Preschools in Oslo will no longer serve meat to children, according to a new action plan. The plan includes halving the city’s meat consumption for explicit environmental and health reasons.
The city council in Oslo plans to completely remove meat from preschools, activity schools, and even after-school clubs. The reason is to halve meat consumption among Norwegian citizens to promote environmental and health benefits, reports the state channel NRK.
– We know that a little less meat is one of the cheapest and most effective climate measures we can take, says Einar Wilhelmsen, from the party Miljøpartiet De Grønne, the finance commissioner in Oslo municipality, who is responsible for the plan.
The action plan means that more sustainable, healthy, and plant-based food will be served in the city. However, fish will continue to be on the menu for children. Furthermore, all municipal dining halls will have at least three completely meat-free days a week. There should also always be a hot vegan option. At high schools, there should be a meat-free meal every day. The action plan also aims to counteract food waste, says Wilhelmsen.
– We throw away way too much food, he says.
The new action plan does not apply to nursing homes. It is also not “forbidden” for children to bring meat from home to eat.
To strengthen the arguments for the new action plan, it is pointed out that the Norwegian Health Directorate recommends that vegetarian food be served in preschools with children from different cultures.
– It’s more social and inclusive. Then everyone can eat the same food, says Wilhelmsen.
