Fashion Food or Environmental Choice? The Sustainability of Soy

In environmental terms, soy is the darling of both the fashion world and the realm of food sustainability advocates. From the golden brown of miso to the glorious squishy whiteness of tofu, soy is a food that is ready to morph into so many different forms. Granted, it has gotten a bad rap from those who are concerned that it contains too many estrogen-like compounds. However, soy remains a staple of many cultures and of vegetable-lovers across the nations. But is it truly the right choice for environmental sustainability?

Is tofu sustainable? Well, yes and no, just like many foods. Soy is often genetically modified, which some might consider to be an environmental no-no. Genetic drift from human-modified crops can move into other fields, changing crops from a natural product to something that humans have tampered with. No points for environmental sustainability there unless you eat organic tofu.

However, if large quantities of imported, genetically-modified soy are replacing small quantities of low-impact meat in your diet, the jury might be out on the environmental sustainability front. Of course the welfare of animals is a concern, and for some people this is enough reason to move to a plant-based diet. For those who look to soy as a way to reduce carbon emissions and other environmental impacts, let's take a closer look.

Soy is a plant, so it gets brownie points there. Cows and chickens? Definitely not plants, but are they sustainable? Cows release methane, and grain-fed beef doesn't always make a lot of sustainable sense, because you're feeding crops to cows rather than eating the crops. Cows and chickens both create a lot of waste, and this waste can pollute local waterways if it is not managed properly. However, when the argument is between eating small quantities of a lower-impact meat like local chicken, does soy still win the environmental sustainability argument?

While soy looks good in the field when it is growing as soybeans, as it becomes more processed and packaged it becomes less environmentally sustainable. That processing takes energy, and it takes petroleum and energy to create little plastic tofu packages too. Since soy doesn't grow in every city, the soy may also travel a long way to get to the supermarket. Is soy the environmental option now? Perhaps. According to a Dutch study, soy uses approximately one-thirtieth of the fossil fuels that chicken production does, but this ratio grows a little closer to one on one as the soy becomes more processed.

Is soy the beacon of hope for environmental sustainability? Not necessarily, not if it is overpackaged and flown in from far away. However, less processed and more local soy is one of many solid options for reducing waste and lowering your carbon footprint.