Vegetarian/vegan catering options at COP29 in Baku are disappointing, says ProVeg
Food awareness organisation, ProVeg International, has said that catering teams for future UN summits must implement the advice of experts, as complaints about the food offered at the current UN climate summit, COP29 in Azerbaijan, have overshadowed the event for many delegates.
ProVeg, which helped ensure that at least two thirds of last year’s summit in Dubai was vegan or vegetarian, said it was disappointed by the catering at this year’s summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, which runs until 22 November.
Lana Weidgenant, Senior UN Policy Manager at ProVeg, who is currently on the ground at COP29, said: “People were upset because some foods containing meat and dairy were mislabelled as vegetarian or vegan, which makes it more difficult for people to make the more sustainable choice.
“Whilst improvements have since been made by the COP29 team, following consultation with ProVeg, the catering at the event is very much a step back from the progress that had been made at previous COPs and we’re left disappointed.
“Based on what we were told, we also expected the vegetarian and vegan options to make up at least two thirds of the catering at COP29, as it did at COP28 in Dubai. This is not the case.
“Catering at climate conferences can’t be an afterthought. The catering experience at COP29 underlines the importance of implementing the recommendations of sustainable food service experts like ProVeg,” Weidgenant said
Brazil will host the next summit, COP30, in the city of Belém and it has already voiced its commitment to providing healthy, sustainable food.
“We hope that Brazil can regard the attention paid to food by delegates at COP30 as an opportunity to present themselves well to the international community attending the conference next year. Delegates are aware of the connection between food and the climate crisis, so governments can no longer ignore this,” Weidgenant added
Why catering is important
Increasing plant-based food options at the UN climate summits is vital to help bring home the message that transforming the global food system can mitigate the climate crisis.
Up to one fifth of total greenhouse gas emissions comes from animal agriculture1 and 32% of human-caused emissions from methane – a powerful greenhouse gas – comes from animal farming2.
Because plant-based food emits half the amount of greenhouse gases as animal-based food, eating more plant-rich diets is an effective way of reducing emissions.
If catering at the UN summits is largely plant-based and appealing, then delegates have the opportunity to realise for themselves how tasty a healthy, climate-friendly diet can be.
ENDS
Footnotes
- Global greenhouse gas emissions from animal-based foods are twice those of plant-based foods | Nature Food
- Cutting livestock methane emissions for stronger climate action (fao.org)
Notes to Editors
For media inquiries, email Peter Rixon at [email protected]
For scientific data about the benefits of plant-based eating, see our Food System Data website.
About ProVeg International
Our vision is a world where everyone chooses delicious and healthy food that is good for all humans, animals, and our planet. ProVeg International is a food awareness organisation with the mission to replace 50% of animal products globally with plant-based and cultivated foods by 2040.
