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The Climate Kitchen recognizes the need for an alternative to the industrial agriculture model, which involves the intensive production of crops, animals, and animal products and contributes significantly to the degradation of planetary health. As such, at the core of our sustainability tenets is highlighting sustainable and regenerative plant-based foods as the center of a meal. This also includes responsibly foraged (wild) foods, incorporating invasive species (e.g., garlic mustard, knotweed) as available/appropriate, and exploring other low-impact plant-driven protein sources (e.g., insects, algae).

A growing evidence base supports the need to shift to plant-based dietary patterns to meet planetary health goals. Plant-based diets are those that limit or omit animal-based foods and emphasize those that are plant-based ¹. A systematic review of studies and review articles examining the environmental footprint of human diets found that vegan dietary patterns have the lowest environmental impact compared to vegetarian and omnivorous diets. Vegan diets were found to minimize a range of impacts across the research, from water and land use to greenhouse gas emissions ². Other research supports the role of plant-based diets in mitigating climate and water crises, though indicates that reducing animal-based foods, rather than completely eliminating them, is as effective or more effective at reducing environmental impacts ^3,4. A wide range of efforts are underway to support the adoption of plant forward diets, from consumer facing campaigns such as Meatless Monday to legislation supporting plant-based meals in schools ^5,6. 

The Climate Kitchen has adopted a predominately plant forward approach, with 90% of the recipes taught in the Basic Concepts of Food course characterized as vegetarian or vegan. 

1.    WHO. Plant-Based Diets and Their Impact on Health, Sustainability and the Environment: A Review of the Evidence. (2021).

2.    Chai, B. C. et al. Which Diet Has the Least Environmental Impact on Our Planet? A Systematic Review of Vegan, Vegetarian and Omnivorous Diets. Sustainability 11, 4110 (2019).

3.    Kim, B. F. et al. Country-specific dietary shifts to mitigate climate and water crises. Global Environmental Change 62, 101926 (2020).

4.    Willett, W. et al. Food in the Anthropocene: the EAT–Lancet Commission on healthy diets from sustainable food systems. The Lancet393, 447–492 (2019).

5.    About Meatless Monday. The Monday Campaigns .

6.    Climate-Friendly School Food. Friends of the Earth .

The Climate Kitchen respects the wide range of eating preferences and needs across various populations. The Climate Kitchen also recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach may inhibit or contradict planetary health goals and takes a context-specific approach. Building alternative foods that respond to sensory preferences is thus a vital aim of the kitchen.

The growing evidence base supporting the need for a dietary transition toward more plant forward diets to achieve planetary health goals is complicated by the need to weigh a range of trade-offs. Recent research, for example, suggests that healthy and sustainable diets may be unaffordable for much of the world’s poor. A 2020 study found that the EAT-Lancet’s planetary health diet, a global benchmark diet aimed at supporting human and planetary well-being, would be unaffordable for 1.48 billion people ⁷. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations’ “State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024” report found that healthy diets would be financially out of reach for a third of the global population ⁸. Animal-based foods can also be an important component of food and nutrition security, particularly in for populations in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia ⁹. They can also be an important part of circular and diverse agri-food systems and have cultural, societal, and economic significance. When well-managed at appropriate scales and in accordance with local ecosystems and contexts, animal agriculture can also mitigate environmental impacts, support biodiversity, and restore degraded lands ^9,10. Numerous studies highlight the importance of accounting for cultural preferences, acceptability, heritage, traditions, and culinary practices in research on and initiatives to promote healthy and sustainable diets ^11–16. 

The Climate Kitchen emphasizes exploring culinary practices from across major cultural groups in the US and designing meals that utilize dietary guidelines and sustainability tenets.

The Climate Kitchen prioritizes collaborations with community groups and researchers on developing sensory awareness.

7.   Hirvonen, K., Bai, Y., Headey, D. & Masters, W. A. Affordability of the EAT–Lancet reference diet: a global analysis. The Lancet Global Health 8, e59–e66 (2020).

8.    FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2024 – Financing to End Hunger, Food Insecurity and Malnutrition in All Its Forms. .fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/cd1254en (2024) doi:10.4060/cd1254en.

9.    Beal, T. et al. Friend or Foe? The Role of Animal-Source Foods in Healthy and Environmentally Sustainable Diets. The Journal of Nutrition 153, 409–425 (2023).

10.  Leroy, F. et al. Animal board invited review: Animal source foods in healthy, sustainable, and ethical diets – An argument against drastic limitation of livestock in the food system. Animal 16, 100457 (2022).

