A new report from nonprofit Friends of the Earth (FOE) has found significant strides in plant-based school meals across California. Gathered between 2019 to 2022, the detailed analysis focused on the 25 largest school districts in the state, collectively serving 1.83 million students and accounting for 121 million lunches annually.
FOE found that 68 percent of these school districts provide plant-based meals daily or weekly, representing a 54 percent increase since 2019.
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“Across California, school nutrition service teams want to provide more plant-based options to meet the growing demand of students,” Nora Stewart, California Climate-Friendly School Food Program Manager at FOE, tells VegNews.
“There are also tremendous benefits to plant-based school meals, including increased student inclusion, student health, and climate,” Stewart says.