The iPOPY project – a research commitment to more sustainable public food

Summary in the original language of the document

The schooldays of European children and youth tend to get longer, and their eating patterns, especially during school hours, are often unsatisfactory. Healthy school food is a logic response to this situation. Organic food contributes to sustainable nutrition, and hence is an interesting starting point for healthier menus and food education. The research project “innovative Public Organic food Procurement for Youth” (iPOPY) studies efficient ways to implement organic food in public serving outlets for young people. Out of the four iPOPY funding countries, Finland and Italy serve a warm school meal daily for all pupils, whereas Denmark and Norway rely on packed lunch from home. Italy and Denmark have ambitious goals for organic food in schools, whereas Finland and Norway have not (yet). In Germany, different states have very different school meal systems, but the interest for organic food is generally high. We argue that school food served in “captive catering” such as found in Finland, financed by the public and made by organic or otherwise sustainable products, has the largest potential to support a sustainable nutrition and -development.