11.  Burlingame, B. & Dernini, S. Sustainable Diets and Biodiversity: Directions and Solutions for Policy, Research and Action. .fao.org/4/i3004e/i3004e.pdf (2012).

12.  Clonan, A., Wilson, P., Swift, J. A., Leibovici, D. G. & Holdsworth, M. Red and processed meat consumption and purchasing behaviours and attitudes: impacts for human health, animal welfare and environmental sustainability. Public Health Nutrition 18, 2446–2456 (2015).

13.  Dernini, S. et al. Med Diet 4.0: the Mediterranean diet with four sustainable benefits. Public Health Nutr 20, 1322–1330 (2017).

14.  Donati, M. et al. Towards a sustainable diet combining economic, environmental and nutritional objectives. Appetite 106, 48–57 (2016).

15.  González-García, S., Esteve-Llorens, X., Moreira, M. T. & Feijoo, G. Carbon footprint and nutritional quality of different human dietary choices. Science of The Total Environment 644, 77–94 (2018).

16.  Johnston, J. L., Fanzo, J. C. & Cogill, B. Understanding Sustainable Diets: A Descriptive Analysis of the Determinants and Processes That Influence Diets and Their Impact on Health, Food Security, and Environmental Sustainability123. Adv Nutr 5, 418–429 (2014).

The Climate Kitchen aims to reduce and/or eliminate waste at every step of the food procurement and transformation process. From sourcing ingredients and materials with minimal packaging that is reusable and/or biodegradable, to utilizing preservation techniques (e.g., dehydrating, freezing, fermenting, etc.) and implementing a conscious procurement plan to reduce food waste, the Climate Kitchen is driven to design waste out. The establishment of a formal channel for the distribution of any surplus food (e.g., Rally Cats Cupboard) also plays a key role in the effort to eliminate waste. 

Approximately a third of all food produced around the globe is lost or wasted every year. This has significant and detrimental economic, environmental, and social impacts ¹⁷. Reducing food waste offers the opportunity to support farmers and businesses along the supply chain by saving money, would improve production efficiency and thus lessen the environmental burdens of food production, and contribute to greater food and nutrition security ¹⁷. Businesses, governments, non-profit organizations, scientists, and communities have demonstrated a growing interest in addressing food loss and waste given the potential benefits for humans and the planet ¹⁸. Relatedly, attention to food packaging waste is also growing as demand for and use of food packaging rises along with the global population. Plastics contribute to greenhouse gas emission at every stage of their lifecycle, from production and refining to waste management ¹⁹. Approximately 16% of all plastic production over the past 70 years is attributed to food and beverage packaging ²⁰, with much of the on-the-go and single use plastic packaging entering the environment unmanaged ²¹. They can persist for long periods and cause a wide range of issues, from clogging sewers and endangering animals that eat, choke, or get caught within them, to leaking toxic materials and hosting disease-causing pests ²¹. Minimizing food waste and limiting use of single use plastics and packaging are thus two essential strategies employed by the Climate Kitchen to support sustainability. 

In Climate Kitchen courses, students investigate the potential of clean, dehydrated, pulverized compost to create stock powder; dehydrating excess herbs and veggies and incorporating into recipes; and making stock from veggie scraps and chicken bones using foods from other lab recipes.

The Climate Kitchen has eliminated plastic wrap from the pantry and instead utilizes reusable options such as Bees Wrap.

17.  Principato, L., Mattia, G., Di Leo, A. & Pratesi, C. A. The household wasteful behaviour framework: A systematic review of consumer food waste. Industrial Marketing Management 93, 641–649 (2021).

18.  Schanes, K., Dobernig, K. & Gözet, B. Food waste matters - A systematic review of household food waste practices and their policy implications. Journal of Cleaner Production 182, 978–991 (2018).

19.  Hamilton, L. A. et al. Plastic & Climate: The Hidden Costs of a Plastic Planet. (2019).

20.  Schweitzer, J.-P. et al. Unwrapped: How Throwaway Plastic Is Failing to Solve Europe’s Food Waste Problem (and What We Need to Do Instead). (2018).

21.  Ncube, L. K., Ude, A. U., Ogunmuyiwa, E. N., Zulkifli, R. & Beas, I. N. An Overview of Plastic Waste Generation and Management in Food Packaging Industries. Recycling 6, 12 (2021).

