One small swap. Big climate win.
What if a tiny weekly habit change saved more CO₂ over a year than flying from Manchester to Milan?
Sounds extreme... but it’s real
(we’ve got the stats to prove it).
No guilt, just results.
It’s not your car. It’s not your energy supplier.
It’s your dinner.
Swap one beef meal for chicken each week and, over a year, you’ll beat the emissions of a return flight Manchester to Milan...That’s like wiping out 1300 driving miles.
(Ofgem & DESNZ, 2023; Aviation Environment Federation, 2023; Poore & Nemecek, 2018)
Surprising? Please share it, someone else might be looking for a place to start!
add two more tweaks...
1. Switch to a green-energy tariff = one free call.
2. Halve weekly meat (700 g to 350 g).
Together, these three moves cut as much CO₂ as driving 75 % less all year ... no car sacrifice required.
(Ofgem & DESNZ, 2023; Scarborough et al., 2014; Poore & Nemecek, 2018; Brand, 2020)
The more of us who know, the bigger the impact
Bonus step · Animal welfare + bigger climate win
Ready to go further ?
Swap all red & white meat for fish only and you’ll save about 1.2t CO₂ a year, the same as driving 5100 miles or skipping four short haul flights.
Go fully plant-based? That’s 1.5 t CO₂, more than five short haul flights.
(Scarborough et al., 2014; AEF, 2023; Brand, 2020)
why i built this?
Climate advice often feels either vague or overwhelming. I crunched the data instead, ranking everyday changes by real impact versus effort. If it helps you, please share it on. It really could make a difference.
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I am swapping one beef meal a week for chicken and over a year that saves more CO2 than a short haul return flight. Small changes add up.
https://oneplateoneplanet.com/
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Share 2:
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I found 3 simple lifestyle changes that save as much CO2 as driving 75 percent less all year no car sacrifice required.
https://oneplateoneplanet.com/
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I found one diet change that can cut up to 1.5 tonnes of CO2 a year more than four or five short haul flights. https://oneplateoneplanet.com/
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All the data
| Action (per adult, per year) | CO₂-cut (t) | ≈ car-miles* | Difficulty** | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Switch to 100 % renewable-electricity tariff | 0.30¹ | 1300 mi | Very Easy | Ofgem & DESNZ, 2023 |
| 2. Swap one beef dinner to chicken (125 g, weekly) | 0.30² | 1300 mi | Very Easy | Poore & Nemecek, 2018 |
| 3. Cut total meat 50 % (700 g → 350 g weekly) | 0.91³ | 3900 mi | Easy | Scarborough et al., 2014 |
| 4. Lower thermostat 2 °C in winter | 0.14⁷ | 600 mi | Easy | Economist Impact, 2022 |
| 5. Shift from high-meat to fish-eater diet | 1.20⁴ | 5100 mi | Medium | Scarborough et al., 2014 |
| 6. Cut edible food waste 50 % | 0.18⁵ | 800 mi | Medium | WRAP, 2023 |
| 7. Buy second-hand or refurbished clothes | 0.30⁶ | 1300 mi | Medium | WRAP, 2020 |
| 8. Avoid one long-haul return flight (London–NY, economy) | 0.67 / 1.80⁹ | 2900–7700 mi | Medium | AEF, 2023 |
| 9. Loft insulate to modern spec | 0.25¹⁰ | 1100 mi | Medium | Energy Saving Trust, 2024 |
| 10. Avoid one short-haul return flight (Manchester to Milan, economy, return) | 0.26¹⁴ | 1200 mi | Medium | AEF, 2023 |
| 11. Go fully plant-based (high-meat to vegan) | 1.50⁸ | 6400 mi | Medium/Hard | Scarborough et al., 2014 |
| 12. Replace half of < 5 mi car trips with an e-bike | 0.30¹¹ | 1300 mi | Medium-Hard | Philips et al., 2022 |
| 13. Install an air-source heat-pump (replace gas boiler) | 0.90¹² | 3900 mi | Hard | UK Parliament, 2023 |
| 14. Live car-free (public / active travel) | 2.00¹³ | 8600 mi | Very Hard | Brand, 2020 |
Full footnotes & methodology: View the doc
references
Office of Gas and Electricity Markets. (n.d.). Average gas and electricity use explained. https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/information-consumers/energy-advice-households/average-gas-and-electricity-use-explainedDepartment for Energy Security and Net Zero. (2024). Greenhouse Gas Reporting: Conversion Factors 2024 – Methodology paper (Table 8, “For electricity CONSUMED” total, 2022 row). https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66a9fe4ca3c2a28abb50da4a/2024-greenhouse-gas-conversion-factors-methodology.pdfPoore, J., & Nemecek, T. (2018). Reducing food’s environmental impacts through producers and consumers. Science, 360(6392), 987–992. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.aaq0216Economist Impact. (2022, August 18). Data point: What difference can one degree make in the middle of an energy crisis? https://impact.economist.com/sustainability/net-zero-and-energy/data-point-what-difference-can-one-degree-make-in-the-middle-of-an-energyScarborough, P., Appleby, P. N., Mizdrak, A., Briggs, A. D. M., Travis, R. C., Bradbury, K. E., & Key, T. J. (2014). Dietary greenhouse-gas emissions of meat-eaters, fish-eaters, vegetarians and vegans in the UK. Climatic Change, 125(2), 179–192. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-014-1169-1Waste & Resources Action Programme. (2023). Household food and drink waste in the United Kingdom 2021-22: Key findings. https://www.wrap.ngo/resources/report/household-food-and-drink-waste-united-kingdom-2021-22Waste & Resources Action Programme. (2020). Valuing our clothes: The cost of UK fashion. https://www.wrap.ngo/sites/default/files/2020-10/WRAP-valuing-our-clothes-the-cost-of-uk-fashion_WRAP.pdfAviation Environment Federation. (2023). Flight CO₂ calculator comparison: ICAO, myclimate & Atmosfair. https://www.aef.org.uk/uploads/2022/05/AEF-Report-Raising-the-Visibility-5-Sept-2019.pdfEnergy Saving Trust. (2024). Making home energy improvements with net zero in mind: Loft insulation. https://energysavingtrust.org.uk/making-home-energy-improvements-with-net-zero-in-mind/Philips, I., Anable, J., & Chatterton, T. (2022). Potential CO₂ savings from replacing car travel with e-bikes in England. Active Travel Studies, 2(1), Article 4. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0967070X21003401UK Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology. (2023). Heat pumps (POSTnote 523). https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/POST-PN-0699/POST-PN-0699.pdfBrand, C. (2020). The climate-change mitigation impacts of active travel: Evidence from a longitudinal panel study and life-cycle assessment. Journal of Transport & Health, 19, 100873. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/348615252TheclimatechangemitigationimpactsofactivetravelEvidencefromalongitudinalpanelstudyinsevenEuropeancities