Vegetables made easy for everyone’s plate
Most Finns consistently eat fewer vegetables than recommended for maintaining good health. Increasing vegetable consumption is a critical goal in Lahti’s daycare and school meal services. The new Finnish dietary guidelines recommend consuming 500–800 grams of vegetables, root vegetables, fruits, and berries daily. Currently, we Finns fall far short of this target.
The Tasty Climate-Friendly Food project (2023–2024) highlighted preconceptions and negative attitudes toward climate-friendly meals. This revealed a significant need for a new approach: the topic must be addressed fresh and inspiringly, without moral judgment or fostering divisiveness.
Choosing plant-based options should be easy
In school dining, choosing a plant-based option should be simple for students. In Skidi Dialogues, students pointed out practical barriers to eating plant-based meals: the food was served on a separate line, placed in small containers suggesting dietary restrictions, and covered with lids.
Uncovering these barriers through discussions with students was one of the project’s successes in Lahti, providing valuable insights at a national level as well. In Päijät-Häme Catering Services, these obstacles can now be addressed in future operations.
As part of the project, materials were developed for school food lines to encourage tasting various meal options. Stickers with the slogan “Feel free to try!” will be placed next to plant-based meal options.
School dining as a key venue for food education
The project reinforced the view that school dining plays a significant role in learning healthy and environmentally sustainable eating habits. While home economics classes are essential for teaching cooking skills, daily school meals over nine years represent a critical yet often underutilised arena for food education.
Shaping attitudes is a long-term effort. Educational and training videos and other teaching materials produced during the project will remain available for use both in Lahti and nationally.