The Climate Kitchen acknowledges the great number of resources involved in producing our food, and as such, the utilization of whole ingredients – “nose to tail” and “root to fruit” – is a key sustainability tenet. We aim to transform entire ingredients – including the parts that are not typically consumed (or even sold in grocery stores / markets) – to increase the amount of food available for human consumption and to decrease the ratio of resources/inputs needed per calorie. When it comes to animals and animal products, whole ingredient utilization is more important than ever, as the resources that went into producing them are wasted along with any parts that are not transformed. We encourage experimenting with techniques and flavors to promote whole food utilization.  

Interest in the circular economy is growing in response to the increasingly pressing need to address unsustainable levels resource use and depletion. A circular economy offers an alternative to the current economic model of production and consumption. Rather than a take, use, and dispose approach, a circular economy is aimed at minimizing waste through reuse, recycling, sharing, repairing, and repurposing products and materials. Circular systems can reduce environmental impacts, enhance natural resources, and increase economic benefits ²². The circular economy has caught the attention of governments, policy, and in scholarly communities. The European Union, for example, is working toward a zero-waste economy by 2025 ²³ and the number of academic papers on the circular economy published over the past several years has increased ten-fold ²⁴. In the culinary world, chefs are adopting a circular cooking approach to reduce waste, save on raw materials, and seize creative opportunities ²⁵. The Michelin Guide, a set of guide books that recognize culinary excellence by awarding prestigious stars to restaurants, introduced green stars in 2020 to highlight culinary leadership in sustainable practices, including limiting waste, reducing plastics, and working with sustainable supply chain ²⁶. 

The Climate Kitchen seeks to achieve this low-waste, circular vision by using whole ingredients from local sources and adapting recipes according to seasonal and fluctuating availability.

22.  Hamm, M. et al. Circular Economy Models in Agro-Food Systems: A Review. Sustainability 13, 3453 (2021).

23.  A New Circular Economy Action Plan for a Cleaner and More Competitive Europe. 1–20 (2020).

24.  Geissdoerfer, M., Savaget, P., Bocken, N. M. P. & Hultink, E. J. The Circular Economy – A new sustainability paradigm? Journal of Cleaner Production 143, 757–768 (2017).

25.  Maira. Four starred chefs compare notes on circular cooking. Circular Economy For Food (2024).

26.  What is a MICHELIN Green Star? MICHELIN Guide (2021).

The Climate Kitchen supports the shrinking of supply chains as a critical step in food system sustainability. Sourcing regionally and/or locally not only reduces the resource and carbon footprint of our food, but it also helps to support a resilient regional/local food system and promotes the regenerative production of food that is grown for taste and nutritional value rather than transportability/shelf life.

Local and regional foods are increasing seen and promoted as an important component of sustainable and resilient food systems ^27,28. Although there is no singular definition of “local,” it is generally understood as being within close geographic proximity to the consumer to the extent that the consumer is at least somewhat familiar with the place where the food is produced ^27,29. Regional is often understood to be the next smallest geographic unit compared to local. The terms local and regional food systems are often used interchangeably with short supply chains and self-sufficiency ²⁸. Although the climate impact of food systems is more influenced by dietary choices that emphasize plant forward foods ^30,31, “localness,” transportation, and seasonality all play a part in the carbon equation and meaningfully contribute to social and economic elements of sustainability. For example, research indicates local and regional food systems can support rural and economic development, promote a sense of community, and provide economic benefits for some farmers ^28,29. The United States Department of Agriculture recognizes the growing demand for local and regional foods and invests in a wide variety of programs to strengthen local food systems to foster job growth and resilient communities ³².

The Climate Kitchen pursues local and regional sourcing through purchasing seasonal ingredients from local producers, such as the Intervale Food Hub, and collaborates with Catamount Farm.

Research is underway to explore the possibility of using locally sourced spent grain to feed mealworms that are then transformed into high protein flour. 

27.  Enthoven, L. & Van den Broeck, G. Local food systems: Reviewing two decades of research. Agricultural Systems 193, 103226 (2021).

28.  Stein, A. J. & Santini, F. The sustainability of “local” food: a review for policy-makers. Rev Agric Food Environ Stud 103, 77–89 (2022).

29.  FoodPrint. Local and Regional Food Systems. FoodPrint (2024).

30.  Benis, K. & Ferrão, P. Potential mitigation of the environmental impacts of food systems through urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) – a life cycle assessment approach. Journal of Cleaner Production 140, 784–795 (2017).

31.  Ritchie, H., Rosado, P. & Roser, M. Environmental Impacts of Food Production. Our World in Data (2022).

32.  USDA. Local and Regional Food Systems. .