Until now, a lot of information is known about the environmental impact of what we eat, much less about what we drink. Recent research by Milieucentraal has shown the climate impact of different types of drinks. Here we have tips for climate-friendly drinking per drink.
Water:
Drink tap water rather than bottled water.
If you drink bottled water, reuse your bottle and hand it in separately when discarded.
Tea:
Make tea to measure (don't boil more water than necessary).
Do you drink tea regularly? Then opt for tea with as little packaging as possible.
If you are brewing tea with loose leaves:dose according to the size and rinse the tea infuser with cold water (and not under warm running water).
Do not rinse the leaves down the sink
Dispose of tea bags with the residual waste (there is plastic in them)
Coffee:
Make custom coffee:do not make more coffee than you drink.
Switch off equipment in time (if necessary, pour coffee into a thermos).
Limit the amount of milk in your coffee .
If you drink milk in your coffee, use a plant-based dairy substitute instead of cow's milk.
Do you drink coffee regularly? Then opt for coffee with as little packaging as possible.
Dispose of used coffee filters and coffee grounds with the organic waste, but Senseo pads and coffee cups are part of the residual waste.
Do not rinse coffee grounds down the sink. It sticks to the sewer pipe walls, and clogs things up.
If you sometimes have visitors who drink milk in the coffee, but if you don't do that yourself, opt for evaporated milk in a (single) cup to prevent you from Large amounts of coffee creamer (from a glass bottle) must be thrown away because of mold.
Use your coffee cups:Use refillable cups and rinse them with cold water (and not under warm running water). If you use ready-made cups, hand them in to the brand's return system (if there is one) and otherwise throw it away in the residual waste. Even if it says that it is compostable.
Dairy and dairy substitutes:
Do not drink more dairy than necessary. See the Wheel of Five of the Nutrition Center for what is needed.
Buy tailor-made (almost a quarter of the dairy at home is wasted).
Plant-based dairy substitutes have a lower climate impact than animal dairy (but not same health gain as animal dairy). If you opt for a vegetable replacement, it is best to choose one with sufficient protein (20% of the energy from protein) and added calcium (≥ 80 mg/100 g) and vitamin B12 (≥ 0.24 mcg/100 g) and with preferably less than 6 g sugar/100 g.
Juice:
Preferably buy juice in drinks carton instead of glass bottles (non-deposit). In terms of climate impact, juice in PET bottles is somewhere between juice in glass bottles and juice in beverage cartons.
Dispose of packaging separately.
When you make smoothies yourself, you limit dairy consumption (if you already drink enough dairy ) and check the Vegetable and Fruit Calendar of Milieu Centraal for the most environmentally friendly fruit and vegetables.
From a health point of view, it is recommended to drink as little juice as possible.
Soda:
Buy tailor-made:bulk packaging (preferably PET bottle with a deposit) is relatively more climate-friendly, but the climate gains are lost if you have to throw away soft drinks because you can't finish it. Then it is better to buy smaller packaging.
Hand in packaging separately.
From a health point of view, it is recommended to drink as little soft drinks as possible.
Beer:
Preferably choose (Western European) lager from returnable bottles.
Preferably choose lager over specialty beer.
Deliver packaging separately.
From a health point of view, it is recommended to drink as little beer as possible.
Wine:
Preferably buy bag-in-box wine, provided the purchased volume is not too much, causing you to waste wine.
Have you opened a bottle of wine, but not empty:opened wine has a longer shelf life if you vacuum and store it in the refrigerator.
If you buy wine in a glass bottle, make sure to separate the empty bottle.
From a health point of view, it is recommended to drink as little wine as possible.
NB:It is impossible to say whether it is better to buy white or red wine or conventional or organic wine if you want to take the climate into account. The variation in climate impact between the same types of wine is greater than the differences between them.
