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VEGAN

Barcelona officially declares itself a ‘veggie friendly’ city

The move includes writing a vegetarian guide to the city and encouraging residents to give up meat at least one day a week.

Published: 23 March 2016 16:59 CET
Barcelona officially declares itself a 'veggie friendly' city
Photo: Mariano P./Flickr

Spain is renowned for its meat and vegetarians often find it a challenge to find meat-free dishes across much of the jamón-loving country, but not for much longer if one of its main cities has anything to do with it.

Barcelona on Tuesday declared itself “veg-friendly, friend of vegan and vegetarian culture” after one of the city's left-wing parties brought the proposal to City Hall. 

The title “veggie-friendly” will include several concrete steps to help vegetarian and vegan visitors to Barcelona, as well as encourage residents to embrace a meat-free diet – at least one day a week.

City Hall will produce a vegetarian guide to Barcelona, as well as promote vegetarianism by establishing a new BCNvegPoint – a space for vegetarians and vegetarian or vegan businesses.

The city will also promote the global Meat Free Mondays campaign.

The campaign was launched by Paul McCartney along with his daughters, Mary and Stella, in 2009 to raise awareness of the detrimental environmental impact of eating meat.

People are encouraged to try one meatless day a week to help slow climate change and improve their health.

McCartney is a well-known vegetarian and his late wife Linda McCartney was a prominent animal rights activist and the author of several vegetarian cookbooks. She also started the vegetarian food company Linda McCartney foods.

The proposal passed with the support of the left-wing coalition Barcelona en Comú, the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC), the Socialists, the Convergence and Union party (CiU) and the CUP.

The Popular Party and Ciudadanos abstained from the vote, allowing it to pass.

 

 

The proposal was brought to the City Hall by the Republican Left of Barcelona (ERC), which happily tweeted the news on Tuesday evening. 

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ENVIRONMENT

Danish government to serve vegetarian food only twice a week

Denmark's government is to force all government canteens to go vegetarian two days a week in a move to reduce national consumption of meat.

Published: 30 October 2020 07:55 CET
Danish government to serve vegetarian food only twice a week
Could this be the future of Danish government canteens? Photo: Olivier Douliery / AFP
According to Green Procurement for a Green Future, a new government procurement strategy announced on Thursday, all state-run kitchens will be required to serve only vegetarian food for two days a week. 
 
“I hope it will go down well with our employees. This is the government's proposal, it is not something we have agreed with others. And of course that is also something we have to discuss with the other political parties,” Finance Minister Nicolai Wammen told state broadcaster DR. 
 
“Put simply, this is one of the ways in which we can contribute to a smaller climate footprint – by having two days a week, where there is no meat on the menu in the state canteens. The other days you can have meat if you want.” 
 
As well as the two vegetarian days, the government has limited the number of days when beef and lamb can be served to just one a week. 
 
 
The new policy will apply to all the 85,000 people directly employed by the state, and may also apply to the 75,000 people employed in independent government agencies. 
 
The proposal may later be extended to independent institutions such as the train company DSB, schools, kindergartens and universities. 
 
After the announcement, Denmark's agriculture minister Mogens Jensen tweeted that with 800,000 meals served a day in public sector canteens, the decision could make a significant difference. 

 
The proposal has split Denmark, with the populist Danish people's party going so far as to call it “totally un-Danish”, and others complaining that the measure would not apply to canteens in the Danish parliament and ministerial offices, and that the government had not calculated what the impact of the measures would be on public sector emissions. 
 
“I'll eat whatever food's going, but I feel very irritated that someone wants to decide what kind of food that is,” said René Christensen, leader of the Danish parliament's environment and food committee. “It's totally un-Danish that others are going to decide what we eat for lunch.” 
 
 
Morten Messerschmidt, the party's vice chairman said that the proposals would even inspire him to eat more meat. 
 
“It's one thing for people to want to be vegans and vegetarians, and another thing to force people to,” he said. “I really think it's crazy.” 
 
On the other side, Carl Valentin, green spokesman for the Socialist Left party celebrated the decision. 
 
“It's simply so important to have two vegetarian days in state canteens,” he said. “To get our enormous meat use on the agenda has not been easy, but now we're moving.” 
 

 
Sikandar Siddique, leader of the Free Greens, said that the proposal was too unambitious. It whouldn't only be in government canteens, but all public sector ones, including schools and kindergartens.
 
Rita Bundgaard, chairman of HK Stat, which represents 23,000 government employees, complained about the proposal. 
 
“I cannot understand why we should be forced to have Tuesday and Thursday as green days, and then fish on Wednesdays. After all, I end up asking for a steak when I want to have a steak. I think I should have the opportunity to choose and combine what I put on my lunch plate, and I think everyone should be allowed to.” 
 
 
 
 
 
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