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ORGANIC WEEK in EU Canteens May 17-24 |
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The IFOAM EU Group organised together with the Austrian Presidency an ORGANIC WEEK in the canteens of the European Commission and the European Council in Brussels. The event took place from May 17 to 24. During this period EU officials and their guests had the possibility to enjoy a range of organic meals. This public-private initiative aims to support the use of organic food in public canteens and underlines the role of catering for a dynamic development of the organic sector.
On Monday 22, the Austrian Presidency Minister Pröll, Agricultural Commissioner Fischer Boel and MArco Schlueter from the IFOAM EU Group office in Brussels visited the Organic Week in the Council (Photos).
“We applaud the Austrian Presidency to place organic farming on the top of their agenda and to make this event possible. It is now up to the European Institutions to take up the initiative and to ensure that organic food becomes an essential part in the daily menu of the canteens of the European Commission and the Council”, said Francis Blake, president of the IFOAM EU Group.
The Commission and the Council canteen with daily some thousands of meals could set a good example for the whole Europe. The private sector already implements successfully organic catering in company’s canteens such as IKEA (1m meals 2006), Scandic Hotels or the bank WestLB with 22% organic meals. In Netherlands ten large NGOs with collectively four million members signed in 2005 a commitment to change completely to organic catering.
These examples show that organic catering can contribute significantly to increase of the market of organic products (in Europe about 12.5 bn EURO). National and European institutions should take this into account. In initiating the “Organic Week” the Austrian Presidency and the IFOAM EU Group underline the importance of the proper implementation of the European Action plan on Organic Food and Farming.
Enjoy also your organic meal during a meeting with an EU official or use the opportunity to taste organic food in Brussels, e.g. have a look on the links at the right side or visit our partner restaurant soul.
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