Ultra-processed foods, a danger for the environment

Translated by Alessandra Fumagalli 

We have often heard about ultra-processed foods or industrial food, but there is too much information and we are not able to understand and we are even more confused than ever. In this article we try to make it clear. 

Ultra-processed foods are the result of different industrial works (here comes the name “ultra-processed”) and they frequently contain lots of additives, like sugar, saturated fats, salt, aromas, food colorings, emulsifiers and other additives. Among the ultra-processed foods there are ready meals, frozen food, snacks, sweets, sugary drinks, lots of fast food products, spreadable creams, rusks, sauces, ready pizzas, würstel, hamburgers, ready soups, and fish sticks, that children love. Also some yogurts, biscuits, and cereals can belong to this group. 

But why are  ultra-processed foods so dangerous? 

This type of food is so dangerous for our health, because they are responsible for lots of illnesses, some of them are very severe: ultra-processed foods are responsible for lots of invalidities, which affect industrialized countries' populations. Without even counting the food imbalance that rises in the differences between the poorest and the richest, we can only think about the fact that those who are economically poorer are the one who are at the highest risk of obesity, because they rely on ultra-processed foods and they eat unhealthy foods. 

Foods with too many additives, often industrially made, that are nothing but natural, are foods that satisfy the sight and palate, but they actually don’t feed and are dangerous both for our organism and for the environment. 

If we think, inside a food that undergoes long transformation’s processes, there is more chemistry than food, we add, and then remove, we use proteins and other substances, we add aromas and food coloring in order to make the food tastier and finally we have a laboratory-made product: this can not be consider food. 

Here we also put in danger nature, ourselves and beautiful and fragile ecosystems. Ultra-processed foods are not environmentally friendly, they are even responsible for a degradation of our environment and its natural resources and also a worsening of our quality life. The dangers to the environment are indeed a lot, like deforestation, air pollution and the excessive use of hydric resources. 

Everything pollutes our environment, but also animals and humans too. Let’s think about plastic, and about every potentially dangerous substance that is in these foods and all the “real” food that is wasted, while we pretend to be healthy with something that has nothing healthy and nutritive. 

Every emissions of climate-altering gasses, that come from ultra-processed food endanger environmental problems, making our world more polluted, our lives more insecure and these are foods which undergo long and complex industrial processes, which result in rising the differences between the richest and the poorest, and the food insecurity of those who are economically fragile and can not afford healthy food. 

Ultra-processed food contain “preservatives, because they have to last longer; sweeteners, because some sweet in our sour life is something that calm us; aromas and sensory enhances, because they release dopamine at each bite; food coloring in order to have an happy and bright color; technological aids, in order to obtain a likable consistency and sensation; vitamins and minerals, so that it is written on the labels and the sense of guilt can be reduced”. This makes us and the environment poorer, because it still suffers. But if we want, we can help it and we can do it while we eat, choosing healthy food and respecting the seasonality. 

In conclusion, eating healthier, preferring fresh and regional food, respecting food seasonality is a favor not only for our body and our health, but also for the environment, and it will be a gift for future generation. 

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