The Food Footprint

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The Food Footprint
Session 3
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Slides for Activity 2
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Inputs and Outputs
Inputs Things that enter a system (sunlight,
water, fuel, and fertilizers)
Outputs Wastes produced (fertilizer run-off,
food packaging, and emissions).
Inputs and outputs have environmental impacts.
The a greater a foods negative environmental
impact, the bigger its footprint.
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Examples of inputs and outputs in strawberry jam
Fuel, machinery, space
Car to get to store home energy use
Fuel, rubber, metal, wood, paper
Solar energy, water, fertilizers, pesticides
Electricity glass, metal, paper
INPUTS
Transport
Processing
Consumption
Growth and harvest
Disposal
O2 to atmosphere, run off to river
Carbon emissions food waste
Emissions leachate (liquid that drains out)
Carbon emissions food waste
Carbon emissions discarded pallets
OUTPUTS
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Summary of Key Points from Activity 3
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The food system is embedded in the environment.
Energy from the sun ?
ENVIRONMENT
Food system
OUPUTS Emissions, run-off, packaging
INPUTS Fuel, fertilizer, water, plastic
Growing Processing Transport Eating
Disposal
Wastes stay in the environment. They are
transformed, but do not go away.
Diagram Creative Change Educational Solutions.
Adapted from works of Herman Daly.
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Key Ideas The Earth as a System

• All human activity takes resources from the
  environment and puts wastes back into it. The
  environment is thus the ultimate source of all
  materials and the final sink for all wastes.
• Different types of land serve source and sink
  purposes.
• The variety of life-sustaining functions provided
  by the environment are collectively known as
  ecosystem services.

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Larger food system footprint
Energy from the sun ?
ENVIRONMENT
This food system uses large quantities of fossil
fuels as the energy source for manufacturing
fertilizers pesticides, machinery, processing,
long-distance transportation, refrigeration.
Wastes are landfilled.
INPUTS fuels, seeds, fertilizers, pesticide,
machinery, paper,water
OUPUTS Emissions, run-off, packaging.
Diagram Creative Change Educational Solutions.
Adapted from works of Herman Daly.
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Smaller food system footprint
Energy from the sun ?
ENVIRONMENT
This food system has fewer inputs. It relies more
on solar energy and less on fossil fuel energy.
Some outputs (compost) are nourishing, there
are fewer polluting outputs.
INPUTS seeds, manure, water, compost, less use
of fossil fuels and packaging
OUPUTS Nutrients that become inputs fewer
emissions.
Diagram Creative Change Educational Solutions.
Adapted from works of Herman Daly.
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The environment the source of all inputs, the
sink for all wastes
Ores come from the earth.
Sand, limestone come from the earth.
Water from rivers, aquifers.
Petroleum, natural gas, coal are from the
fossilized remains of plants/animals.
Car or bike to get to store home energy use
Solar energy, petroleum, soil, water,
fertilizers, pesticides
Fuel, rubber, metal, wood, paper
Fuel, machinery
INPUTS
Consumption
National distribution
Growth and harvest
Disposal
Emissions leachate. Trash goes to landfill.
Packaging from stores, discarded pallets CO2
food waste
Package goes into the trash.
OUTPUTS
CO2, run off
Leachate may reach groundwater.
Run-off goes into wetlands and rivers. Rivers
drain to ocean.
CO2 goes into trees, oceans, atmosphere.
Emissions Land stores garbage.
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The environment the source of all inputs, the
sink for all wastes
Petroleum , natural gas, coal are from the
fossilized remains of plants/animals.
Metals come from the earth.
Water comes from rivers, aquifers.
Solar energy, soil, water, animal waste
Car or bike to food coop home energy use
Food scraps, solar energy, microbes
Fuel, rubber, metal, paper
INPUTS
Regional distribution
Consumption
Growth and harvest
Disposal
Food waste is composted. Container is recycled.
Discarded bag is recycled. Truck releases CO2.
Waste is composted.
Waste is composted.
OUTPUTS
Nutrients go to soil and become inputs.
Nutrients go to soil and become inputs.
Paper becomes fiber or is used as mulch. CO2 goes
into trees, oceans, atmosphere.
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Activity 4 Reducing our food footprint
retail