#1 Quorn`s Signposts to Sustainability

SIGNPOSTS TO SUSTAINABILITY

WELCOME TO... ...‘SIGNPOSTS TO SUSTAINABILITY’; YOUR STEP-BY-STEPGUIDE TO A MORE SUSTAINABLE WAY OF LIFE! The human population is growing. With that comes a growing need for improved, sustainable lifestyles and diets. But this is only part of the picture. It’s well-documented that the long-term future of our beloved planet hangs in the balance. Now is the moment to tip the scale back in our favour before it’s too late. Solutions are needed that are healthy for bodies, and the planet!

Sustainability is a journey that can be complicated, often overwhelming. It can be hard to pinpoint where to start. This document is here to signpost your sustainability journey and make it easy for you to make a difference. Our goal is to leave you with long-lasting knowledge and real actions you can start applying today.

HOW THE CARBON CRISIS HAPPENED The environmental issues we face today; rising sea levels, extreme global temperature changes, forest fires, and the extinction of certain species, are the symptoms of excessive fossil fuel usage spanning decades.

This is down to multiple reasons (e.g., car emissions, food wastage, and pollution), but the link between large-scale agriculture with climate change and emissions is significant. The Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research has revealed that agriculture is responsible for around one third of global emissions and 75% of deforestation.1

WHAT CARBON NEUTRALITY IS AND HOW TO GET THERE Carbon Neutrality is when the amount of carbon emitted is balanced with the amount of carbon absorbed from the environment. We can do this by first and most importantly reducing our carbon emissions as much as possible. We can then invest in environmental projects around the world, such a reforestation or renewable energy sources, to offset any remaining carbon footprint.

These projects bring additional social and community benefits to developing countries as well!

1 4

To limit the rise of the average global temperature to 1.5°C, reaching carbon neutrality by 2050 is essential.2

Readily available solutions already exist for more than 70% of today’s emissions.3

DID YOU KNOW?

On 7 October 2020, the European Parliament backed a goal for climate neutrality by 2050 and set a 60% emission reduction target by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels).4

Mature trees continue to store carbon as they grow, by locking it away within the soil as well as their wood, roots and leaves!

https://ccafs.cgiar.org/bigfacts/#theme=food-emissions | 2 https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-018-06876-2 | 3 https://www.un.org/en/un75/climate-crisis-race-we-can-win | https://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press- room/20201002IPR88431/eu-climate-law-meps-want-to-increase-2030-emissions-reduction-target-to-60

THE FIVE Rs The five Rs is a step-by-step process used by businesses to improve their recycling programmes and reduce the amount of waste they produce.

Though intended for businesses, there are many ways you can apply the five Rs to your daily life and reduce your own carbon footprint:

REFUSE Make considered decisions with purchases, saying no to what you don’t need.

REDUCE Are there ways REUSE you can reduce your waste? Can Replace singleyou repair instead use items with reusable of buying new? alternatives.

REPURPOSE How can you upcycle items that were meant for one purpose and give them a new lease of life?

RECYCLE Learn what can or can’t be recycled and how to recycle efficiently (e.g., recycling schemes).

In the following issues we’ll take a deeper dive into each of these five Rs, showing how you can not only utilise what you have at your disposal, but upgrade and save both money and the planet as you do it!

START WITH SEASONALITY Seasonal eating is a sustainable lifestyle choice that encourages you to buy and eat ingredients that are in-season, like eating apples in winter, pears and potatoes in autumn, and strawberries and tomatoes in summer. So, what are the benefits to eating seasonally?

• Seasonal produce requires lower levels of artificial inputs (e.g., heating, lighting, pesticides, and fertilisers) than at other times of the year.

• Buying and eating in-season produce means the fruit and vegetables are likely at their freshest and tastiest.

• Following the seasons might spike your creativity and encourage you to experiment with ingredients you may not usually use.

• The produce you’re buying is more likely to be sourced locally, leading to less milage between farm and plate.

Eating seasonally is an easy step to take. Keep an eye on which fruit and vegetables are in-season, plan your meals accordingly, and taste the seasons as they happen!

TAKE A LOOK AT OUR RECIPE FOR SPRING CABBAGE STUFFED WITH QUORN BEEF, USING IN-SEASON SUMMER INGREDIENTS, HERE! TO FIND OUT MORE ON HOW QUORN CAN HELP YOU ON YOUR SUSTAINABILITY JOURNEY, PLEASE CONTACT ELLIE.JANES@QUORNFOODS.COM

QUORNFOODSERVICE.CO.UK