Entrare in un negozio londinese in inverno è un po’ come fare un viaggio in Jamaica: temperature vicine ai 25° quando fuori vento e freddo paralizzano faccia e corpo.
Varchiamo le porte alla ricerca di una buona occasione, accolti da luci accattivanti e temperature degne di un Paese tropicale, ma a quale costo energetico?
Uno studio condotto dall’Università di Cambridge ha calcolato che ogni anno i negozi delle grandi vie commerciali inglesi spendono circa 1 miliardo di sterline per il riscaldamento, 1 miliardo di sterline andate in fumo inutilmente visto che sarebbe sufficiente chiudere le porte per tagliare i costi e salvare energia.
Lo studio, commissionato dall’organizzazione inglese Close the Door impegnata contro lo spreco energetico negli esercizi commerciali, ha scoperto che un negozio che lascia le porte aperte produce in media 91 Kg di Co2 ogni settimana, l’equivalente di un viaggio andata e ritorno Londra-Glasgow, più o meno 1200 Km.
Se solo i due terzi dei negozi chiudessero le porte ci sarebbe una riduzione delle emissioni di CO2 di circa 6.3 milioni di tonnellate ogni anno, è come se ogni anno venissero tolte dalle strade 1 milione di macchine.
Nella città di New York lo hanno capito da tempo e i negozi sono multati con sanzioni fino a 400 dollari se tengono le porte aperte mentre aria condizionata o riscaldamento sono accesi.
La campagna portata avanti da Close the Door sostiene che chiudere le porte contribuirebbe non solo a raggiungere il traguardo di abbassare del 34% le emissioni entro il 2020, ma anche una riduzione dei costi per gli esercenti pari al 2.5%.
Sembra un controsenso, risparmio energetico, riduzione emissioni CO2, abbassamento dei costi. Eppure i portoni rimangono spalancati, perché (sostengono i commercianti) una porta aperta è più invitante di una porta chiusa. Eppure la ricerca dell’Università di Cambridge non ha evidenziato una sostanziale differenza di vendite.
Lo conferma anche il fatto che alcuni fra i più importanti esercizi commerciali come il supermercato Waitrose o il centro commerciale Whiteleys hanno aderito alla campagna di Close te Door.
In fondo basta allungare una mano per aprire una porta.
martedì 3 gennaio 2012
mercoledì 23 marzo 2011
Do the right Shape
Picture the scene: an orchard full of delicious, big Howgate Wonders, cooking English apples. Clive used to sell them to the supermarkets but now they only want Bramley apples. Howgate Wonders are too large and big for the supermarkets specification.
40 tons of apples could go to waste and the orchard grub up and burn.
Did you know? Supermarkets control our supplies and our tastes.
They decide what we have to eat and which fruit and vegetables are suitable for our tables. They don’t care about our health or environment, the only goal is cheap food and huge profit.
The agribusiness industry set a sort of commercial selection that is getting poor our lunches: since the start of the 20th century we have lost 75% of genetic diversity from agricultural products and today fewer than 30 plants feed 95% of the global population.
While the UK’s national fruit collection contains more than 2,300 varieties of apples, only a handful of (mainly imported) varieties are available in most supermarkets.
This globalisation and standardisation of our food is repeated in other areas of UK and global agriculture.
On the supermarkets shelves there isn’t space for ugly, knobbly and misshapen products. Supermarkets reject some fruit and vegetables just because they have the wrong size or shape.
75% of food we buy comes from supermarkets chains. For every pound spent 55 p goes to the supermarket, but, on average, only 10 p goes to the person who actually grew the food.
Supermarkets have been forcing down prices paid to farmers for years, and can force farmers to sell at or below the cost of production.
But a perfect, good looking apple requires a lot of pesticides.
According to the Friends of the Eart, an environmental organization, between 1998 and 2003, 47 per cent of supermarket apples tested contained pesticide residues, and some other fruit contained a cocktail of pesticides above legal and safety limits. Intensive farming methods effect our health but also our wildlife and our environment.
The Environment Agency estimated that intensive farming costs the country £500 million each year because of water pollution, soil erosion and resulting flood damage.
We have to find a different approach and the best way to do this is to support sustainable farming -like organic farming- and farmers markets.
40 tons of apples could go to waste and the orchard grub up and burn.
Did you know? Supermarkets control our supplies and our tastes.
They decide what we have to eat and which fruit and vegetables are suitable for our tables. They don’t care about our health or environment, the only goal is cheap food and huge profit.
The agribusiness industry set a sort of commercial selection that is getting poor our lunches: since the start of the 20th century we have lost 75% of genetic diversity from agricultural products and today fewer than 30 plants feed 95% of the global population.
While the UK’s national fruit collection contains more than 2,300 varieties of apples, only a handful of (mainly imported) varieties are available in most supermarkets.
This globalisation and standardisation of our food is repeated in other areas of UK and global agriculture.
On the supermarkets shelves there isn’t space for ugly, knobbly and misshapen products. Supermarkets reject some fruit and vegetables just because they have the wrong size or shape.
