Sustainable food systems: EU Food Policy Coalition calls for minimum criteria for public canteens

19 Jul 2024 --- The EU Food Policy Coalition (FPC), bringing together civil society organizations (consumers’ associations, environmental NGOs and more) representing food systems-related causes and farmers, poses seven actionable propositions to establish mandatory, minimum standards for public canteens across the EU in a manifesto. Its call is part of Buy Better Food, a large ongoing campaign for the sustainable public procurement of food, aiming to improve public health and access to nutrition.

“The manifesto demands greater harmonization among the different governance levels that affect public procurement and encourages the best practice of market engagement before the creation of tenders. It calls for policymakers to realize and implement the full potential of public procurement as a lever for food system transformation,” the EU FPC tells Nutrition Insight.

“Sustainable public food procurement is indeed considered a low-hanging fruit measure for the sustainable food system transition. We also expect local governments, both at the national and local levels, to support measures that, for some, are already in place. Both France and Italy, for instance, have already adopted minimum mandatory standards, and their implementation clearly shows the significant health, social and environmental benefits.”

As part of its Buy Better Food campaign, the coalition also highlights the importance of solidarity among member states and mutual encouragement to improve the quality of their public canteens to improve their national food systems.

Key recommendations
In its manifesto, the coalition presents seven pillar policy recommendations on using public procurement for food system transformation.

Solidarity among member states and mutual encouragement to improve the quality of their public canteens to improve their national food systems is crucial.“Minimum mandatory food procurement criteria must go beyond GPP (Green Public Procurement) and consider environmental, social and health concerns. Criteria should be ambitious and progressive over time. National and international roundtables of procurement experts should accompany the definition of criteria,” the EU FPC details. 

“National dietary and nutrition guidelines should set ambitious goals and directions for public procurers of sustainable and healthy meals. The EU and the member states should provide financial and technical support.” 

“In line with the EU’s work to promote social economy enterprises, a socially responsible food procurement needs to encourage the presence of more farmers in rural areas and include the social economy and social cooperatives along the whole supply chain.”

 The last policy recommendation calls for the “clarification on the rules related to local food procurement to support sustainable, fair and short food supply chains and the local and regional food economy is necessary.”

What is a healthy food system?
Discussing the most significant issues in multilevel governance at the regional, national and local levels, the EU FPC’s Task Force on Public Procurement explains that “the main issue is the lack of coherence between different governance levels.” 

“At the EU level, there is a lack of clarity regarding what constitutes a healthy and sustainable food system. This clarity was expected to come with the European Commission’s 2023 Sustainable Food System Law Framework.”

“At the national level, the issues may differ. While Italy and France already have minimum standards, there is sometimes a lack of control over their application. In other countries, such as Poland, there is little to no guidance on how to improve public canteens.”

The task force adds that at the local level, the main problem is sometimes the need for knowledge and skills to draft inclusive and sustainable tenders capable of delivering healthy meals.

“What is clearly needed to tackle this issue is harmonization among the different policies affecting food procurement, political direction and knowledge sharing within and among member states.”

National dietary and nutrition guidelines should set ambitious goals and directions for public procurers of sustainable and healthy meals.Another example of lack of convergence concerns labeling in the different member states. “One of the things we realized during the work with the manifesto was that the lack of an EU method of production label on animal welfare is lacking, which is an obstacle for procuring more animal welfare friendly products.”

“The organic standard is the only harmonized standard in the EU that has some animal welfare criteria,” underscores the task force. “This makes a strong case for buying organic, in particular as we have seen the public demonstrate strong support for higher animal welfare through the European Citizens’ Initiative End the Cage Age and recent Eurobarometers that show a vast majority of EU citizens think farmed animals should be treated better.”

The “organic” label
There is a clear positive impact that organic public procurement can have on nutrition security and the resilience of food systems. The EU FPC further details the benefits of organic farming and how it converges with other good practices.

“From a health perspective, eating organic means protecting our health from the intake of residual synthetic chemicals present in pesticides and fertilizers used in conventional agriculture. It also means protecting farmers’ health from the negative impacts related to the use of pesticides and fertilizers in their everyday work.”

Another aspect of organic farming is the relationship with nature, as this type of agriculture works with, rather than against nature. “This type of agriculture sustains soil fertility, avoids groundwater pollution, and contributes to biodiversity within and beyond the fields.”

The task force explains that organic agriculture, small-holder farms and local farms do not always overlap. “Each, however, presents social, economic and environmental benefits, which become even greater when combined.” 

“In Europe, small-scale farmers are rapidly disappearing. Although not necessarily organic, due to their reduced size, small-scale farmers are less industrialized and therefore produce fewer CO2 emissions compared to large farms run with heavy agricultural machinery and have a positive impact on the economy of the local community they live in since they tend to engage more in on-farm sale and short supply chains, which foster the creation and development of relationships in the community.”

Eating organic means protecting health from the intake of residual synthetic chemicals used in conventional agriculture.Workers are also assumed to be “less exploited,” according to the EU FPC, and the treatment of animals has been shown to be more positive. “The proximity of these farms often entails lower CO2 emissions due to shorter transportation.”

Addressing differences
The EU FPC further underscores the need for greater convergence between member states to tackle nutrition and health concerns jointly.

“The differences in food poverty and social exclusion between member states do not, and most importantly should not, affect the adoption of shared sustainability criteria for public canteens at the EU level.”

The organization argues that whether a member state has 2%, 5% or 10% fewer people at risk of poverty and social exclusion than another country should not affect its efforts in ensuring healthy food for all.

“Additionally, the application of the manifesto’s criteria would not only benefit consumers with better food and healthier diets but also farmers and agricultural workers, animal welfare and the environment at large.”

“What is certain, however, is that public food procurement, especially in schools, is a simple and powerful lever to fight food inequalities,” the EU FPC concludes.

By Milana Nikolova