Measuring and comparing the carbon footprints of different procurement models for primary school meals:Analysis of cases across five European countries

Sustainable Public Food Procurement (PFP) represents a key game changer for food systems transformation. It can influence both food consumption and food production patterns. It can deliver multiple social, economic and environmental benefits towards sustainable food systems for healthy diets. This publication aims to contribute to the improved understanding, dissemination and use of PFP as a development tool in particular in the case of school meals programmes. In Volume 1, researchers, policymakers and development partners can find evidence on how PFP can be used as a development tool and deliver multiple benefits for multiple beneficiaries. It argues that PFP can provide a market for local and smallholder farmers, promote the conservation and sustainable use of agrobiodiversity, and improve the nutrition and health of children and communities. Volume 2 of this publication, available at https://doi.org/10.4060/cb7969en, presents further analysis of the instruments, enablers and barriers for PFP implementation. It also provides case studies with local, regional and national experiences from Africa, Asia, Europe and North and South America

Promoting Nutrition and Food Sustainability Knowledge in Apprentice Chefs: An Intervention Study at The School of Italian Culinary Arts—ALMA

Chefs’ decisions can greatly improve the quality of food provided and positively guide diners’ choices. Culinary students’ knowledge of healthy and sustainable nutrition is still scarcely investigated and is limited to the nutritional aspect of the diet, without considering food sustainability or the environmental impact of foods. This study aims to determine the effectiveness of an educational program designed for apprentice chefs. Two questionnaires were administered twice to each student who followed dedicated lectures about nutrition and food sustainability and to other students enrolled as the control group. A total of 264 and 252 apprentice chefs of The School of Italian Culinary Arts—ALMA were enrolled in the control and intervention groups, respectively. At baseline, both groups showed a good level of nutrition knowledge, whereas food sustainability knowledge was lower in all students, regardless of the group. This educational intervention proved to be effective in improving knowledge about nutrition and the environmental impact of food production and consumption. However, a small but significant improvement in nutritional knowledge was also found over time in the control group. Finally, a food sustainability knowledge questionnaire was developed and validated for this study, providing interesting results to be treated as a guide for future developments

Food waste and children's preferences towards vegetables in primary schools: Two Italian case studies

Introduction: The food waste analysis in the school canteen context is particularly relevant due to its educational and environmental relevance, the huge number of users and the consequent food amount handled every day. The present study, carried out within the EU H2020-funded Strength2food project, seeks to compare two case studies (Parma vs Lucca), characterised by different primary school food procurement models (local-organic vs organic) in relation to (i) the uneaten edible food served in primary school canteens and (ii) children’s refusal towards the vegetable side dish. Methods: The investigations were performed in 4 primary schools, 2 per case study, during 5 consecutive days in winter and spring, for a total of 40 days of data collection. The aggregate selective plate waste method was applied. Excluding special diets, the uneaten served food was scraped from children’s plates according to 7 food categories (bread, starchy-based dish, protein based-dish, fruit, vegetables, dessert, other). Serving size of edible food was calculated as mean of the weight of 3 servings for each food. Finally, a questionnaire reporting a 5-point Likert scale was used to assess vegetable preferences. Results: With the exception of bread (p ¼ 0.149), with values ranged from 14.5% to 35.7%, the local-organic procurement model (Parma) has shown a significantly lower percentage of waste for most of the food categories compared to the organic model (Lucca), whose proportions ranged from 11.8% to 55.5%. The starchy-based dish, the protein-based dish and fruit gave higher wastes per child in Lucca, where a higher fraction of children (38%) compared to Parma (18%) did not appreciate at all the vegetables. Conclusions: The obtained results suggest that a wider inclusion of products originating in the territory in the school food provision can contribute to a greater acceptability of the school menus and consequently to a lower food waste

Weight Status, Adherence to the Mediterranean Diet, Physical Activity Level, and Sleep Behavior of Italian Junior High School Adolescents

Inadequate diet, physical activity, and sleep-related behaviors are potential risk factors for overweight and obese, therefore we investigated the relations between body mass index (BMI) and behavioral factors in a sample of Italian adolescents. Four hundred nine Italian secondary school students (46% females, 12.5 ± 0.6 y.o.) were enrolled in this cross-sectional study. Anthropometric measures, adherence to the Mediterranean Diet (KIDMED), physical activity level (PAQ-C), sleep duration, daytime sleepiness (PDSS), sleep quality, and school achievement data were collected through an online questionnaire. The percentage of overweight adolescents was slightly lower (14%) compared to the regional and the national figures. Approximately 88% of the sample reported a medium/high adherence to the Mediterranean Diet and 77% a moderate/vigorous physical activity level. The average sleep duration was in line with the international sleep recommendation for adolescents and 82% had a medium/high sleep quality. No differences were found between genders except for BMI (lower in females). Unexpectedly, no differences were found among the BMI groups (normal weight vs. overweight vs. obese) for lifestyle variables; in contrast, Mediterranean Diet adherence was associated with sleep habits. Further investigation is required to better explore the associations among behavioral variables involved in adolescents' healthy development

Nutritional, environmental and economic implications of children plate waste at school: a comparison between two Italian case studies

Abstract Objective: This study aims at comparing two Italian case studies in relation to school children’s plate waste and its implications, in terms of nutritional loss, economic cost, and carbon footprint. Design: Plate waste was collected through an aggregate selective weighting method for 39 days. Setting: Children from the first to the fifth grade from four primary schools, two in each case study (Parma and Lucca), were involved. Results: With respect to the served food, in Parma the plate waste percentage was lower than in Lucca (p50%). The energy loss of the lunch meals accounted for 26% (Parma) and 36% (Lucca). Among nutrients, dietary fibre, folate and vitamin C, calcium and potassium were lost at most (26-45%). Overall, after adjusting for plate waste data, most of the lunch menus fell below the national recommendations for energy (50%, Parma; 79%, Lucca) and nutrients, particularly for fat (85%, Parma; 89%, Lucca). Plate waste was responsible for 19% (Parma) and 28% (Lucca) of the carbon footprint associated to the food supplied by the catering service, with starchy food being the most important contributor (52%, Parma; 47%, Lucca). Overall, the average cost of plate waste was 1.8 €/kg (Parma) and 2.7 €/kg (Lucca), accounting respectively for 4% and 10% of the meal full price. Conclusion: A re-planning of the school meals service organisation and priorities is needed to decrease the inefficiency of the current system and reduce food waste and its negative consequences