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Reduce your dairy intake

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Your Challenge

For some of us, eating more plant-based foods can feel like quite a challenge. So starting with small changes might be more achievable and still help you cut down your carbon footprint. Instead of putting dairy milk in your next cup of tea or coffee, why not try a plant-based alternative such as soy?

There are lots of different milks to try, including oats, rice, almond or coconut. There are even milks made from potatoes and peas, and all will have a smaller carbon footprint and require less land than cow’s milk. However, the ones with the lowest footprint are oat and soy. There’s a useful comparison article that fully explains the differences, available on the Ethical Consumer Magazine website. [1]

Before you begin this challenge, always make sure that you are eating a balanced diet and getting sufficient levels of calcium and vitamin D elsewhere, as these are often provided in dairy-based milks. Always consult your doctor before making any changes to your diet that may affect your nutrition and health.

Other ways you can reduce your dairy intake would be to reduce the amount of cheese in your diet, if you eat it regularly, or to swap from milk chocolate to dark chocolate by slowly increasing the cocoa percentage of the dark chocolate you’re eating.  

Why you're doing this

On average, a plant-based alternative has a third of the CO2 emissions footprint of cow’s milk. They also use much less land and water to produce. Milk is one of the most popular items in our fridge, and is used as the base of our other dairy products, but is also one of the most wasted.   

How you'll make a difference

Reducing your dairy intake can reduce your carbon footprint and reduce pressure on dairy production and food waste.

It is time to #FixTheFoodSystem. By doing this challenge you are also taking part in WWF-UK’s Eat4Change campaign to encourage sustainable diets and join the fight for our planet. 

 

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in the My Footprint App

Track your progress and discover many more challenges in the My Footprint app. Available for iOS and Android devices. 

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