Idli and rajma, two most beloved dishes of South and North India respectively, are causing damage to biodiversity, a study revealed. Published in a journal called PloS One, idli and rajma are among the top 25 dishes across the globe that are causing the most damage.
The study was conducted to assess the biodiversity footprint of 151 popular dishes across the world and how they impact the ecosystem. Among them, idli stood on the sixth and rajma took the seventh position. Other delicacies included chana masala and chicken jalfrezi as well.
According to the researchers, dishes primarily containing legumes, beef and rice, have a direct and considerable impact on the biodiversity footprint. The study, led by Luis Romano Carrasco, Associate Professor of Biological Science at the National University of Singapore, assessed how the ingredients of the particular dishes affected the species richness, wild mammals, birds and amphibians in the cropland.
"The large impacts of legumes and rice in India was a surprise, but when you think about it, it makes sense. In our analysis, the biodiversity footprint represents the number of species that have been at least partially impacted to produce that dish. The biodiversity footprint gives us an idea of how many species we’re pushing closer to extinction by eating that dish," Carrasco said.
He also revealed that the biodiversity footprint is calculated by the number of species that have been at least partially impacted to produce that dish. It also gives an idea of how many species have been pushed to extinction due to that dish.
Meanwhile, dishes made with potato and wheat such were among those with the lowest biodiversity footprint, according to researchers. As per PTI, vegan and vegetarian dishes were found to have a consistent significantly lower biodiversity footprint compared to dishes containing meat, the researchers said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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