Nikhil Guddati - Ice Cream and the Environment

Nikhil Guddati - Ice Cream and the Environment


Ice cream. Pure joy. Utter bliss. Unparalleled happiness. Environmental destruction. Humanity’s one
sweet, sticky, gooey pleasure might not be as sweet as it seems, and it might not even remain our one true
pleasure for long. The production of ice cream continues to corrupt the environment, and at the same time,
the environment may mark an end to ice cream. Ice cream, no matter how pleasurable it is, harms the
environment through an excess amount of emissions, furthering climate change. However, at the same
time, an increase in climate change may mark an end to ice cream. Ice cream is creating its own
kryptonite.



One way in which ice cream destroys the environment is from the extraction of palm oil, an essential
ingredient in ice cream. In fact, the World Wildlife Magazine writes that palm oil is essential in giving
ice cream its smooth and creamy texture, yet its extraction threatens rainforests and biodiversity. 85%
of the palm oil used is produced in Malaysia and Indonesia’s rainforests, and extracting the oil releases
greenhouse gases from the soil while tearing down the forests. Moreover, this specifically harms
endangered species in these forests such as orangutans, rhinos, tigers, and elephants. Another major
environmental impact of the production of ice cream comes through the cows that are used. For example,
41% of Ben and Jerry’s carbon footprint comes from cows because of energy consumption and waste
production, leading to each pint of ice cream creating 2 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions. In total, this
had led Ben and Jerry’s, in 2013, to produce 136,000 metric tons of CO2e emissions.


Because of ice cream’s continued damage of the environment, it is only continuing to hurt itself.
Continued climate change puts certain flavors at risk. For example, as Food and Wine writes, climate
change could cause cocoa production to drop by 50% by 2050 and the number of regions suitable for
growing coffee could shrink by 65%-100% by 2080. Moreover, the production of nuts could drop
dramatically as well, decreasing the quantity and increasing the price of ice cream consisting of nuts,
chocolate, and coffee. All of our favorite flavors, from chocolate to chunky monkey to cookie dough to
coffee to pistachio to peanut butter could soon be gone.


This is because, as Ben and Jerry’s explains, cocoa, nuts, and coffee have all adapted to very different
environments, and now, they each need their own specific humidity, temperature, and precipitation levels.
Climate change only threatens this production.


What can we do: Unless emissions drastically decrease, this problem will continue to persist, but there
are small steps we can take regarding ice cream. If we want to stop our most beloved treat from
self-destructing, there are two main things we can do.


Stop eating ice cream (this is not reasonable since, ice cream is too good, so move on to Option 2
Promote and buy from sustainable ice cream brands and have less of this treat.


For example, Green Matters explains that many ice cream brands are sustainable through their use of
eco-friendly practices and their aim to reduce emissions; for example, they extract palm oil sustainably.
Moreover, many ice cream brands, aware of their impact, partner with climate change activist groups to
promote healthy practice. When buying ice cream, we can be more aware of our consumption and the
brands we support.


Food for Thought:


How does other food that you eat affect the environment and how can you reduce this impact?


How often do you see people drop the cones and spoons from ice cream, and what effect do you think
this has?


