national greenhouse gas emissions, mainly methane from livestock and nitrous oxide.
Neither is “100 per cent Irish” an environmental certificate. Food production also affects land use, biodiversity, and water quality.
Provenance tells us where our meal comes from. Its environmental footprint tells us something much more important – what it costs, and will continue to cost, the planet. – Yours, etc,
[ Margaret Jeffares: I have brought charcuterie and salamis into Spain, and they have said, ‘This is better than ours’ Opens in new window ]