Quitting smoking, adopting a healthy diet or playing sports are some of the most common resolutions at the start of the year. From here we propose another: be more sustainable.
In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development of the United Nations (UN) defined sustainability as “development that meets current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” For Toni Massanés, director of the Alicia Foundation, “it consists of looking to the future, both for ourselves and for others, and it must have continuity.”
Achieving it depends both on governments, which must implement policies that make it possible, and on the population, who can exercise it through small actions, also in the kitchen. Seemingly simple decisions such as choosing where we go to shop, what foods fill our shopping basket or how we cook and preserve them can have great repercussions on the planet.
We spoke to experts and listed six easy changes when shopping, cooking and eating that can help us be more sustainable:
Eating locally and in season as much as possible is a mantra that has been repeated until we get bored, but it is also one of the most important decisions we can make in terms of food. To begin with, because we will be reducing our carbon footprint. “By not consuming so much product that comes from far away, we will reduce the carbon dioxide emissions generated by food transportation,” says Massanés.
This means that foreign fruits such as avocado should not occupy a central place in the diet, even though they are also grown in areas such as Andalusia. “Producing them requires a lot of water, since they are adapted to a climate different from ours,” the expert clarifies. This means that more resources are needed when producing them and their obtaining is not entirely sustainable.
Another reason for choosing seasonal and local products, says Teresa Carles’ nutritionist, Mireia Cervera, is that “we will be supporting farmers in the area.” In addition, “we will consume fruit and vegetables that are much tastier and cheaper,” adds chef Carlota Claver, head of the Barcelona restaurant La Gormanda.
Now is the best time to buy sweet potato, pumpkin, root vegetables such as spinach or chard, tangerines and oranges, explains Claver, who recommends going to the nearest market whenever possible. “While supporting local businesses, we can learn and share recipes with the shopkeeper or the person next door who is also shopping at the time,” he explains.
In this sense, we cannot be blindly carried away by the trends that are promoted on social networks such as Instagram or TikTok. These platforms connect us with other parts of the world and show us very attractive foods or recipes that can motivate us to cook more. But they also push a large number of users from different parts of the globe to prepare and eat the same thing.
“Avocado and quinoa are great, but if there are different climates that generate different food systems, it’s for a reason,” says Massanés. “If we all decide to eat that food that the influencer on duty has recommended, the places where it is grown will be exploited. The resources are not global,” he insists.
This doesn’t mean that one day we can’t eat a toast with guacamole or a bowl of açaí. “Being self-sufficient is not the solution either,” says Massanés. “With the drought we have suffered and taking into account that a lot of cereal is produced here (one of the crops that has suffered the most from the lack of water), we would have died of hunger.” The solution is, therefore, to consume these products less frequently.
The overexploitation that a fruit can experience if it is consumed throughout the world can also affect fish. In Alícia there is a lot of talk about “salmonitis”, which refers to the very high consumption of salmon that occurs today, much higher than that of other local species. This can be an obstacle to the continuity of artisanal fishing, and represent a loss of knowledge regarding the identification of fish and the handling and cooking of seafood.
On the other hand, when this obsession is directed at a wild species, it can condemn it to extinction. And this is what is happening with the European eel (Anguilla anguilla), a fish that is at greater risk of disappearing than animals such as the Iberian lynx or the giant panda. Experts and international organizations such as the FAO have long asked for its fishing to be regulated, and chefs’ associations such as Euro-Toques Spain have demanded that it be banned from professional kitchens.
It is more advisable to choose different fish that come from nearby seas. Not only for a sustainability issue, but also to take advantage of the multiple options we have at our disposal. “If we only eat one species, we will be missing out on hundreds of varieties, textures, flavors and ways of cooking,” says Massanés.
Do we not know which ones are in season? Well, we just have to go to the fishmonger, observe and ask.
In 2021, Spaniards threw away almost 1,250 million kilos of food. “It’s outrageous,” says Massanés, who explains that this waste is due to the fact that we have become accustomed to unconscious consumption based on the idea that “the more we buy, the better.” And he gives the example of nougat, one of the most leftover festive products. “If we didn’t buy so much, we wouldn’t have this problem every year.”
To reduce food waste at home, nutritionist Mireia Cervera recommends planning meals so that we buy only what is necessary. It is also important to look at the expiration dates and consume those products that are about to expire sooner, in addition to storing food properly to prolong its freshness.
We can also buy in bulk, because we will be selecting the products we need ourselves and we will not have to adapt to the units that the packaging imposes on us. “There are many types of legumes and the same thing happens with nuts. If we go to a bulk store, we can make our own combinations and learn about more varieties,” says Claver.
Taking advantage of those normally neglected parts of vegetables is also another way to practice sustainability in the kitchen. Cervera suggests, for example, adding leek leaves to the broth, as well as meat bones. “You can also grate stale bread and use it to make croutons or pudding,” he adds.
Claver, for his part, recommends not discarding the bones of the fish, since the meat that remains stuck to them is very tasty and can also be used for a broth. The most fibrous parts of the vegetables, he continues explaining, can be used to make soups and creams, and the leftover vegetables left in the refrigerator can be used to cook an omelet. This cook also invites you to give offal a second chance, which is economical and very tasty.
Likewise, you can use leftovers from some preparations. Cervera invites you to use the carn d’olla or the meat left over from a stew to make croquettes and cannelloni; and the vegetables from a broth, for a puree. With the leftover green beans, you can prepare a salad and with the meat left over from a barbecue, a delicious lasagna.
“Imagination to power!” says Claver, who assures that if we take advantage of food and leftovers in this way, we will have a better time cooking and we will eat more variety.
Reducing meat consumption is also synonymous with sustainability. “Its production requires a large amount of water and food that could be used for human consumption. Therefore, reducing its intake contributes to using the planet’s resources more efficiently,” says Cervera.
Adding more plant-based foods to the menu will also help us follow a healthier diet. Claver insists that vegetables offer thousands of possibilities and that they are not boring at all. “A bean salad can become an absolutely delicious dish if we dedicate a little time to it. We can cut them thinly, cook them to the optimum point and stop the cooking with cold water so that they look a bright green color. Then, we can serve them with a vinaigrette of wasabi, mustard, extra virgin olive oil and lemon”.