Comments

Anonymous said…
I never realized the immense environmental impact that something so trivial as ice cream, which I and most others take to be an innocent snack food, could have. When you comprehensively consider all the factors that go into the production and consumption of ice cream, from the cultivation of cows to the spoons and cones used to eat it, it truly does significantly contribute to the growing environmental decline that we have seen in recent years. After reading this, I have begun to consider everything I do and that action's environmental impact. For example, every time I open the refrigerator, I realize how much energy I'm wasting by leaving the door open. In addition, each second I waste every night on technology rather than sleeping is another second of running my phone, laptop, or ipad as well as the lights in my room to illuminate the displays of the aforementioned technology. This post has really opened my eyes to the effects of every action I do, and I now realize that I must make changes to my life in order to slow this environmental decline.
Anonymous said…
This is quite surprising, I never thought of ice cream being an environmental issue. After reading that we should switch to environmentally friendly ice cream companies, I wondered if they were already common and I just never realized. When I researched it, I found that there are some: Ample Hills Creamery, Mackie's of Scotland, Tara's Organic Ice Cream, Ben & Jerry's, and Alden's Ice Cream. The only one I’ve ever heard of was Ben & Jerry’s and I wondered after how you stated the fact of their ecological footprint they could possibly be on this list, but as it turns out they have recently been producing through sustainable methods and are releasing dairy-free vegan ice cream flavors. I will now be much more conscious of the ice cream that I eat...
Anonymous said…
This was an interesting post! Usually when we think of factors that could potentially harm the environment, we think of the obvious: gas emissions from cars, failing to recycle, and building factories that cause a ridiculous amount of pollution. No one would think of ice cream! In addition to the negative effects you mentioned, I did a bit of research and found out that smallholders have been expanding their farms to meet the rising demand for palm oil, and more oil palm plantations have been developed in recent years. In addition to the natural destruction of ecosystems, humans are contributing to deforestation in order to meet the demand for palm oil. If more consumers decided to choose ice cream brands that were conservative in their palm oil extraction, they might be able to take a small step towards preserving more natural environments.
Anonymous said…
It is eye opening, the amount of waste we could cut out in the day to day activities we all take a part in. But what Nikhil points out as a solution, being more aware of where you buy something from, is one that is both comprehensible and simple to implement. What I am interested in are the other areas in our lives where we are blind to environmental issues. I wager a guess to say that water is most likely the most wasted in the average home, and that it would be fairly simple to reduce that amount of water used in our daily lives.
Anonymous said…
I was shocked to learn that ice cream was such a destructive force on the environment, despite it being a treat enjoyed by people all across the globe. However, after I finished reading your post, what you outlined regarding the palm oil made perfect sense. In order to get the delicious treat of ice cream tasting just right, ice cream companies have to destroy the environment. This process likely holds true for other foods as well. One example I can think of is coffee. Coffee is enjoyed by almost everyone, and there is a significant portion of the population consuming more than one cup a day. However, the process to getting coffee beans to make coffee hurts the environment in much the same way that getting palm oil for ice cream hurts the environment. As a result, it is very important for everyone to realize the environmental impact of foods they consume daily, as each thing could have a massive impact on the environment.
Anonymous said…
To me as well as many people, ice cream seems to be an essential part of life, and it is easy to get consumed by our first world problems. This post puts a new perspective on something that we take for granted. The world is a fragile place and every act that we make has devastating effects on others. Upon further research, I found out that it’s not just the food itself and its creation that cause pollution and harm to the Earth. Waste in most developed countries is also unsustainable. The vast amounts of trash that things like packaged ice cream create go straight to landfills. From there it creates large amounts of methane gas from being broken down. The soil around this area is damaged and the nutrients are depleted. Finally, all of this excess garbage is polluting ground water and harming the nature around it. The solution to this would be to find a more sustainable way to deal with the waste, or just create less. It is a pressing issue that needs to be dealt with.
Anonymous said…
This is a great point, indicating that even the search for 'natural' products can have negative impacts on the environment. In the search for food and items to support the growing human population and their demands, humans have caused massive deforestation and degradation, often without taking measures to undo the destruction they have caused. Unfortunately, if this continues, we could see resounding impacts on the global climate. As you pointed out, it is important that we take measures to preserve our environment, starting with choosing products that are more sustainable.
Anonymous said…
