April 22,2026 is Earth Day. It is a day to support our Mother Earth and learn about things we can do to improve our environment. One thing you might try is adopting a climate diet.
What is Earth Day?
Earth day is held every year on April 22. In the photo above, you see my young parents attending the very first Earth Day at the University of Oregon in 1970. Earth Day is a way of getting everyone involved in protecting our earth. At the organization website, you can find events and activities near you.
It is tempting to think that only governments can protect the environment, but here is an interesting list of 50 things you can do yourself every day. One of them is to make gradual changes toward a climate diet.
What is a climate diet?
A climate diet is one that includes as little meat and dairy, and as many plants, as possible. Examples include eating more nuts, seeds, beans and lentils instead of meat and dairy.
But it doesn’t mean you have to give up hamburgers completely! Some people may switch to one meatless meal per week, while others might choose to go completely vegan.
Why is a climate diet important?
Maybe we can’t control government or the fossil fuel industry, but adopting a climate diet is within reach.
This article from the World Resources Institute studied what individuals can actually do to impact climate change. Here are the four things with the most impact: 1) use sustainable transit, 2) decrease/eliminate air travel, 3) make home energy improvements, and 4) eat plant-rich meals.
They note “Reducing meat and dairy consumption, particularly beef and lamb, has a massive and underestimated impact on the climate. While shifting to organic food, buying local and reducing processed foods all have benefits, these changes pale in comparison to dietary shifts that move away from animal proteins.”
In fact the Earth Day website estimates that if you “skip steak once a week with your family: You’d reduce emissions equivalent to taking your car off the road for nearly three months”.
And “if the entire U.S. did not eat meat or cheese for just one day a week: We’d reduce emissions equivalent to not driving 91 billion miles — the same as taking 7.6 million cars off the road”.
But how can it make that much difference?
You have probably heard that animal agriculture in one of the top sources of harmful greenhouse gases. Reportedly, about one third of all human-caused greenhouse gas emissions is linked to food.
The numbers are really astounding. According to the United Nations, to produce 100 grams (about ¼ pound) of protein, greenhouse gas emissions are 40 times higher for beef (35.5 Kg) than from legumes (0.9Kg).
This article from Stanford University describes the “beef triple whammy”. It explains how cows (used for beef and dairy products) are particularly bad for the environment. That is because cows produce large quantities of methane, an especially potent greenhouse gas. Second, they need a lot of land for grazing which leads to deforestation. And third, cows live much longer than smaller animals such as chickens before they can be used for food, so their lifelong dietary footprint is much larger.
According to A Well Fed World, dairy foods are particularly problematic. Dairy cheese is the third most climate-harming food (after beef and lamb)! Like beef cattle, dairy cows emit huge amounts of methane. Only one dairy cow is estimated to have the same climate impact as driving from Los Angeles to New York three times! And there are almost 10 million dairy cows in the US. Also, milk production requires a lot of water, much more than almonds. To make matters worse, manure from dairy farms is poisoning rivers and contaminating drinking water!
Livestock ranching also requires a lot of land for grazing and to grow animal feed. An amazing 80% of current deforestation in the amazon rainforest is the result of cattle ranching. Land is often cleared by intentionally setting fire to the forests, causing even more environmental harm.
Greenhouse emissions from farmed shrimp are similarly high due to mangrove forests which are destroyed to create shrimp farms (see more here).
As you can read here, livestock worldwide consume 5X more food than the entire human population! If, instead of feeding animals, people were to eat plant-based foods directly, we could feed many more people. And animals eat much more food than they produce. Again, cows are the worst, according to this reference, consuming 25 pounds of feed for one pound of beef!
What’s in it for me?
Fortunately, a climate diet that is good for the environment is also good for your body! It’s a win-win! Study after study show that people who follow a plant-based diet have lower rates of heart disease, cancer, type 2 diabetes, and mortality from all causes compared to heavy meat eaters.
Don’t have to do it all the time
As this really encouraging piece points out, “real environmental progress has always come from collective, imperfect action, not individual perfection”. In other words, start with the things you can do. Those small imperfect actions add up.
Quite simply, this article says it best: it is vastly more impactful if many people simply cut down on meat and dairy vs. a few becoming vegan.
And, eating should be enjoyable. I don’t think anyone should force themselves to eat something they don’t enjoy just because it is “healthy” or helps the environment. But often the secret is in the preparation. So, try different ways! Maybe you don’t like bean burgers but they might taste good in salad or soup. Or maybe you like beans and rice!
We want to help make a climate diet easy
As this Bon Appetit author found out, suddenly converting to a climate diet can be tricky! She could have used Yumbini!
If you are interested in replacing meat with beans (legumes), we are here to help! Yumbini was designed to make eating beans delicious, easy and enjoyable! The beans and the rice are already together. And the seasoning is done so no chance to mess up. Plus, they are ready in 6 minutes! No soaking, draining, rinsing or simmering!
If you have some skeptical carnivores in your life, take a look at our Yumbini recipes. Cook up something fancy (but easy!), and no one will realize the meat is missing!
