Betty Bossi and ZHAW make the environmental compatibility of recipes visible

Betty Bossi is the first company in Switzerland to use a scientifically based scale for the environmental sustainability of recipes. The innovative evaluation model was developed together with the Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) on the basis of the recognized Menu Sustainability Index. The total environmental impact of around 3,000 recipes on bettybossi.ch was automatically calculated using the life cycle assessment and awarded a scale.

Conscious choice of food thanks to simple orientation

The scale provides users with easy-to-understand guidance and enables them to make more conscious food choices. They recognize how suitable and attractive an environmentally friendly diet is for everyday use. Green Betty has the potential to effectively change cooking behavior in Switzerland and have an impact on the environment. Food accounts for more than a quarter of our personal environmental impact, and the Betty Bossi website receives 4.8 million visits every month.

Betty Bossi is constantly developing this initiative so that the range of environmentally friendly recipes on offer continues to grow. In addition, the in-house recipe editorial team uses the new evaluation model to take the environmental impact into account when creating new recipes.

Life cycle assessment as the basis for evaluation

The five-level scale is based on the ingredients and quantities per portion. The overall environmental impact is measured using the ecological scarcity method. This summarizes various environmental impacts, including greenhouse gas emissions, land and water consumption, scarcity of raw materials and energy use along the entire food chain. The Green Betty scale also takes into account the seasonality of the ingredients; each recipe is recalculated and updated on a monthly basis.

The lowest score on the scale is for recipes that are less environmentally friendly than the current average per meal in Switzerland. The highest score is given to recipes whose environmental impact does not exceed the planetary boundaries and are therefore very environmentally friendly. The Green Betty Scale makes it clear that even small decisions in the kitchen can have a big impact.

Science meets everyday practice

The collaboration between Betty Bossi and the ZHAW translates scientific findings into easily understandable and directly applicable information. "The scale is based on a comprehensive assessment of environmental impact, makes complex relationships understandable and shows how a diet within planetary boundaries can be implemented in everyday life," emphasizes Matthias Stucki, lecturer and head of the Life Cycle Assessment research group at the ZHAW.

"With Green Betty, we are making sustainable cooking visible and easy to implement - with a desire to try things out and without pointing a finger," explains Lars Feldmann, Managing Director of Betty Bossi. Green Betty is thus setting a new standard in the environmental declaration of recipes.