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Coyotl

(15,262 posts) Mon Jul 22, 2013, 03:12 PM Jul 2013

The Energy Cost of Food [View all]

Sustainability is an imperative. Buy Local!

The Energy Cost of Food
http://www.resilience.org/stories/2013-07-22/the-energy-cost-of-food

by Eric Garza Ph.D, originally published by Aisthetica | TODAY

Download as a PDF (229 KB)

At the grocery cooperative nearest my home I can buy kale from California, grapes from Argentina, olive oil from Italy, miso from Japan, and apples from New Zealand. I can enjoy a diet that’s utterly dissociated from Vermont’s Champlain Valley where I live, one that renders my local climate, the character of the local soil and geography, and even the passage of seasons irrelevant to my food choices. I can eat as if I lived in a tropical paradise where summer never ends, while living in a temperate paradise where summer lasts just a few short months.

As I walk out of my co-op I’m reminded of the source of this modern food miracle: a nearby service station sells gasoline for $3.67 per gallon, and diesel for 30 cents more. This is pricy compared to what these fuels cost a decade ago, but they still provide astonishingly cheap energy. And it’s this cheap energy that powers the globalized, industrial food system that delivers food to my co-op from the four corners of the Earth, regardless of weather, regardless of the season.

Just how much energy does it take to fuel the US food system? A lot. It required just over 12 Calories of fuel to produce one Calorie of food in 2002, once waste and spoilage were accounted for.1 Of these, 1.6 fuel Calories were used in the agricultural sector, while 2.7 were used to process and package food. Distribution, which includes transportation, wholesale and retail outlets, and food service operations such as restaurants and catering services, used another 4.3 fuel Calories. Finally, food-related household energy use added another 3.4 Calories to the tab. This figure has been on an upward trend; it took just over 14 fuel Calories to deliver a Calorie of consumed food in 2007, and if we extrapolate this trend the US food system requires about 15 Calories of fuel to deliver a Calorie of consumed food in 2013.

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22 replies

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The Energy Cost of Food [View all] Coyotl Jul 2013 OP

Another unfortunate consequence is that we no longer have "fresh" produce SoCalDem Jul 2013 #1

The flip side was that much of the country didn't get fruits or veges for a large part of the year el_bryanto Jul 2013 #4

I have virtually eliminated animal products from my diet - due to health concerns, environmental kestrel91316 Jul 2013 #2

I have no doubt it would zipplewrath Jul 2013 #3

What do you think people will eat instead of meat and dairy, and who do you think will grow it? kestrel91316 Jul 2013 #6

I presume fish zipplewrath Jul 2013 #9

"...instead of meat and dairy?" "I presume fish" (facepalm) flvegan Jul 2013 #10

Fish are a plant, the Vatican said so. LeftyMom Jul 2013 #11

Fish...fruit or vegetable? flvegan Jul 2013 #12

Back in the Middle Ages fasting was common and LeftyMom Jul 2013 #13

Back in the Middle Ages, most orders of monks had no Google. flvegan Jul 2013 #14

I edited to explain a bit better. LeftyMom Jul 2013 #16

Ignoramus Monk? flvegan Jul 2013 #17

Indeed. Sigh. kestrel91316 Jul 2013 #18

Tip of the cap to you. flvegan Jul 2013 #19

Thanks, though I am in excellent health and am doing this as prevention. kestrel91316 Jul 2013 #20

Prevention or otherwise, my wish is the same. n/t flvegan Jul 2013 #21

You need to know the actual energy costs, not distance FarCenter Jul 2013 #5

Yes, think in energy cost, ecological impact, and best productive use of our collective time working Coyotl Jul 2013 #7

Good point ... surrealAmerican Jul 2013 #8

Or grow your own laundry_queen Jul 2013 #15

I'm eating a bounty of organic vegetables and berries already. Coyotl Jul 2013 #22