Comments-  This study is an impact study. Meaning it looks at the consequences that certain activity has on the environment.  Sustainability is a word used in this article and this refers to the amount of resources that are required for different activities. 

The conclusion that a plant based diet is more sustainable and has less of an environmental impact on the planet provides a more holistic or global perspective then what is a good diet from an individual perspective.  But there are many studies that indicate that a diet rich in fruits and vegetables has significant health benefit. 

As the article suggests the next step is to study the impact of pesticides on the plant. 

Dr. Michael Kane  

The study of more than 34,000 people is the
first to investigate the environmental impacts of both food choices and farm
production systems

Date:

February 9, 2018

Source:

Frontiers

Summary:

A study of the diets of 34,000 people
confirms that a diet high in fruit and vegetables is better for the planet than
one high in animal products. The study also finds that organic food provides
significant, additional climate benefits for plant-based diets, but not for
diets with only moderate contribution from plant products. This is the
first-ever study to look at the environmental impacts of both food choices and
farm production systems.

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FULL STORY

A major new study
confirms that a diet high in fruit and vegetables is better for the planet than
one high in animal products. The study also finds that organic food provides
significant, additional climate benefits for plant-based diets, but not for
diets with only moderate contribution from plant products. Published today in
open access journal Frontiers in Nutrition, this is the first study to
investigate the environmental impacts of both dietary patterns and farm
production systems. It is also the first to investigate the environmental
impact of organic food consumption using observed diets rather than models.

Many organizations,
including the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, advocate the urgent
adoption of more sustainable diets at a global level. Such diets include
reduced consumption of animal products, which have a higher environmental
impact than plant-based products. This is mainly due to the high energy
requirements of livestock farming as well as the very large contribution of
livestock to greenhouse gas emissions. Intensive livestock production is also
responsible for significant biodiversity loss due to conversion of natural
habitats to grass and feed crops.

The method of food
production may also influence sustainable diets. Organic agriculture is
generally considered more environmentally friendly than other modern production
techniques. However, while many studies have investigated environmentally
sustainable diets, these have rarely considered both dietary choices and the
production method of the foods consumed.

“We wanted to
provide a more comprehensive picture of how different diets impact the
environment,” says Louise Seconda from the French Agence De
L’Environnement Et De La Maitrise De L’Energie and the Nutritional Epidemiology
Research Unit one of the article’s authors. “In particular, it is of
considerable interest to consider the impacts of both plant-based foods and
organic foods.”

To do this, researchers
obtained information on food intake and organic food consumption from more than
34,000 French adults. They used what’s called a ‘provegetarian’ score to
determine preferences for plant-based or animal-based food products. The
researchers also conducted production life cycle environmental impact
assessments at the farm level against three environmental indicators:
greenhouse gas emissions, cumulative energy demand and land occupation.

“Combining
consumption and farm production data we found that across the board,
diet-related environmental impacts were reduced with a plant-based diet —
particularly greenhouse gas emissions,” says Louise Seconda. “The
consumption of organic food added even more environmental benefits for a
plant-based diet. In contrast, consumption of organic food did not add
significant benefits to diets with high contribution from animal products and
only moderate contribution from plant products.”

However the researchers
caution that the environmental effects of production systems are not uniform
and can be impacted by climate, soil types and farm management.

“We didn’t look at
other indicators such as pesticide use, leaching and soil quality which are
relevant to the environmental impacts of productions systems,” says Louise
Seconda. “Therefore future studies could also consider these as well as
supply chain and distribution impacts of food production.”

The authors also say it
will be important to conduct further studies to confirm these results and to
expand our understanding of how the entire food production lifecycle impacts
sustainability.

Story Source:

Materials provided by Frontiers. Note:
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Journal Reference:

1.    Camille Lacour, Louise
Seconda, Benjamin Allès, Serge Hercberg, Brigitte Langevin, Philippe
Pointereau, Denis Lairon, Julia Baudry, Emmanuelle Kesse-Guyot. Environmental
Impacts of Plant-Based Diets: How Does Organic Food Consumption Contribute to
Environmental Sustainability? Frontiers in Nutrition, 2018; 5 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2018.00008