I loved your introduction, and I was surprised how ice cream had such a detrimental impact on the environment. I didn’t even know that there were sustainable ice cream companies, because I didn’t know that ice cream caused so much greenhouse gas emissions. I looked up some sustainable brands and the one that stood out to me was Ben & Jerry’s. It gives me hope that such a big company is taking measures to protect the environment and harvest their ingredients with sustainable methods all while using Fair Trade. Although it’s a bit more expensive than companies like Blue Bell and Haagen-Dazs, I think I’ll start buying Ben & Jerry’s every time I have crave ice cream. If it makes less of a negative impact towards the environment, then the extra dollars would be worth it.
Anonymous said…
I agree, it is really surprising how something so enjoyable and seemingly insignificant actually has devasting consequences on our environment due to its production. In addition your commentary, practically everything that humans commonly consume impacts the environment in a detrimental way. Examples that I can think of are chicken and rice. Poultry farming and the holding of hundreds of chickens in close proximity contributes to a disease-ridden environment and rice paddies are major sources of methane gas. Although chicken and rice make a frequent appearances on the dinner table of people across the world, actions such as poultry farming and rice paddies are major causes of environmental degradation. This post reminds us to think about what we eat and how it may impact the environments around us.
Anonymous said…
I completely agree. We should all be more aware of the companies which support and participate in sustainable practices. I think it was especially interesting that Ben and Jerry’s was so transparrrent in sharing their own carbon footprint. Although it seems large, it is nice to know that a company as large as this is taking steps in the right direction. The next time we purchase any product, not just ice cream, we should all do some quick research to see if the company we are supporting engages in sustainable production.
Anonymous said…
The triviality of certain objects often cover their detrimental, hidden effects and how they collectively affect humans. As shown, Ice Cream has been influencing our world in such extreme extents, against our common view that Ice Cream is quite unimportant when it comes to protecting the Earth. An additional example of such concept can be found in the usage of plastic bags. Although they are seen as trivial, like the Ice Cream, Plastic Bags are what cause the majority of the air pollution and habitat destruction. They are usually the prime suspects of the build up of CO2. What we should to do prevent further destruction and damage to the our natural world is simply to recognize how and from where the environmental problems start off.
Anonymous said…
Even outside of ice cream, palm oil has such a big impact on our lives. From candy bars to oreos, cereals to breads, and even soaps and shampoos, this unsustainable product really has truly infested the 1st world lifestyle. Though it would be nice to cut off all of these products or find environmentally sustainable alternatives, voluntarily doing so could seem nearly impossible for many. It really is staggering how causing severe environmental problems is not just a normal part of living, but almost essential to many of our lives today.
Anonymous said…
This was a really surprising post because I never thought a seemingly harmless food such as ice cream could have a negative impact on the environment. I looked further into some common treats that could be negatively impacting the environment and found that chocolate, more specifically cocoa, has had profound effects on the environment in Africa. In Africa, Cocoa farmers clear tropical forests to plant new cocoa trees instead of reusing land. This has lead to massive deforestation in West Africa, and it is estimated that nearly 70% of the country’s illegal deforestation is related to cocoa farming.
Anonymous said…
Wow! This was a very interesting read and something I would have definitely not expected to learn about ice cream. I further researched this topic and found that 10% of all milk produced in the US goes towards making ice cream; this makes 872 million gallons of ice cream per year! Thus, palm oil is in high demand and this in turn destroys forests to provide for products that we love such as ice cream. To promote sustainability, WWF created the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) in 2004 which develops standards for industries to follow to promote biodiversity and conserve natural resources. As of 2015, 20% of the world’s palm oil was deemed sustainable by the RSPO.
Anonymous said…
The detrimental environmental impact of ice cream is similar to that of almond milk. The new trend of almond milk is sweeping the nation, but this new super food has a huge environmental footprint. It takes 1.1 gallons of water to grow just one almond. And it takes about 100 gallons of water for only 100mL of actual almond milk. Not only that, 80% of the worlds almonds are produced in California, which has the worst drought seasons. To battle the high water demands for farming almonds, farmers have started drilling thousands of feet into aquifers, threatening vital infrastructure such as bridges, roads and irrigation canals.
Anonymous said…
Strikingly similar to your worrisome scenario of ice cream is beef production. According to the National Resources Council, each kilogram of beef produced emits five times as much CO2 than chicken or turkey. Moreover, cultivating cows requires twenty-eight times more land than pork or chicken; thus beef production is highly costly to the environment and to the manufacturer. The UN Food & Agricultural Organization claims that approximately 16% of greenhouse gas emissions originate from animal agriculture, 65% of which constitutes beef and dairy cattle. Unfortunately, there is a large demand for beef products in the United States. So the only pragmatic way to counter this is to issue a per-unit tax on beef—which will decrease beef consumption. Advertisement and awareness campaigns can also educate consumers on the costly environmental effects of beef production.
