Everyone suspects their shopping basket is a window into their soul. If a soul is in good nick, what should that basket look like? Here I have put together 10 food items that represent the ultimate in sustainability. My aim was to find foods that have no ethical issues attached, few critics (if any) and a cohort of experts broadly agreeing that they are good for the planet.
First I ruled out familiar brands such as Green & Black's and Innocent, on the grounds that they have a habit of being acquired by others. Green & Black's is owned by Cadbury, itself now owned by Kraft; Coca-Cola has a stake in Innocent. There were problems, too, with ethical labels. Who knows whether bird-friendly or forest-grown coffee is best, or if Utz Kapeh beats Rainforest Alliance when it comes to saving jaguars? The Marine Stewardship Council logo carries some guarantees – but certification reports show that even MSC fisheries have their share of environmental impacts.Even the Fairtrade mark appears only once in this list. While it may guarantee "a better deal for Third World producers", some say Fairtrade prices are set too low – especially for coffee. By selling into premium markets, farmers could earn more money. It's a hot topic, but not as hot as climate change – and this shopping basket reflects just that. Top of the agenda are carbon sequestration (locking CO2 into the soil and making it safe), crops that "fix" nitrogen so do not require fertilisers, and conserving natural resources such as water. Benign aquaculture is another recurring theme. To eat ethically, it seems, you need a clear grasp of science, a knack for lateral thinking – and an experimental palate.
ROPE-GROWN MUSSELS
Why? Aquaculture takes pressure off wild fish stocks, and mussels are the most sustainable farmed species. As filter-feeders, they require no food inputs (the biggest challenge facing fish farmers) and produce minimal "outputs" (eg, surplus feed and effluent). Highly sensitive, they are barometers of pollution rather than agents of it. Spawned in the wild, "spats" attach naturally to ropes and are not confined – and harvesting does not damage the seabed.
Where? Waitrose sells Scottish rope-grown mussels for £2.99 per 500g pack.
BEANS
Why? Legumes are good "fixers" of nitrogen, taking the inert gas from the atmosphere and converting it into biologically useful ammonia (NH3) on which plants and other organisms depend. Beans (like peas, lentils, peanuts, soya and alfalfa) can fix up to 285kg of nitrogen per hectare planted, reducing or eliminating the need for fossil fuel-based fertilisers and saving up to 600kg of CO2 emissions per hectare. The higher the demand, the better it is for the planet.
Where? Widely available but the best choice is British in season and, of course, organic.
FARMED CARP
Why? The most popular farmed species are carnivorous, requiring fish meal or oil in their diets – depleting the oceans further. Omnivorous carp live off insects, grasses and algae in the pond ecosystem, supplemented by foods (wheat, beans, worms) that can be grown or found locally. This eliminates "feed miles" and pellets made from imported cereals, a high-energy, high-carbon food source. Freshwater ponds are contained, so there are no "escapes" (which can spread disease to wild fish) and relatively little pollution.
Where? Supermarkets sell carp at Christmas, but the greenest come from Jimmie Hepburn (01823 680 888, aquavisiononline.co.uk), the UK's only organic carp farmer, who will be smoking some for Christmas and New Year. In London, try Davies Fishmongers (020 8556 3910).
BISON
Why? Prairie vegetation has huge potential for carbon capture, locking into the soil up to 40% of the CO2 produced by the food industry – most of it from livestock farming. In North America, much of the prairie has been given over to arable farming using fertilisers, which has turned it into a dustbowl. Bison are restoring it, by "mob grazing" in groups, moving on, fertilising the soil naturally and helping to save an ecosystem that mops up CO2 like a sponge.Where? Bush Farm, Wiltshire (01747 830 263, bisonfarm.co.uk) sells meat from a naturally reared herd that grazes in North American style.
