The municipality of Albufeira announced that, three years after the implementation of the “Sustainable Dish” program in pre-school facilities and 1st cycle schools (September 2022 to June 2025), it was able to significantly reduce the environmental footprint of school meals. Throughout this period, about 190 thousand sustainable dishes were served in the 21 schools in the county that joined the initiative, according to data from the municipality.
The president of, José Carlos Rolo, explained that “the Portuguese consume four times more meat than is recommended, so this effort is extremely important to change family eating habits, starting precisely with the young people, by the children who attend our educational establishments.”
The mayor also stressed that the program was complemented with practical training actions of cooks responsible for making vegetable and workshops for parents and in charge of education, “which were very well accepted.”
The program “Sustainable dish” was boosted by ProVeg Portugala non -profit organization “that seeks to raise awareness of the importance of rich vegetable food, considering that a fairer, sustainable and healthier food system is part of an integrated and multidimensional solution.”
In the first year, for a day a week, and then once a month, a vegetable meal was made for all students, with legumes as the main protein source. This change allowed to increase the food diversity of school meals and reduce the environmental impact associated with animal foods.
Under the program, the Proveg Portugal conducted a study which concluded that the carbon footprint of dishes with vegetable protein source is, on average, twice lower to the footprint of meals made with animal protein; The water footprint is twice lower eo use I give alone 3.7 times lower. In total, it is estimated a savings of 162 tons of carbon, 22 million liters of water e 261 thousand square meters of soil.
“The positive impact is significant and highlights the role of food choices in the mitigation of climate change,” says the study responsible for scientific methodology that has allowed CO2eq emissions, water consumption and soil use associated with food production.
The sustainable dishes were inspired by Portuguese cuisine. For example, comparing a bolognese lentils with a meat bolognese, “lentils have 0.09 kg of CO2eq per portion, while cow meat is ~ 2.89 kg of co2eq per serving”.
Also read:
