Successful Implementation of Climate-Friendly, Nutritious, and Acceptable School Meals in Practice: The OPTIMAT ™ Intervention Study

Liselotte Schäfer Elinder, Patricia Eustachio Colombo, Emma Patterson, Alexandr Parlesak and Anna Karin Lindroos
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Liselotte Schäfer Elinder: Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Solnavaegen 1E, 113 65 Stockholm, Sweden
Patricia Eustachio Colombo: Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Solnavaegen 1E, 113 65 Stockholm, Sweden
Emma Patterson: Department of Global Public Health, Karolinska Institutet, Solnavaegen 1E, 113 65 Stockholm, Sweden
Alexandr Parlesak: Global Nutrition and Health, University College Copenhagen, Sigurdsgade 26, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark
Anna Karin Lindroos: Department of Risk and Benefit Assessment, The Swedish Food Agency, Box 622, SE-75126 Uppsala, Sweden

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 20, 1-16

Abstract: Introducing children to sustainable and healthy school meals can promote a long-term dietary shift to lower climate impact and improve population health. The aim of the OPTIMAT study was to optimize meals for minimum deviation from the current food supply while reducing greenhouse gases and ensuring nutritional adequacy without increasing cost. Optimized menus were tested in four primary schools in Sweden and effects on daily food consumption and waste evaluated. Pupils received their usual menu plan for three weeks and then the isocaloric optimized menu plan for another three weeks. Nutritional recommendations for a school lunch and a maximum of 500 g of carbon dioxide equivalents per meal (CO 2 eq/meal) were applied as constraints during linear programming. Pulses, cereals, meat, and eggs increased, while fats and oils, dairy, sauces, and seasonings decreased. The amount of ruminant meat was reduced in favor of other meat products. The new menu was 28% lower in greenhouse gas emissions and slightly less costly than the original. No significant changes in mean food consumption or plate waste were found in interrupted time series analysis between the two periods. This pragmatic approach for combining linear optimization with meal planning could accelerate sustainable development of the meal sector in Sweden and abroad.

Keywords: children; diet; greenhouse gas emissions; intervention; linear programming; optimization; sustainable development (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

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