1. Stop Counting Calories, Start Counting Food Miles? Betsy Gates Energy Law Presentation April 28, 2008

2. Overview  What are “food miles” and how do they relate to energy conservation?  Increasing globalization of the food sector  Problems with using food miles to assess environmental impact  What can a conscientious consumer do?

3. What’s a food mile? The term “food miles” was coined in the 1990s by Dr. Tim Lang, a professor at London’s City University. The term is used refer to the distance foods travel before reaching your plate.

4. Food Miles and Energy Conservation  In the U.S., food travels an average of 1,300 to 2,000 miles between the farm and a consumer.

5. Food Miles and Energy Conservation  About 80% of the energy used in the U.S. food system goes toward processing, packaging, transporting, storing and preparing food

6. Food Miles and Energy Conservation  Distance traveled is not the only indicator of the energy intensity of food—  Transportation mode  Storage requirements  Growing conditions and varied agricultural productivity in different regions  Energy requirements for growing or producing different types of food

7. Food Shipments in the United Kingdom  According to a study conducted for the United Kingdom’s environmental agency (DEFRA), food accounts for 29% of goods transported in the UK, by weight.  Food shipments also account for 25% of the kilometers traveled by loaded trucks in the UK.

8. Food Shipments in the United Kingdom by Kilometers Traveled

9. Increasing Globalization of the Food Sector “Food has moved around the world since Europeans brought tea from China, but never at the speed or in the amounts it has over the last few years. Consumers in not only the richest nations but, increasingly, the developing world expect food whenever they crave it, with no concession to season or geography.” “Food has moved around the world since Europeans brought tea from China, but never at the speed or in the amounts it has over the last few years. Consumers in not only the richest nations but, increasingly, the developing world expect food whenever they crave it, with no concession to season or geography.” --The New York Times, “Environmental Costs of Shipping Groceries Around the World,” April 26, 2008

10. Increasing Globalization of the Food Sector  The European Union and the U.S. are the world’s two largest food importers.  EU food imports rose 20% in the last five years.  American food imports almost doubled from 2000 to 2006.

11. Increasing Globalization of the Food Sector  From 2000-2005, imports accounted for more than 30% of fruits and nuts, 13% of vegetables, nearly 80% of seafood, and 10% of red meat consumed in the U.S.  There has been a general upward trend in imports of both crops and animal products since 1980.

12. Why Ship Food Around the World?  Supply consumers with a wide variety of produce and other fresh foods year- round.  Save money on production costs

13. Global Shipping is Getting Easier and Cheaper  Increasingly efficient global transport networks allow transportation of perishable foods around the world  Mega-companies like Wal-Mart, Carrefour, and Tesco are establishing supply and distribution chains in major developing countries like China and Mexico  Lower labor and production costs in developing countries are used to keep costs low for first- world corporations

14. The Bottom Line  According to a recent New York Times article, Norwegian cod cost $1.36/pound to process in Europe, but only 23 cents/pound to process in Asia.  As a result, cod is caught in Norway, shipped to China for processing, and then shipped back to Norway for sale to European consumers.

15. The Chicago Convention on International Civil Aviation (1944)  Fuel for international air travel and goods transportation is not taxed under this agreement.  Because fuel for trucks and domestic transport is taxed, shipping food internationally may be cheaper than driving it cross-country.

16. Raising Consumer Awareness  British grocery and retail chain Tesco has generated press lately for its plans to create labels that indicate how far foods have traveled  Environmentalists suggest that food labels display food miles information, like they show calorie and nutrition content

17. A New Buzz Word  “Food miles” has become a hot-topic buzz word in the green movement, recently generating several news stories from major outlets like the New York Times, the BBC, and the New Yorker.  But is counting food miles actually a good way to reduce your environmental impact?

18. Problems with using Food Miles to Assess Environmental Impact  Fails to account for the mode of transportation used, or transport efficiency  Does not include other production costs and energy needed for storage (especially refrigeration in the off- season), which can be significant

19. Transportation Mode and Efficiency  Trucks are also more energy intensive than shipping by sea  For example, if you buy a bottle of wine anywhere east of Columbus, Ohio it is more energy efficient to buy French wine, shipped by sea, than Californian wine, shipped by truck.

20. Transportation Mode and Efficiency  A bottle of wine produced in France’s Loire Valley and sold in New York City has a lower carbon footprint (1,371g of carbon) than a bottle produced in California and sold in New York (2,514g). The difference is primarily attributed to transportation costs.

21. Transportation Mode and Efficiency  Overall efficiency is also influenced by the interplay between distance traveled and vehicle size  Buying food from smaller, local farms reduces the distance traveled by food. However, that is somewhat counteracted by the use of smaller trucks, which are less efficient for packing and transporting food than large semi trucks.

22. Lincoln University Study A frequently cited study from Lincoln University in New Zealand attempted to assess the total energy demands of food production in New Zealand and the European Union

23. Lincoln University Study: Some Key Findings Dairy Products: Because of a more intensive production system, United Kingdom dairies use twice as much energy per ton of milk solids produced, compared to New Zealand dairies

24. Lincoln University Study: Some Key Findings Lamb Producing lamb in the UK requires four times more energy than it does in New Zealand, including transportation costs.

25. A European Example A study produced by economist Paul Watkiss for the United Kingdom’s environmental agency (DEFRA) determined that it is more energy efficient to import tomatoes from Spain than to grow them in UK greenhouses during the cooler months.

26. What can a conscientious consumer do?  Paul Watkiss study determined that a single indicator based on food miles is inadequate as a way to assess the environmental impact of foods.  Life cycle energy assessments indicate that multiple factors interplay when comparing the energy efficiency of food products  As we have seen, local is not always better

27. What can a conscientious consumer do? Eat locally grown foods when they are in season Much of the extra energy associated with certain local foods is attributable to greenhouse production systems, or energy-intensive off-season storage like refrigeration.

28. What can a conscientious consumer do? Don’t drive to the store Americans are making longer and more frequent trips to the supermarket, and this cumulative impact adds to the energy costs of bringing food home. Walking, biking, or at least using local stores and markets can make a big impact.

29. What can a conscientious consumer do? Know what you eat… If you can Life cycle assessments are the only reliable way to accurately determine the comparative energy footprint of different foods. Doing a little research on your favorite foods can help, but life cycle assessments are complex and not readily available for most foods.

30. Policy Suggestions “Wouldn’t it make more sense to stop obsessing over food miles and work to strengthen comparative geographical advantages? And what if we did this while streamlining transportation services according to fuel-efficient standards?” --New York Times, “Food that Travels Well,” Aug. 6, 2007