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Eating for a Better Planet

Age 11 to 16
Challenge Level Yellow star
  • Problem
  • Getting Started
  • Teachers' Resources

Look at the cards below.  

Use the cards to answers these questions:

  1. Arrange the 9 foods in ascending order of emissions per portion.
  2. Without doing any calculations, try to put them in ascending order of emissions per calorie.
  3. Use a calculator to check your ordering.

Do the same for litres of water per gram of protein.

Which other measures could you use to order the foods?  Which do you think is the "best" food?

You can download a complete set of cards, and use them to play "Top Trumps".

You can find more information about the cards here.  

This problem is based on the work done by Sarah Bridle and her colleagues at "Take a Bite out of Climate Change".

You can hear about Sarah Bridle's mathematical journey in this "The Life Scientific" podcast

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The NRICH Project aims to enrich the mathematical experiences of all learners. To support this aim, members of the NRICH team work in a wide range of capacities, including providing professional development for teachers wishing to embed rich mathematical tasks into everyday classroom practice.

NRICH is part of the family of activities in the Millennium Mathematics Project.

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