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The purpose of JUICE‘s all new ethical living and environmentally conscious channel isn’t to make you feel bad that the planet is dying a fiery hot death and that we put it in this terrible predicament (even though we did), but rather what we wanted to do is to demonstrate that you don’t need to be superhero or a saint to save the planet. So, every week we’ll land you with 3 easy tips to adopt, and a bonus tip if you’re feeling particularly ethical – and just to demonstrate how serious we are, we’ll adopt the same measures too. This week, like true Malaysians, we turn to food….
#1 To go or not to go, should NEVER be the question We’re all guilty of it but we really shouldn’t be. Sure, it’s convenient but all that extra packaging damages the environment and costs a carbon footprint and a leg to produce it. From throwaway plastic containers to polysterene, these things are super bad and not in that Michael Jackson it-means-the-opposite kinda way. We love the good old days when everything was packed in a banana leaf and newspaper. So unless eateries are packing it old school, or with recyclable materials, choose to eat in, bring a tiffin and ask ’em to fill it up, or bring your own food from home.
#2Â Say fork off to plastic cutlery Plastic cutlery is crap and kind of dangerous ’cause they break quite easily. Frankly JUICE is insulted whenever food outlets have the balls to offer us up this shit. What are we, 3 years old?! Insist on cutlery that can be washed and reused, and not thrown away. Otherwise use your hands, or just politely decline their plastic implements and use your own cutlery. Damn environment destroying cheapskates!
#3 Meat less Some of us at JUICE are vegetarian, some are rampant meat eaters, so we’re not about to advocate that you eat lentils and limp veg and look like Moby. Just as some people do this for religious or health reasons, there’s now an environmental reason to give up meat. One pound of beef requires 1860 gallons of water to produce and also consumes stocks of food like grain and maize that could be used to feed people. And there are a lot of starving people in the world. Moreover cattle and other livestock fart a lot producing methane, which is 20 times more harmful to the Earth than carbon dioxide. So apart from the fact you’re depriving many people, your food choices could be polluting the atmosphere and contributing to global warming. Even a one day meat fast will make a difference.
#4 The bonus tip: Go native If all this is like child’s play to you then, 5 gold stars, Planeteer! Time to stretch yourself and show a little more commitment. Starting with once a week, pledge to eat only food derived from local produce. This means things like avocados from Israel, pears from China, Atlantic cod, Norwegian salmon and the like, are off the menu for a day. It’s not that we’ve gone all flag waving and nationalistic on your ass, it’s just that importing such food, even if derived sustainably or is organic in origin (more on this in another post) makes it ecologically unsound, as its storage and transportation has a very high carbon footprint – you have to fly it here and refrigerate it. Best place to ensure you’re getting your food locally is at farmers’ markets, at economy rice joints (avoid the spam), or simply read the label and look out for things like fruit and veggies from Cameron Highlands, for example. Your nation won’t just thank you, so will Mother Earth. Peace out.