BRITISH APPLES
Why? Since 1950, 64% of England's orchards have vanished – grubbed-out to make way for more profitable crops. Factor in tourism and associated cash flow, heritage (value to future generations), recreational use (by horse riders, say), firewood, shooting rights, carbon capture and preservation of soil and groundwater, and fruit represents less than 40% of an orchard's value. In one case, highlighted in a Forum for the Future study of six orchards in Herefordshire, fruit represented only 0.2% of value. Buy imported Galas, and all this will be lost. It's a new way of evaluating food in terms of sustainable development. Where? Farmers markets everywhere. Riverford Organic (riverford.co.uk) is also selling the new season's British apples including Discovery, Russet, Early Windsor and other varieties grown in Hertfordshire and Kent.
MOORLAND MUTTON
Why? Like the prairies (see Bison), moorland in Britain acts as a "carbon sink", with peatland storing 3bn tonnes of carbon – equivalent to 20 years of emissions by the UK. Grazing sheep naturally preserve the landscape by preventing other (less benign) land uses, live an outdoor life and are relatively disease-free. Their flesh contains high levels of omega-3. However, purists balk at eating lamb that is often only three months old and fattened on (high-carbon) grain. Mutton, at two years old, has lived a fuller life and is grown more slowly.
Where? Alternative Meats (0844 545 6070, alternativemeats.co.uk) sells various cuts of Herdwick mutton, which must have a "forage-based" diet of grass, heather and root crops, ranging in price from £5 to £17.
SHARP'S DOOM BAR BEER
Why? This Cornish brewery has one of the lowest water consumptions in a shockingly water-thirsty industry. Normally, 7.5 litres are needed to make one litre of beer. Sharp's has reduced this to three litres and shaved 11g off its 500ml bottles, making them 12% lighter and reducing fuel consumption in transit. Spent grain (30 tonnes a week) is fed to a local dairy herd, yeast slurry (fifty tonnes a week) is fed to pigs, waste beer (30 litres a week) is drunk by dairy cows, and bottles are collected and recycled to make drinking glasses. Where? Morrisons, Tesco and Majestic stock Sharp's bottled beers, available online at sharpsbrewery.co.uk; 12 bottles of Doom Bar cost £29.
SHEEPDROVE
ORGANIC TURKEY
Why? Sheepdrove Farm in Berkshire is famous for playing CDs of bird calls, tractor sounds and helicopters to chickens, to adapt them to free-range life. Bar the soundtrack, Sheepdrove turkeys are reared in a similar way. Birds roam outdoors by day with access to a large wood and natural foraging. At night, they sleep in mobile sheds and play with toys – including CDs suspended on strings. Satisfying their inquisitive nature eliminates stress and improves eating quality.Where? Frozen whole birds and rolled turkey breast from sheepdroveshop.com; £10 per kg (special offer), reduced from £30. Fresh birds closer to Christmas
TROPICAL WHOLEFOODS APRICOTS
Why? Tropical fruit is usually bought for pennies and sold (for pounds) in the rich industrialnorth, where any added value is then creamed off. These Fairtrade apricots are different. Grown in Pakistan, they are peeled, stoned and sun-dried by the farmers using solar driers – so the income from processing remains in the country of origin. Drying the fruit, rather than transporting it whole in trucks, prevents it from rotting in the 40C heat, reducing the amount of food waste. Peel is put back on to the land as fertiliser, while the stones are cracked and the kernels removed and dried, to be sold as a Tropical Wholefoods snack similar to almonds. Since dried fruit is lighter, fuel costs and emissions are lower – and because it is preserved, it can be easily moved by sea using unrefrigerated ships.
Where? Oxfam shops and health food stores, or at tropicalwholefoods.co.uk, £1.25 for 125g.
CARBON GOLD GROCHAR
Why? This garden compost contains biochar – organic waste (such as cacao husks and tree prunings) gathered by Green & Black's cocoa farmers in Belize, among others, and then baked in a kiln. The material would usually be burned or simply left to rot, producing greenhouse gases. This process locks down CO2 ("carbon sequestration") and renders it harmless. When used as a fertiliser, biochar returns carbon to the land, boosts soil bacteria, increases crop yields and retains water in times of drought. OK, GroChar isn't a food (for humans at least) but you can use it to grow your own vegetables: the ultimate in sustainability.
Where?A 1kg box costs £8.99, available at amazon.co.uk. For full stockists details, see carbon-gold.com.