Anonymous said…
You make a really good point. I never thought about how simple things like ice cream impact the environment, because I never thought they really could. Also, I’ve heard about the negative environmental impacts plastic shopping bags have, yet I continue to use them. When we become educated about the detrimental effects of the, as you said, trivial everyday things in our lives, we will become more concerned about our environment and how we are contributing to its destruction. Using reusable shopping bags and switching to more environmentally friendly ice cream, such as vegan ice cream, are just two small things we can do to improve the health of our environment.
Anonymous said…
Sadly, carbon dioxide emmisions are a very common thing nowadays. Despite this, I never expected our beloved treat, ice cream, to be involved in the production of it. I reasearched more about this topic, and it turns out that people in China are eating and drinking nearly 68 pounds of dairy a person per year. Because of the increase in dairy consumption, Greenhouse gas emissions have skyrocketes and environments have been degraded. If consumption patterns do not change, greenhouse gas emissions for dairy livestock will increase by 35% by 2050, along with nitrogen pollution increasing by 48%. This is scary as excess greenhouse gases lead to overheating of the earth, while nitrogen pollution can limit our ability to breathe, and limit visibility. We need to take action against this monstrosity, and cut back on ice cream/ dairy production.
Anonymous said…
This is such an eye opening post! We, both as students and members of society, are frequently warned of often the most obvious dangers such as fossil fuel combustion, air pollution, water contamination, and littering — the list goes on and on. We are taught to turn off the faucet when brushing, to throw paper in the recycling bin (rather than the garbage can), to bring one’s own bags to the grocery store, and to even choose biodegradable packaging over plastic. It is interesting to know that even the most environmentally conscious individual might not consider the detriments of the production of certain, enjoyable foods — in this case, ice cream. I believe this post does bring awareness to the fact that even the most enjoyable of food products can be a source of great harm to our environment. However, like other means of sustainable living, eco-friendly ice cream brands may not the best for the wallet. In an ideal world, eco-friendly brands might be more budget-friendly, but because many sustainable ice cream brands are also organic and adhere to sustainable production practices, their prices are often higher than other generic ice cream brands. For example, 1.5 quarts of vanilla Alden’s Ice Cream (an organic, eco-friendly brand) is widely sold for $12.95, while 2 quarts of vanilla Blue Bell Ice Cream is only $5.88. So, sustainable ice cream brands may not be the best option for those who want a sweet treat while on a budget.
Anonymous said…
I suppose that the best way to describe how I feel after reading your post is taken aback. Such a wholesome, universal treat with such detrimental impacts. The way you presented ice cream urges me to consider where my food comes from in more depth. I decided to research which ice cream brands are "sustainable", and was pleased with the results. A Scottish brand, "Mackie's of Scotland" is committed to producing every tub of their ice cream with renewable wind energy. Better known here in the USA, Ben & Jerry's has created a bio-digester to convert 40% of the factory waste products into energy. Initiatives like these will revolutionize the food industry and, perhaps, help save the world.
Anonymous said…
I am truly surprised after reading your post. Who knew that such a favorite and refreshing treat could have such a devastating impact on the environment? I decided to look at some other foods that could also result in unsustainable use of resources and I came up with avocados. Although avocados are extremely nutritious and healthy for human consumption, the increasing demand for avocados in the US has encouraged farms, such as those in Mexico, to increase the size of their farms through deforestation, which then lead to more greenhouse emissions into the atmosphere. Simple foods like ice cream and avocados have complex environmental consequences that I had no idea about before this post. Next time I go to the grocery store, I'll make sure to prioritize sustainable brands so I can minimize my impact on the environment.
Anonymous said…
Wow! Who would've thought a simple food such as ice cream could cause so much damage to our enviornment? I have never viewed ice cream as being detrimental to our enviornment, but rather a nice treat to have on a hot summer day. I did more reasearch on the topic of ice cream harming our enviiornment, and I found that there are 1013 grams of CO2e emitted per pint of ice cream from Ben and Jerry's. Furthermore, the avergae American eats close to 22 pints of ice cream per year; therefore the avergae American contributes to 22,286 grams of CO2e being emitted per year. So by consuming less sustainable brands of ice cream, we have been harming our enviornment while enjoying what we thought was a harmless treat.
Anonymous said…
Unfortunately, due to increased construction and pollution, these CO2 emissions have become rather common. Despite this I never expected that ice cream, a treat everyone longs for on a hot summer day, could be involved and have a large role in this issue. I was really interested in this issue the role that dairy plays, so I did some more research. I learned that with this increased concentration of milking cows comes a corresponding increased concentration of manure production. This excess manure production can travel into aquifers and other water sources through runoff. This not only only pollutes these sources but can also affect the animals who rely on these sources. For instance, in February, a stormwater system failure at a dairy with a one million gallon manure lagoon spilled manure into nearby waterways an, as a result, polluting them. After learning and reading about all of this, I don't think I will be able to eat ice cream again without thinking about what negative effects it has on our environment. This was truly an eye-opening post.
