Caterers at the United Nations’ June Climate Meetings have made the decision to serve mainly vegan and vegetarian food this year to reduce the environmental impact of the event.
The 5,000 delegates attending the climate conference will be served a lunch menu that is 57% vegan and 14% vegetarian, while snacks will be 37% vegan and 46% vegetarian.
The June Climate Meetings began on June 16 and will run until June 26. Food is provided by Broich Catering, a company whose origins date back to 1734.
“This year, we are happy to contribute to sustainable and climate-friendly catering, and we appreciate the general recognition for this at the UN event, and at other events catered for at the World Conference Center Bonn,” said Claus Meinen, part of the company’s management team.
Climate-friendly catering
There is a growing trend towards serving predominantly plant-based food at major events; in 2023, two-thirds of the food at climate conference COP28 was made meat-free in response to campaigning by the youth group YOUNGO, with support from ProVeg International. Furthermore, the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games set a goal of doubling the amount of plant-based food on offer.
To ensure that food system change remains on the agenda at the June Climate Meetings, a team from ProVeg International is in attendance. The organisation will be holding press conferences, and is co-organising an official side event to engage delegates in the importance of food system change as a strategy to mitigate climate change.
“We are delighted that the food at the event will be mainly vegan and vegetarian,” said ProVeg Global CEO Jasmijn de Boo. “It gives the opportunity for delegates at this important global conference to enjoy climate-friendly food and realise how tasty the solutions to climate change can really be. Plant-based food emits half the amount of greenhouse gases as animal-based food, so nations need to promote plant-based food where they can.”
