The Danish government has set an ambitous new target that 60% of the food cooked in public sector kitchens – including hospitals, schools and care homes – be organic.
Denmark’s minister for food, agriculture and fisheries, Mette Gjerskov, has announced that €10 million has been set aside to help provide the guidance and support required to increase the amount of organic food in public kitchens to 60%. With around 500,000 meals served every day in public sector kitchens across the country, the move is a bold one by the Danish government.
The commitment comes after Danish organic charity Organic Denmark submitted an organic growth proposal and held discussions with a number of high-level politicians. Paul Holmbeck — head of Organic Denmark — said: “As organic food brings so many advantages to society it is obvious that the state buys organic food in order to protect nature and the groundwater. It is encouraging that the new government will let their approaches be followed by specific actions”.
In Britain, the Soil Association says the move by Denmark illustrates the contrast in attitudes of the two governments. It commented: “It is a In a development that reinforces the disparity in funding and support for organic in Britain compared with the rest of Europe — a gap highlighted in the Soil Association’s ‘The Lazy Man of Europe’ report — the Danish government’s new national budget makes significant provision for the targets.”
Picture: Organic Denmark
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