Diet Impact Calculator
“Going vegan saves the planet” is a slogan. This is the arithmetic behind it, for your week rather than an average one. Set what you actually eat, choose how much of it you would swap, and see the yearly difference.
Footprints are per-kilogram global averages from the Poore and Nemecek analysis of roughly 38,000 farms, and the driving comparison uses the EPA figure for a typical passenger vehicle.
A normal week, before any changes
Servings per week. Guess honestly rather than aspirationally.
What that avoids in a year
Where the saving comes from
| Swapped out | kg/year | CO2e saved | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Beef → tofu | 17.6 | 1701 kg | 68% |
| Cheese → tofu | 10.2 | 213 kg | 8% |
| Cow's milk → soy milk | 88.8 | 204 kg | 8% |
| Chicken → tofu | 29.4 | 203 kg | 8% |
| Pork → tofu | 11.8 | 109 kg | 4% |
| Farmed fish → tofu | 5.9 | 62 kg | 2% |
| Eggs → tofu | 13.0 | 22 kg | 1% |
Beef and lamb usually dominate this table even at small serving counts, which is why cutting them first buys most of the change for the least disruption.
These are global production averages, not your farm, your supplier, or your county. Real footprints vary by an order of magnitude between the best and worst producers of the same food, and freshwater withdrawal is a blunt measure that ignores whether the water was scarce where it was taken. Treat the ranking as reliable and the exact numbers as an estimate.
