To encourage healthier eating habits among residents and to reduce the negative impact on the climate, Helsinki City Council has decided to cut the procurement of meat and dairy products in the city's public catering by 50% by 2030. The decision means that in schools, nurseries, hospitals and other municipal institutions these products will be replaced with nutritionally complete plant-based alternatives.

The decision is part of a broader shift towards a more sustainable and healthier diet. Finland's latest dietary guidelines, published in 2024, recommend substantially increasing the share of plant-based products in the everyday diet, and are considered among the most climate-friendly in the world.

The proposal was backed by 57 of the 80 councillors, giving it broad support across a range of political parties. This is the second such decision in Helsinki – in 2019 the city committed to cutting the consumption of meat and dairy products in municipal catering by 50% by 2025.

The policy changes are already affecting consumer habits. Over the past year, tofu consumption in Finland has risen by roughly 20%, and sales of other plant proteins, plant-based milk and tinned pulses are growing as well. At the same time, milk and meat consumption in the country is falling. Finnish retail currently offers one of the widest ranges of plant-based products in Europe – from plant proteins and meat alternatives to plant-based yoghurts. Finland's largest retail group, S Group, which holds the biggest market share through the brands S‑market, Prisma, Sale and Alepa, has for several years also taken part in Finland's Veganuary or Vegaanihaaste campaign, through which plant-based eating reaches more than a million people in a country of just under six million inhabitants.

Similar examples in the Nordic countries have already shaped political discussions in the region. In 2023, for instance, the municipality of Oslo decided to stop serving meat in the city's nurseries, which became an important reference point in debates about more sustainable public catering.

Žanete Felsa, who leads the nature-friendly eating challenge “Neapēd zemeslodi”, stresses: “In the Nordic countries, and in other European Union countries too, more and more municipalities are reviewing their catering policies and increasing the range of plant-based meals on offer. It is an opportunity both to improve public health and to reduce the food system's impact on the environment. These examples can serve as a clear model and inspiration for Latvian municipalities as well.”

According to World Health Organization guidelines, introducing healthy food policies in schools and other public catering settings is an important tool for encouraging healthier food choices among the population as a whole. People in Latvia consume an average of 43 kg of red meat a year, which is 2-3 times more than nutrition scientists recommend. Scientific studies show that people who cut out meat, or substantially reduce how much they eat, have lower mortality from ischaemic heart disease, lower blood cholesterol, better blood pressure and a lower risk of type 2 diabetes, as well as a lower risk of prostate and colon cancer (among the most common forms of cancer).

Additional sources:

https://www.greenqueen.com.hk/helsinki-puloet-parempaa-meat-dairy-plant-based-food-policy-2030/

https://www.julkari.fi/server/api/core/bitstreams/a2523cc1-71cd-4090-8bb7-15c64d3b7134/content