Food Miles

According to some estimates, milk from these cows at a small dairy farm in western Maryland might travel 1,500 to 2,500 miles to reach a consumer's table

Source: Scott Bauer/Agricultural Research Service/USDA

The “food miles” concept has arguably captured the public imagination more than any other term when it comes to debates about sustainable consumption. This popularity is largely a result of the apparent simplicity of its application—basically, it calculates the distance food travels from primary producer to end consumer. Transport is one of the main sources of pollution in the food chain in terms of getting produce from farmer to depot to processor to retailer. Consumers also increasingly use transport to buy their food. The food miles concept exposes this transport dependency and the often bizarre ...