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It’s easy to sit back and think that you make sustainable choices just because you choose to eat more fruits and vegetables. But many popular toppings, like avocados, walnuts, bananas, and coconut, have an orange mark in the new vego guide, which means “be careful.”
– A shift towards more vegetarian is good, emphasizes Anna Richert. Most of us eat more meat than we can handle to live within the sustainable limits of the planet, and we must make more everyday decisions on which vegetarianism is the foundation. But it also ends up a lot on the plate that we need to go over, so it doesn’t get worse when you eat more vegan.
The guide evaluates vegan protein, vegetables, fruits, berries, nuts and cereals based on four different sustainability aspects: climate, biodiversity, pesticides and water. The scientific basis has been developed by researchers from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SLU.
The fish and meat guides are now supplemented by the Vego guide.
With a traffic light system similar to that used in the fish and meat guide, the user is guided to what is good to choose frequently, and what it may be wise to choose only sometimes. In this guide, the label ranges from green with a star (“Eat preferably”) to orange (“Be careful”).
Better signage, green light with star, sources, among other things, organically grown legumes, organically grown apples and Swedish wild berries. Thick greens, greens, tubers, and potatoes also get the green light, as do most common vegetables and grains.
Vegetables that get a light orange are, for example, various types of nuts, coconut, avocado, banana, and dates. This is mainly due to the risk of biodiversity loss or that they can have a high impact on water resources. Green equivalents receive yellow or green light.
REQUIREMENTS and organic products are generally better options than crops with artificial fertilizers and synthetically produced chemical pesticides, according to the guide, as they benefit biodiversity. Vegetables grown in Sweden tend to receive good marks in the guide for several different reasons, such as less climate impact or less risk of negative impact on water resources.
– Actually, they are not surprises, says Anna Richert. But when we made the guide, we used a scientific method, where the criteria were weighted to reflect the role of the raw material on the plate.
He is careful to point out that the assessments are general and apply to large regions. Therefore, there may be producers who also grow an orange-labeled raw material in a more sustainable way.
If you can choose one thing that you would change yourself after reading this guide, what will it be?
– I already eat a lot like this, but I realize that I would like to buy organic nuts, legumes and seeds. It also points to the fact that it is good to eat more vegetables produced in Sweden.
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