75% of food we buy comes from supermarkets chains. For every pound spent 55 p goes to the supermarket, but, on average, only 10 p goes to the person who actually grew the food.
Supermarkets have been forcing down prices paid to farmers for years, and can force farmers to sell at or below the cost of production.
But a perfect, good looking apple requires a lot of pesticides.
According to the Friends of the Eart, an environmental organization, between 1998 and 2003, 47 per cent of supermarket apples tested contained pesticide residues, and some other fruit contained a cocktail of pesticides above legal and safety limits. Intensive farming methods effect our health but also our wildlife and our environment.
The Environment Agency estimated that intensive farming costs the country £500 million each year because of water pollution, soil erosion and resulting flood damage.
We have to find a different approach and the best way to do this is to support sustainable farming -like organic farming- and farmers markets.
mercoledì 16 marzo 2011
E- waste story
We produce 20-50 million of E-Waste (electronic waste) every year.
If they would be put into containers on a train it would go once around the world.
Mobile phones, television, computer are upgrading more frequently than ever before.
This involve a huge problem in term of pollution and garbage disposal.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that as much as three quarters of the computers sold in the US are stockpiled in garages and closets. When thrown away, they end up in landfills or incinerators or, more recently, are exported to Asia or Africa.
Let’s fallow the E-waste story
If they would be put into containers on a train it would go once around the world.
Mobile phones, television, computer are upgrading more frequently than ever before.
This involve a huge problem in term of pollution and garbage disposal.
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that as much as three quarters of the computers sold in the US are stockpiled in garages and closets. When thrown away, they end up in landfills or incinerators or, more recently, are exported to Asia or Africa.
Let’s fallow the E-waste story
lunedì 14 marzo 2011
Ready meals are noto so good
They are fast, cheap and easily available. Ready meals are the perfect partner for our hectic time.
Nothing is easier than putting a ready meal in the microwave or grabbing a takeaway on the way home.
British are the biggest consumers of ready meals in Europe, these products are used in 77% of households. According with Minitel report f the Uk market worth €6.07bn in 2009 and they are expected to reach €7.21bn within 2013.
But despite their popularity they are not environmental friendly.
Ready meals are one of the most over-packaged goods in the supermarket: a plastic tray covered with another sheet of plastic and then a cardboard box to keep it in. They are basically twice cooked meal, which is energy inefficient and often may contain additives and preservatives.
Processed food require extra resources in term of energy to manufacture them, in transport and storage.
According to Food We Waste report, published by WRAP, 440,000 ready-made meals are thrown away by consumers. A quarter (25.5%) of the weight of avoidable food waste consists of pre-prepared foods.
Just as example,a study by the University of Manchester shows that Supermarket lamb curry ready meals are the annual equivalent of 140m car miles, or 5,500 car trips around the world.
Ingredients in the ready meals are responsible for 65% of the carbon footprint, with lamb accounting for 50%. Meal manufacture contributes on average 14%, packaging 4%, transport 2% with storage at the retailer contributing 16%.
The same lamb curry prepared at home has a 20% lower carbon footprint, mainly because of the elimination of the refrigeration stage at retailers needed for the ready-made meals."
Said Professor Azapagic, Professor of Sustainable Chemical Engineering and leader of the project:
“The same lamb curry prepared at home has a 20% lower carbon footprint, mainly because of the elimination of the refrigeration stage at retailer needed for the ready-made meals”.
Therefore next time you are going for a dinner, take your time and prefer an homemade meal.
Nothing is easier than putting a ready meal in the microwave or grabbing a takeaway on the way home.
British are the biggest consumers of ready meals in Europe, these products are used in 77% of households. According with Minitel report f the Uk market worth €6.07bn in 2009 and they are expected to reach €7.21bn within 2013.
But despite their popularity they are not environmental friendly.
Ready meals are one of the most over-packaged goods in the supermarket: a plastic tray covered with another sheet of plastic and then a cardboard box to keep it in. They are basically twice cooked meal, which is energy inefficient and often may contain additives and preservatives.
Processed food require extra resources in term of energy to manufacture them, in transport and storage.
According to Food We Waste report, published by WRAP, 440,000 ready-made meals are thrown away by consumers. A quarter (25.5%) of the weight of avoidable food waste consists of pre-prepared foods.
Just as example,a study by the University of Manchester shows that Supermarket lamb curry ready meals are the annual equivalent of 140m car miles, or 5,500 car trips around the world.
Ingredients in the ready meals are responsible for 65% of the carbon footprint, with lamb accounting for 50%. Meal manufacture contributes on average 14%, packaging 4%, transport 2% with storage at the retailer contributing 16%.
The same lamb curry prepared at home has a 20% lower carbon footprint, mainly because of the elimination of the refrigeration stage at retailers needed for the ready-made meals."
Said Professor Azapagic, Professor of Sustainable Chemical Engineering and leader of the project:
“The same lamb curry prepared at home has a 20% lower carbon footprint, mainly because of the elimination of the refrigeration stage at retailer needed for the ready-made meals”.
Therefore next time you are going for a dinner, take your time and prefer an homemade meal.
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