Supermarkets vs farmer’s markets: Which is more climate friendly?
Supermarkets vs farmer’s markets: Which is more climate friendly?
Are farmers markets as good for the climate as they undoubtedly are for the community?
1. The pea-patch price. There are many reasons to love your local community garden—a splash of color, pollinators, even health—but its hefty crop of carbon unfortunately may not be one of them, according to researchers from the University of Michigan. They looked at 73 urban agriculture sites in France, Germany, Poland, the UK and the US and found […] overall urban agriculture generated six times as much carbon as traditional farms.
2. Miles and packaging are minor carbon sources. It’s counter-intuitive, but buying a plastic bag of salad grown the next state over could be a lower-carbon choice than plucking a few leaves from your own garden. Packaging accounts for around just 5% of the carbon footprint of most foodstuffs, and distribution perhaps another 10%. Those emissions are dwarfed by the infrastructure needed to set up urban gardens, such as metal raised beds and garden sheds.
…
3. Go GMO for the planet? Big Ag is all about efficiency, which can sometimes (but not always) mean getting more output from less input. Some genetically modified crops enable low- and no-tillage agriculture that may (or may not) preserve megatons of carbon in farm soils. On top of that potential benefit, researchers at The Breakthrough Institute estimate that increased yields from GMO crops could cut European agricultural emissions by around 7.5 percent by avoiding additional CO2 emissions from land-use change.
This is an excerpt. Read the original post here
 | Videos | More... |
Video: Nuclear energy will destroy us? Global warming is an existential threat? Chemicals are massacring bees? Donate to the Green Industrial Complex!
 | Bees & Pollinators | More... |
GLP podcast: Science journalism is a mess. Here’s how to fix it
Mosquito massacre: Can we safely tackle malaria with a CRISPR gene drive?
Are we facing an ‘Insect Apocalypse’ caused by ‘intensive, industrial’ farming and agricultural chemicals? The media say yes; Science says ‘no’
 | Infographics | More... |
Infographic: Global regulatory and health research agencies on whether glyphosate causes cancer
 | GMO FAQs | More... |
Why is there controversy over GMO foods but not GMO drugs?
How are GMOs labeled around the world?
How does genetic engineering differ from conventional breeding?
 | GLP Profiles | More... |
Alex Jones: Right-wing conspiracy theorist stokes fear of GMOs, pesticides to sell ‘health supplements’
Viewpoint — Fact checking MAHA mythmakers: How wellness influencers and RFK, Jr. undermine American science and health
Viewpoint: Video — Big Solar is gobbling up productive agricultural land and hurting farmers yet providing little energy or sustainabilty gains
Fighting deforestation with CO2: Biotechnology breakthrough creates sustainable palm oil alternative for cosmetics
Trust issues: What happens when therapists use ChatGPT?
30-year-old tomato line shows genetic resistance to devastating virus
California, Washington, Oregon forge immunization alliance to safeguard vaccine access against federal undermining
The free-range chicken dilemma: Better for birds, but with substantial costs
‘You have to treat the brain first’: Rethinking chronic pain with Sanjay Gupta
