One of the initiatives of the GN Green Plate Committee is to improve school sustainability by bringing more plant-based options to our local school cafeterias.
For the most part, our eating patterns are formed while we’re young. Families rely on recipes, tastes and textures that have been passed down through generations making our choices not only deeply personal, but often times a large part of our identities. This can make considering change around the foods we choose challenging and intimidating, even when we know that better options exist for the environment and our personal health.
This dynamic is why focusing our efforts on our schools, filled with young families who want to make the best choices for themselves and their children, makes so much sense. By providing healthful, plant-based meals, schools can set an example for students, and students can learn to enjoy a variety of nutritious foods from an early age. Over time, this becomes a lifestyle practice that benefits not only their health, but also the environment. Plant-based meals provide excellent nutrition—rich in fiber, vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that boost health. Children who consistently eat a plant-based diet have a reduced risk for heart disease, cancer, obesity, diabetes, and other conditions.
With regard to sustainability, plant-based school meals can significantly reduce the environmental footprint of our schools, with with studies showing they can lower greenhouse gas emissions and water usage by up to 50%. Replacing meat and dairy with plant-based proteins such as lentils, beans, and tofu promotes sustainable food systems, reduces food waste, and cuts carbon emissions.
Plant-based school meals are also more inclusive since they can accommodate more diverse dietary needs such as allergies (dairy and egg), ethical, religious, and various health-related concerns. They can also help foster a community that reduces stigma, polarization, or judgement–allowing everyone, regardless of their diet, to enjoy common meals together.
We have students at Newton North and Newton South High Schools working with food services to address the current lack of plant-based offerings available in the cafeterias, and we’d love to have more people helping us make this push across all K-12 schools. If you’re interested in helping out, please let us know. You do not need to be a parent or caregiver to be part of our team and there are many ways you can help. We look forward to hearing from you as we work to make our students’ plates more healthy, delicious, and sustainable.
If you would like to get involved in improving sustainability in our schools through plant-based eating or learn more about it, contact us at GreenPlate@greennewton.org.