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> Each kilogram of fish sticks produces about 1.3 kilograms of carbon dioxide, which “rivals the climate impact of tofu,” she says. Beef, by comparison, produc
by screye 6y ago
> Each kilogram of fish sticks produces about 1.3 kilograms of carbon dioxide, which “rivals the climate impact of tofu,” she says. Beef, by comparison, produces over 100 times that amount of carbon dioxide per kilogram
That's an u̶n̶f̶a̶i̶r̶ comparison. (apparently they did consider some of my complaints)
Does it take into account the additional co2 that fishing boats emit? Esp. given that they usually use far more harmful fuels than the gas used on roads.
Comparing a dish to the raw. material is unfair. Fish sticks should be compared to the environmental. impact of beef stir fry or sukiyaki or at the very least, an order of burger and fries (per kg)
Then there is the fact that caloric densities vary. comparisons should be made per portion, not unit weight.
co2 is also a complex topic. There is carbon that is recaptured in replanting crops. Beef also primarily produces methane, so I'm not sure if the co2 impact of beef is the proportional impact in methane or actual co2. Methane has a much shorter term. impact vs co2.
Lastly, trawling has massive ecosystem destroying impacts that don't show up on co2 counters. We must also consider that in sustainability calculations.
All in all, fish sticks might be sustainable, but these back of the napkin numbers are rarely representative of the complex systems that drive climate change.
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to be fair, I love fish. They are healthier, easier to do sustainably than red meat, you need less of it to flavor food and it is easier to use 100% of it vs red meat animals. Lastly, salt water fish have straight up more flavor. (too much for some)
If seafloor trawling is banned and ships are moved over to better refined petroleum products, then fishing can be quite sustainable.
- dfan 6y ago"Does it take into account the additional co2 that fishing boats emit?" Yes. "Unlike previous studies that have largely overlooked the downstream processing activities associated with Alaskan pollock, this study examined all the components of the supply chain, from fishing through the retail display case." [https://news.ucsc.edu/2020/01/mckuin-fish.html https://news.ucsc.edu/2020/01/mckuin-fish.html]
- screye 6y agoThanks for adding that, will edit it into my post.
- revax 6y ago>Beef also primarily produces methane, so I'm not sure if the co2 impact of beef is the proportional impact in methane or actual co2. Methane has a much shorter term. impact vs co2. It is most certainly accounted for. The correct unit is CO2-equivalent and the time horizon commonly used is 100 years. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming_potential https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Global_warming_potential
- sampo 6y ago> Does it take into account the additional co2 that fishing boats emit? Esp. given that they usually use far more harmful fuels than the gas used on roads. Those more harmful fuels don't produce extra CO₂, though. Marine diesel engines burn less clean oils, and thus produce other pollutants (such as sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, particulate emission), but the energy content and CO₂ emissions are same as with e.g. gasoline.