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World’s Biggest Cities Pledge To Cut Back On Meat To Fight Climate Change

In a plant-based leap forwards in the fight against climate change, 14 of the biggest cities in the world will cut back on the amount of meat that is served in public buildings.

Mayors from 14 cities signed the C40 Good Food Cities Declaration at a climate summit in Copenhagen earlier this month. The event was attended by top officials from more than 50 of the largest cities.

The declaration adheres to the planetary health diet, which suggests adults don’t eat more than 300g of meat in a week and favor plant-based alternatives instead.

The mayors who signed the declaration are now committed to helping local residents get on board with the guidelines. Those in charge will make different decisions about the foods that are purchased for public buildings and make “healthy, delicious and low-carbon food affordable and accessible for all.”

The guidelines suggest plant-based foods should be eaten more often (Source: marilyn barbone / Shutterstock.com)

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The 14 big cities to have signed the agreement are Copenhagen, Barcelona, Guadalajara, Lima, Seoul, London, Los Angeles, Tokyo, Milan, Oslo, Paris, Quezon City, Stockholm and Toronto.” The combination of meals served in public buildings in these cities amount to more than 500 million every year.

The C40 Cities Climate Leadership Group claims that the planetary health diet has the potential to save 11 million lives every year if it were to be embraced around the world, as well as dramatically reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The guidelines explain that a meal should be made up of “half a plate of vegetables and fruits; the other half should consist of primarily whole grains, plant protein sources, unsaturated plant oils, and (optionally) modest amounts of animal sources of protein.”

Do you think that other big cities will soon adopt plant-based policies? Let us know in the comments below!