SUSTENTABILIDADE E ESCOLHAS ALIMENTARES: compromisso individual com o meio ambiente

SUSTAINABILITY AND FOOD CHOICES: individual commitment to the environment

Abstract

The act of eating does not only meet the physiological and biological needs of living beings. Eating is a practice that connects a set of cultural, socioeconomic and, maybe surprisingly, environmental aspects - an often forgotten term when it comes to addressing the multifactorial nature of food choices. In this context, the purpose of this article resides in the fact that some implications of the simple act of eating are not easily observed and assimilated by the individual and need to be addressed in order to encourage reflection on how the human space is transformed by what is placed in the dish. The article exposes how much preferences and income levels directly influence the search for food, while emphasizing that the way to cover this demand will determine the induced impact on the base of natural resources. Aiming to build a path of individual commitment to the environment, the article indicates that gains in health and environmental sustainability go together when individuals are willing to pay attention to the importance of making better food choices. Lastly, some of the transformations in the Brazilian territory in the latter years are addressed, as well as possible, and alternatives to contain the environmental impacts that are so complex and interrelated to the agricultural action.