According to new research from Carnegie Mellon University, consuming more fruits, vegetables, dairy, and seafood is more harmful to the environment because those foods have relatively high resource uses and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions per calorie. The study measured the changes in energy use, blue-water footprint, and GHG emissions associated with U.S. food consumption patterns.
Researchers examined how growing, processing, and transporting food, food sales and service, and household storage and use take a toll on resources in the form of energy use, water use, and GHG emissions. The study found that eating the recommended "healthier" foods--a mix of fruits, vegetables, dairy, and seafood--increased the environmental impact in all three categories: energy use went up by 38%, water use by 10% and GHG emissions by 6%. The full study is available online.