Going Slow, Going Low - Carbon, that is

Posted by Jacqueline Church Sep 8, 2008

You may have heard about the 1,500 miles a tomato travels to your plate. This article, my notes and research for it, have traveled more than most tomatoes. Heck this article has traveled even more than most people in the past two months. Oy. Hopefully, the news it brings you will help us cut our collective emissions enabling some sort of atmospheric and karmic offsets.

Creating a Brontosaurus-sized carbon footprint, I recently flew to San Francisco to attend the Slow Food Nation's inaugural Come to the Table event. At Slow Food, I met local farmers, listened to experts in food policy. Spoke with activists and artisans passionately described their food values, choices about what to farm or produce and how.

One of the ironies of my trip struck me when I was discussing the Low Carbon Diet with Katherine Kwon of Bon Appétit Management Company (BAMCo). Bon Appétit Management Company (or BAMCO) runs restaurants, cafes and catering in over 400 spots in 28 states. BAMCO has been at the forefront of sustainability issues for years. Recognizing that how food is produced, farmed, packaged, and shipped all add up.

Bamco’s been recognized for its leadership on many campuses and its other venues. Numerous awards have been marked their success at improving food service practices, educating students and other consumers about the impact of our food choices. Read their blog here.

I met Katherine, Communications Project Manager, in Monterey at the Sustainability Institute. It was there that I first learned of the Low Carbon Diet (LCD) program and tools. The Low Carbon Diet helps us leverage our buying power, guiding our food choices toward items that are healthy for the planet, as well as for bodies.

It's interactive fun and good for us. Check out why here: Moove over South Beach Diet.

Thanks Katherine, Helene and BAMCo!