On: MIT Media Lab Scientist Used Refugees to Tout Food...

[ClumsyPilot]

Carbon footprint of growing tomatoes in the wrong climate is like 4x higher than growing it in the right climate and transporting it. Heating is one of the most power consuming activities in the world. The research has been done. The result can also be estimated numerically, carbon intensity of transport and of heating are well known.

http://shrinkthatfootprint.com/food-miles

[TeMPOraL → ClumsyPilot]

Thanks for the link. The results presented surprised me.

WRT. tomatoes, I'm not an expert, but in colder climates, don't they grow in greenhouses? Greenhouses should have zero operational carbon footprint.

[xsmasher → TeMPOraL]

In colder climates you must heat the greenhouse, which probably generates CO2. I say "probably" because a heat pump run on renewables is possible, but not likely.

[ClumsyPilot → xsmasher]

Yes, heating is the key issue. While elaborate setups are possible, there are more productive ways to apply that effort.