BBC NEWS | Science/Nature | Quiz: How green is your food?

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Last Updated: Wednesday, 24 November, 2004, 12:20 GMT

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Quiz: How green is your food?

Are there pesticide traces in your chips?

Food scares, health fears, foot-and-mouth, organics and pesticides - what we eat is never far from the news.
But how much do you know about the environmental costs behind the nosh on your plate?

Test your knowledge with our quiz.

Question 1

Environmentalists are concerned about the distances fresh food is transported over. What is the energy used in importing a kilogram of fresh spinach from California to the UK equivalent to?


	A: Running a 100 watt light bulb for a year


	B: Running a 100 watt light bulb for a month


	C: Running a 100 watt light bulb for a fortnight


	D: Running a 100 watt light bulb for a week

Question 2

It takes 3.5 times as much of what to produce a litre of non-organic milk compared to a litre of organic milk?


	A: Energy


	B: Water


	C: Fertiliser


	D: Land

Question 3

Out of 48 samples of chips bought from British fish and chip shops analysed in British government tests, how many contained traces of pesticides?


	A: 7


	B: 15


	C: 23


	D: 36

Question 4

Swathes of Indonesian and Malaysian forest have been replaced with palm oil plantations in recent decades � what food is palm oil NOT used in?


	A: Cakes


	B: Peanut butter


	C: Marshmallows


	D: Ice-cream


	E: Coffee creamer

Question 5

A typical British family of four emits 4.2 tonnes of the greenhouse gas carbon dioxide from their house each year and 4.4 tonnes from their car. How much is emitted from the production, packaging and distribution of the food they eat?


	A: 1 tonne


	B: 2 tonnes


	C: 4 tonnes


	D: 8 tonnes

Question 6

Britons spend $1bn every year on organic food � but how much of it is grown in Britain?


	A: About 90%


	B: About 60%


	C: About 25%


	D: About 10%

Question 7

Antibiotics are often given to farm animals to keep them healthy. But why does heavy use of these substances cause concern?


	A: It may lead to the development of drug-resistant pathogens which could get into our food


	B: Antibiotics may cause meat to become slightly carcinogenic


	C: Antibiotics passed out in animal manure can affect a rare species of European bird


	D: All of the above

Question 8

How much savannah and forest land in South America is likely to be lost by 2020 to meet increasing global demand for soya?


	A: An area the size of Wales


	B: An area the size of Belgium


	C: An area the size of the UK


	D: An area the size of Paraguay

Press the button and see how you have done

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A six-part series looking at the biggest problems facing the Earth

Introducing Planet Under Pressure

PART 4: FEEDING THE WORLD

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BBC News visits one of the hog factories springing up in Poland

Photojournal: Hog farmer

Quiz: How green is your food?

Viewpoints: Food for all?

OTHER SECTIONS

Part 1: Species under threat

Part 2: World water crisis

Part 3: Meeting energy demand

Part 5: Tackling pollution

Part 6: Facing climate change

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