Increasing Diet Sustainability Through Environmental, Economic, and Nutritional Factors in the DC–Maryland–Virginia Metropolitan Area

Abstract

Food systems account for a significant share of global greenhouse gas emissions, yet consumers lack integrated, location-contextualized guidance on how to balance environmental, nutritional, and economic factors simultaneously. Existing literature tends to address these three dimensions in isolation, and few studies anchor the analysis to a specific metropolitan area. This study evaluates nutritional, environmental, and economic trade-offs among commonly consumed foods using food prices collected from the Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia region. We collected price data from 10 grocery stores across several areas of the DMV, combined with national carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) life cycle assessment data, and USDA nutrition values for 25 selected staple food products. We then applied a Nutrient Rich Food Index (NRF) and a multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA) with equal weighting across nutrition, affordability, and environmental impact. Plant-based, low-cost foods like lentils, broccoli, and black beans emerged as the top-performing foods across all three metrics. Ground beef and salmon consistently scored the poorest environmentally and economically, though other animal products performed comparably to plant-based alternatives based on CO2e. These findings suggest that, for these 25 foods, healthier, more sustainable food choices can be achieved without high economic expenditure.