The vegetarian and vegan diets generate a smaller impact on the environment than the Mediterranean diet and are also more economically sustainable, given the exclusion of meat and fish. These are the main results of a survey conducted by Altroconsumo on the sustainability of three different diets: Mediterranean, vegetarian and vegan. The right diet – explains a note – can therefore prevent diseases rather than cure them, but also reduce one's environmental impact by consuming more sustainable foods, making the most of vegetable and seasonal products and reducing the consumption of meat and dairy products, given that their production generates a large amount of greenhouse gases. According to the United Nations report of December 2023, the food supply chain is in fact responsible for 30% of greenhouse gas emissions and approximately 60% of these are caused by animal products.
Altroconsumo therefore asked a nutritionist to create three balanced diets from a nutritional point of view for an average individual with a daily caloric intake of 2 thousand kcal. Based on the foods and quantities provided for each diet, the cost and environmental impact of the diets were calculated and then compared. According to analyzes conducted by Altroconsumo, an adult who follows the Mediterranean diet produces 15 kg of CO₂ equivalent every week, and consumes 19 m2 of soil and 1,880 liters of water. The vegan diet, on the other hand, is the one that has the least overall environmental impact. In fact, it weighs 32% less than the Mediterranean one and 18% less than the vegetarian one. This is because it does not include foods of animal origin and is based on the consumption of cereals, legumes, vegetables and fruit (fresh and dried), vegetable oils and drinks and seeds. In fact, an adult who follows a vegan diet produces 8 kg of CO₂ equivalent every week, consumes 15 m2 of soil and 1,810 liters of water.
However, compared to the vegan diet, which also includes eggs and dairy products, the vegetarian diet consumes more water, also compared to the Mediterranean diet, due to the presence of cheese. In fact, an adult who follows a vegetarian diet produces 11 kg of CO₂ equivalent, 17 m2 of soil and 1,980 liters of water every week. The cheapest diet is therefore vegetarian. In fact, the weekly cost of vegetarian shopping is around 53 euros. Less than what those who follow the Mediterranean spend, who have to budget around 63 euros per week, 17% more. For vegans, the cost of weekly shopping is similar to that of vegetarians, 54 euros, while the Mediterranean one costs 15.5% more. Vegans spend more on plant-based alternatives to proteins, products which account for 16% of weekly spending, as well as fruit and vegetables which represent 45% of spending.
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