Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told students in Queens on Monday that they could help fight global warming by giving their “tummy a break!” and replace dairy and meat at breakfast with a banana and peanut butter:

Yesterday I visited a school assembly w/ teens in Queens. One of them asked, “What can WE do to combat climate change?” 2 recs:

– Skip disposable razors+switch to safety razors

– Give your tummy a break! Skip meat/dairy for a meal (easiest is bfast, I do banana & peanut butter) pic.twitter.com/BnAg4x5lGS — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 5, 2019

Except bananas are not a big domestic crop. From Wikipedia:

Commercial banana production in the United States is relatively limited in scale and economic impact. While Americans eat 26 pounds (12 kg) of bananas per person per year, the vast majority of the fruit is imported from other countries, chiefly Central and South America…

And the carbon cost of importing all of these bananas from across the globe is incredibly high. From World’s Top Exports:

Below are the top 15 suppliers from which America imported the highest dollar value worth of bananas during 2017. Within parenthesis is the percentage change in value for each supplying country since 2013. Guatemala: US$1.1 billion (up 27.4% from 2013)

Costa Rica: $502.5 million (up 16.9%)

Ecuador: $386.1 million (down -17.8%)

Honduras: $274.2 million (up 1%)

Mexico: $216.5 million (up 49.1%)

Colombia: $204.4 million (down -29.6%)

Peru: $45.7 million (up 166.3%)

Nicaragua: $15.7 million (down -17.4%)

Thailand: $5.2 million (up 84%)

Philippines: $2.7 million (down -38.1%)

Dominican Republic: $2.5 million (down -49.6%)

China: $1.4 million (down -34.5%)

El Salvador: $1.2 million (up 194.1%)

Chile: $808,000 (down -12.8%)

Sri Lanka: $554,000 (up 287.4%)

There’s actually a book titled, “How Bar Are Bananas,” that says if you’re worried about your carbon footprint like AOC is, she should switch to a domestic crop like oranges:

According to Mike Berners-Lee’s book How Bad Are Bananas, the carbon footprint of a banana is not particularly high for the average consumer; because bananas don’t necessary require heavy packaging, and they are also filling and nutrient-rich foods. However, this may not be true for the concerned consumer, who would do a lot better for the environment by buying oranges grown in the state next door instead. Bananas have to be flown into western countries which releases masses of CO2, and therefore significantly contributes to individual climate footprints. In addition to this, bananas are often packaged in plastic packaging, which is not only terrible for the environment, but is currently the only way most grocery stores choose to distinguish between fair trade bananas, organic ones, and cheap unethical ones.

Other tips from the celebrity Democratic socialist include the tried-and-true socialist techniques of buying old clothes, sharing clothes with friends and relying on the state for your transportation needs:

My other tips:

– Start incorporating thrift, consignment & second-hand clothes in your wardrobe (host a clothing swap w/ friends for a no-spend option)

– Walk, bike, & use public transit more often

– Bring your own bag/coffee mug. It’s okay if you forget, 1x/week is still a win — Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 5, 2019

She’s right! Just look at the carbon footprint of the average Venezuelan compared to the average American! They’re saving the planet!

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Related:

WHAT? Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez tries to defend honor of socialism after Trump invokes Venezuela at SOTU https://t.co/p6CCqQg1dA — Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) February 6, 2019