A sustainable menu during COP26

The UK will host the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow on 31 October – 12 November 2021. The COP26 summit will bring parties together to accelerate action towards the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

What is COP26?

COP26 is the 2021 United Nations climate change conference. For nearly three decades the UN has been bringing together almost every country on earth for global climate summits – called COPs – which stands for ‘Conference of the Parties’. In that time climate change has gone from being a fringe issue to a global priority. This year will be the 26th annual summit – giving it the name COP26. With the UK as President, COP26 takes place in Glasgow. In the run up to COP26 the UK is working with every nation to reach agreement on how to tackle climate change. World leaders will arrive in Scotland, alongside tens of thousands of negotiators, government representatives, businesses and citizens for twelve days of talks.

Why is COP26 organized?

If we are serious about holding temperature rises to 1.5 degrees and adapting to the impacts of climate change, we must change the way we look after our land and seas and how we grow our food. This is also important if we want to protect and restore the world’s biodiversity, upon which all life depends. At COP26 various parties will work together to take action on protecting and restoring forests and critical ecosystems, and they will champion the transition towards sustainable, resilient and nature positive agriculture. COP26 needs to be decisive. “Whether future generations look back at this time with admiration or despair, depends entirely on our ability to seize this moment. Let’s seize it together”, UKCOP26.

Greendish and COP26

Joris Heijnen, founder of Greendish, is invited at COP26 for the Frontrunner dinner. The reason is that Greendish has been asked to analyse the Frontrunner dinner menu. In other words, Greendish calculated the CO² -emissions associated with the dinner and then gave advice on the composition of a healthy and sustainable menu. Using the Greendish 2050 Guidelines, the Frontrunner dinner menu has been tested for future-proofing and sustainability. Luckily, we are very proud to say that the chef of the Frontrunner dinner has adapted the menu following our advice!

Joris will be present at the Frontrunner dinner and will talk more about the calculations made to make the menu more sustainable. He also explains in what way the menu has been improved and how this is in line with our Greendish 2050 Guidelines.

Greendish 2050 Guidelines

The composition of the guidelines for the ‘Menu of the Future’ is based on the EAT-Lancet report and the guidelines ‘Schijf van Vijf’ of the Netherlands Nutrition Center. In collaboration with our scientific council and expert panels, practical guidelines have been formulated based on the scientific findings in the EAT-Lancet report. The Greendish 2050 Guidelines will be updated continuously based on latest research.

Carbon Pricing Food Campaign

The ‘Carbon Pricing for Food’ campaign calls on the fifty countries with the highest meat consumption in the world to introduce a carbon tax on meat and dairy products. Meat consumption brings hidden costs for health and the environment.

At this moment, 95 organisations (including Greendish) have signed the Open Letter to 50 Presidents, representing 5000 companies and NGO’s from over 100 countries. Friday 29 October (one day before the COP26 UN Climate conference starts) the Open Letter will be sent (with more signatories) again to the 50 Presidents and their Ministers of Environment, Agriculture and Finance.

Are you an organisation representing youth, environmental or animal welfare groups, a vegan organisation, a (food) company, health organization, sustainable farmer, church, bank, woman or city? Sign too and send your logo to info@tappcoalitie.nl.