Anonymous said…
I never really thought about how much something like ice cream could be harming our environment, so this post was extremely interesting. This dessert is so common and I often see plastic spoons dropped on the ground outside ice cream places. These plastic spoons are terrible for the environment as they take a long time to decompose. If they get into the water, sea animals may mistakenly eat in, causing death or health issues. As I researched more foods that were bad for the environment as well, I learned that rice — one of the most common foods around the world — harms the environment. Rice paddies contribute largely to the production of methane gas on earth. Since rice is one of the most produce crops in the world, methane gas has increased rapidly along with growing population. Along with this increase in methane gas, rising temperatures have occurred. Never would I have known that something so simple as rice could have such implications on our environment.
Anonymous said…
I was so surprised to read that something so unassuming such as ice cream had such a detrimental impact on the environment and that the production process of ice cream was also detrimental to itself. I researched palm oil and discovered that palm oil is present in many other everyday items. Things such as bread, soap, shampoo, detergent, instant noodles, etc all contain palm oil. Additionally it is hard to tell if something contains palm oil because palm oil isn't always clearly labelled. Many times palm oil appears under different names and derivatives. Fortunately, RSPO, an organization that was founded in 2004, has made it their objective to promote the use of sustainable palm oil products and label products that are made with sustainable palm oil with a green palm symbol.
Anonymous said…
I was shocked to find out that something so delicious had such a negative impact on the environment. Ben and Jerry’s effort to decrease their carbon footprint may encourage other companies to decrease their carbon footprints. Upon further research I discovered that Apple has been working very hard over the past few years to decrease their carbon footprint. The Antea Group reports that 77% of Apple’s carbon footprint comes from the production of iPhones. Over the past few years Apple has installed 485 megawatts of wind and solar energy, combined with other measures managed to reduce their carbon footprint by 585,000 metric tons (equivalent to 125,268 cars). Hopefully, large companies will follow Ben & Jerry’s and Apple’s example and put a greater emphasis on sustainable production of household items.
Anonymous said…
I was wondering the same thing because being environmentally friendly isn't something that you normally see advertised by ice cream brands. I was also wondering how specifically these brands you mentioned worked to be environemtnally sustainable through their practices and foung some interesting facts. Alden's, for instance, uses only organic ingredients without any growth hormones or antibiotics. They also try to support local farms, which is why most of their farms are based in Oregon so they don't have to outsource to other countries and waste resources shipping products to the US. Its nice to see that there are ice cream companies willing to put in some extra effort for the environemtn!
Anonymous said…
I completely agree with you, I feel that humanity today has become numb to the fact that little things like ice cream can hurt our environment in order to feed our own ambitions, whether that’s for big companies to make money or us, people, who want to satisfy our tastebuds. I never would have thought that a simple dessert like ice cream could have such a harmful impact to our environment. It was even more eye opening when you stated that palm oil is not just in ice cream but in candy bars to shampoos. It made me become more conscientious about what goes into the foods we eat to items we use on a daily basis and whether they have a detrimental effect to our environment.
Anonymous said…
It’s amazing to think that so many simple things that we use on a daily basis can be a huge impact on our environment for future generation. Hopefully over time many others follow the steps of these companies to help save the environment one small step at a time. Similarity, if this information was brought out to the whole public, perhaps we can take an even bigger step towards helping the environment as many do not know the damage small things can impact.
Anonymous said…
I can also be counted as surprised at the environmental impact ice cream has, but upon reading the explanation why, it seems quite obvious as to why. The foods we see as staples in life certainly have impacts that we take for granted due to how prevalent lay consumed they are. To take a leaf out of the book of our mammalian cousins, I believe less dairy and, more specifically, meat consumption should be reduced in everyone’s diet. Chimpanzees and Bonobos are considered to be most closely related to human beings, and both chimpanzees and bonobos eat minimal amounts of meat in their diets. Humans may have adapted to more meat consumption than either of these other hominini members, but we certainly don’t need to eat as much meat as we do. Reduced consumption is both healthier, and more environmentally friendly, as a more plant-based diet requires less resource consumption to sustain.

Popular posts from this blog

Neel Sheth- Genetic Engineering on Food

Air Pollution Blog by Harrison Cui