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Ultimate Guide to Sustainable Travel: Food and Drink
44. Eat Local Foods
Patronize restaurants and shops offering fresh, local produce, meats, fish, breads, cheeses, pastries, and other items to help save energy, and experience the authentic flavors, ingredients, spices, and dishes unique to each area you visit.
LocalHarvest features a searchable, online database of farmers markets, family farms, and other sources of sustainably grown foods in the United States. Search the site before you travel to find LocalHarvest partner locations at or near your destination.
"More and more research is being done on the environmental benefits of eating food produced close to home, especially in lowering use of preservatives and fuel from reduced storage and transportation," says Catherine A. Wilt, director of policy with the University of Tennessee's Institute for a Secure and Sustainable Environment, "When traveling, eating local has the added benefit of enhancing your travel experience, by letting you more fully experience the culture and cuisine of a new place. Enjoy fish that has been caught in the local waterways, and eat fruit and vegetables grown nearby. And sample the local wine or spirits. Not only will you reduce the local impacts near your vacation spot, but you'll further support the local economy."
45. Choose Organic Coffee
Can a single cup of coffee really harm or help the environment? It can when you consider than people in the United States alone consume an estimated 300 million cups of joe each day, according to the Specialty Coffee Association of America.
Choosing organic coffee at home and when you travel can help reduce pesticide use, since certified organic coffee beans are cultivated without chemicals—instead using eco-friendly farming methods such as composting, terracing, and inter-cropping. In addition, organically grown crops also are produced use less fossil energy than conventional crops.
Opting for organic coffee is a small, but significant choice. As part of its companywide EarthCare program, San Francisco-based Kimpton Hotels exclusively offers organic and/or shade grown coffee where complimentary lobby coffee is available in its properties. Kimpton reports that in one year alone, the impact of serving organic-only coffee preserves more than 40,000 acres (16,187 hectares) of pesticide-free sustainable agriculture. That's the equivalent of about 18 football fields.
46. Order Ocean Friendly Seafood
Limiting your seafood choices to fish and shellfish that are more abundant and more responsibly managed helps protect ocean life and habitats. Before you travel, download and print out the Blue Ocean Institute's Guide to Ocean Friendly Seafood. This wallet-size guide offers specific information on fishing methods, population, and any federal consumption advisories for seafood commonly available in U.S. markets.
"The seafood choices that we make have an impact on the marine environment because fish caught in certain techniques, such as dredging and bottom trawling, will damage marine habitats and the marine floor," says Nick Hall, Blue Ocean Institute's seafood program manager. "It is very important for people to understand that by choosing certain seafood species, not only are you affecting that fish population, but due to the catch methods or the farm methods involved in order to make that fish available for your dinner, there could be serious environmental consequences."
47. Support Chefs Collaborative Restaurants
Chefs Collaborative's ever-expanding community of chefs, fishermen, farmers, and educators includes more than 200 restaurants located throughout the United States, all of which are dedicated to promoting local, sustainable cuisine. The collaborative's online guide is a searchable database of member restaurants, producers, and wholesale producers.
"Our member restaurants are committed to working with local farmers and fishers. By eating at a Chefs Collaborative restaurant, you are supporting the local economy as well as the producers who work so hard to get delicious food to the table," says Melissa Kogut, executive director of Chefs Collaborative.
