Beyond navigating what’s healthy and what’s not, conscientious diners increasingly consider which foods are good for the planet and which ones contribute to problems like global warming and insufficient supply. Here are five things to satisfy belly and conscience:

1. Embrace eco-friendly packaging. The hottest trend in the wine industry is wine in a box. This isn’t your grandma’s Franzia pink plonk. Juice box-like "TetraPaks," spigotted bag-in-a-box setups and even plastic bottles are estimated to result in as much as 85 percent less landfill waste than regular 750 ml glass bottles. Also, look for screw-capped or plastic-corked bottles and consider recycling your natural corks through programs like TerraCycle (mail corks to 121 New York Ave, Trenton, NJ 08638).

2. Consider energy in versus energy out. It takes 958 liters of water to make one liter of orange juice. And when buying fish, choose low-on-the-food-chain species like farm-raised tilapia, which provides more protein than it takes to raise it. (By contrast, farm-raised tuna or salmon eat far more protein than their own final weight). For a guide to smart fish choices, consult Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch (www.montereybayaquarium.org), which now offers a downloadable iPhone app.

3. Drink tap. Plastic leaching into water sources, overcrowded landfill — plastic water bottles cause all kinds of problems. Go to H2OConserve.org to calculate your water footprint.

4. Go veggie at least once a week. Meat production is so energy-intensive that studies indicate meat eaters cause a ton and a half more carbon dioxide emissions than vegetarians in the production and transportation of their food. It’s also healthy: The recommended daily allowance of meat is 5.5 ounces. Americans currently average 8.4 ounces per day. Visit meatlessmonday.com for ideas.

5. Exert pressure. Ask your favorite restaurant to consider new takeout packaging materials. There are cornstarch and potato starch disposable flatware and cups and recyclable paperboard that are nearly the same cost as those Styrofoam clamshells that are crowding landfills.

[photo Leo Reynolds]