Now scientists claim that eating lettuce may be three times worse for the environment than eating bacon. Despite calls for people to eat less meat to help save the planet, new research suggested that “healthier” diets may actually be worse for global warming. The study, by scientists at Carnegie Mellon University, compared the emissions from the production of 1,000 calories of different foods.
“Eating lettuce is over three times worse in greenhouse gas emissions than eating bacon,” Prof Paul Fischbeck, one of the report’s authors, concluded. Lettuce is so low in calories that someone would need to eat at least two whole iceberg lettuces to get close to the calorie intake of two rashers of smoked bacon. As a result, the emissions from transporting lettuce are far higher per calorie than those from pork. Other vegetables fared far better, with cabbage producing a fifth of the emissions of pork per calorie. However, switching to a healthier diet would produce 6 per cent more greenhouse gas compared with a typical meat-rich American diet.
