In what has been described as a “historic decision”, two-thirds of the food served at this year’s COP28 climate summit in Dubai will be vegan and vegetarian.
The decision follows campaigning from youth group YOUNGO (the Youth and Children constituency of the UNFCCC) and its Food@COP campaign, supported by food awareness organization ProVeg International. The groups initially sent a letter to the COP28 presidency earlier this year calling for a mostly plant-based menu at the summit, and received a response confirming that plant-based options would be available. However, it was initially unclear what proportion of the food this would apply to.
The final menu is described as “1.5°C aligned”, ensuring that delegates eat within a daily food budget that stays within the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. At the summit, around 250,000 meals will be served to over 60,000 visitors per day across almost 80 outlets.
Food system change and COP28
Despite the huge impact of food production on climate change, the COP summits have been slow to acknowledge the need for food system transformation. This began to change last year, when ProVeg was granted a Food4Climate Pavilion at COP27. The event also featured a Food Systems Pavilion, run by a coalition of 15 organizations. Both pavilions will be returning for COP28.
This year’s summit will also feature a Food, Agriculture, and Water Day for the first time ever, along with the publication of a “Roadmap to 1.5C” by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO). Furthermore, the COP28 Presidency will call on governments to sign a Leaders’ Declaration on Food Systems, Agriculture and Climate Action, ensuring that they commit to food system change.
“The Catering Letter Steering Committee has worked very hard with the COP28 Presidency to ensure that the food is predominantly plant-based at this all-important summit. By committing to plant-rich, affordable catering, the COP28 Presidency is showing leadership and acknowledging the impact of diets high in animal-sourced foods. It is really fantastic to see this happening,” said Lana Weidgenant, ProVeg campaigns and policy officer.
COP28 will take place from November 30 to December 12.
