Earth day is coming up April 22nd. I’ve honored the green “holiday” by going vegan, riding a bike instead of driving and planting my own little garden. This year, I encourage you to pledge to eat not only a vegetarian diet for the day but also more local produce by eating what is in season.
I’ve been partnering with my friends from Silk to bring you more vegetarian recipes this year including this oatmeal bake and tropical chia overnight oats recipe.
Did you know that producing one half-gallon of milk requires four times more water than producing one half-gallon of Silk soymilk, almondmilk or coconutmilk?
And that’s just one example of how plant-based diets can help protect and conserve the Earth’s limited resources. Learn more about the environmental impact of Silk versus milk and see for yourself.
When you eat more plant based foods, you’re doing something good for your body and the planet. A diet with less meat/more veggies positively impacts the environment by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Getting chicken or beef from the field to your dinner table takes a lot more resources than eating plants. According to a 2006 United Nations report, the “livestock sector” generates more greenhouse gas emissions than all the cars, trucks, trains, ships, and planes in the world combined. In fact, the meat, egg and dairy industries account for 65% of all nitrous oxide emissions.
Realistically, many of you may go a day without eating meat. But you can continue to eat locally or what is in season to reduce your environmental impact longer term in addition to supplementing a free meat free days.
By purchasing foods from local farmers, you are reducing carbon emissions used to transport your food. You are also reducing the amount waste that it takes to get the food from a foreign country to your table. Think about all the packaging required to keep food cold and un-bruised during their travels.
Unfortunately for us New Englanders, there isn’t a ton in season right now but there are options especially for Earth Day. You could easily make a killer green juice with what is available!
Currently, ginger, kale, lettuces and micro greens can all be bought at local farmers markets. I spotted them all myself at the Boston Public Market downtown.
You can also buy mushrooms, parsnips, daikon radishes and apples. I recently had diakon radish in my power bowl for dinner and didn’t realize the kick they had to them. The recipe that was in my Just Add Cooking box (which is a local meal delivery kit company) also had mushrooms and kale from local farmers and purveyors.
Potatoes are also still available. I’ve been loving sweet potatoes. During my pregnancy, I was not surprisingly.
So join me and Silk in eating more veggies and less meat in honor of Earth Day. Your body will be happy and you can feel good about your efforts towards the planet.
How have you celebrated Earth Day with your family? I feel like it’s something you do with kids and in schools than as an adult but I can’t remember it from growing up.
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This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Silk. The opinions and text are all mine.
