University catering needs an urgent plant-based overhaul

Krattenmacher and colleagues submitted comment to the Lancet Planetary Health special issue journal calling to all universities to urgently revise their current food procurement and offer sustainable plant-based food to staff, students and visitors.(1)

Despite some universities beginning to procure foods that are beneficial for both human and planetary health, the majority continue to procure too many animal based foods with a high environmental footprint and foods with unfavourable nutritional profile.

The authors recommend that all universities need to transition their catering to align with the latest sustainable scientific evidence, which means a dramatic shift toward more healthful plant foods and reduction in their high reliance on animal foods.

They recommend that all universities should aim to halve the current animal-based food offerings within the next three years whilst increasing the healthful plant-based food offerings.

They recommend the following approaches to make this happen:

1. Ensure at least one affordable, satisfying and healthy plant-based option to be available daily

2. Improved information provision to students and staff about the healthfulness and environmental impact of the foods on offer

3. Actively encourage healthy sustainable eating patterns through nudging practices such as reducing the animal components in popular dishes and price incentives

The authors also emphasise the need to ensure that students and staff are involved in the decision making in order to support and help normalise changes thus making plant-based sustainable options more socially acceptable.

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