Investigation of nutritional values of traditional elazig cuisine meals and determination of carbon footprint

Objective: This study aimed to analyze the nutritional values and carbon emissions of meals from Traditional Elazig Cuisine. Materials and Methods: In this descriptive study, a total of 71 meals from 10 different food groups representing Elazığ Cuisine were evaluated in terms of carbon footprint and nutritional content. Since there are no carbon footprint factors for foods specific to Turkey, carbon footprint calculations were calculated using the CCaLC2 program. Bebis program was used to analyze the nutritional values of the data. Descriptive statistics and Spearman correlation test were used to analyze the data. Results: In the study, the mean energy value of one portion of 71 meals evaluated in all food groups was 369.2±203.5 kcal, the mean carbohydrate value was 40.7±29.2 g, the mean protein value was 12.5±11.2 g, the mean fat value was 16.6±13.5 g, and the mean carbon footprint value was 0.39 CO2 equivalent/kg. The highest average energy content of pastry was 586.1±119.1 kcal. The food group with the highest carbon footprint value was main dishes 1.36 CO2 equivalent/kg, and the food group with the lowest carbon footprint value was others desserts 0.09 CO2E/kg. It was found that the carbon footprint value increased as the energy (r=0,449). In addition, the animal protein (r=0,708) content of foods was found to be the factor affecting the carbon footprint value the most (p<0,001). Conclusion: Elazig cuisine generally has a high carbon footprint due to its high animal content. These dishes may not be a healthy option due to their high energy, cholesterol and saturated fat content. However, the cuisine also includes foods such as legumes, cereals, vegetables and fruits, which provide a rich nutrient content for the cuisine and contribute to reducing the carbon footprint. Keywords: Carbon footprint, Nutritional values, Sustainability, Traditional Elazig Cuisine meals.