Vegan Practically

Adopting an agenda of sustainability for the 2024 Olympic Games, the Paris organizers have pledged to deliver meals with half the carbon footprint of most French meals by “doubling the proportion of plant-based ingredients and increasing the plant-based options for everyone, including spectators and the workforce.”

Even if you think, as some argue, that the sustainability agenda for a mega-event like the Olympics is a lot of greenwashing, this shift towards more plant-based food is welcome news. I can attest that, based on my recent experience, this change is in contrast to the average French meal, which heavily favours animal products. And while the narrative for introducing more plant-based options is not about addressing animal suffering, a sustainability approach has some impact on that as well, given that over 13 million meals will be served to athletes along the way.

It’s also good to see that spectators will be permitted to bring their own reusable water bottles to the venues, with hundreds of refilling stations installed across the sites. Here in Canada we are now used to water fountains designed to refill our personal reusable bottles. My campus stopped selling water in plastic bottles back in January, and has refill stations all over campus. Single use plastic water bottles are still really prevalent in Europe, and the culture of drinking bottled water (as opposed to tap water) feels more entrenched there. This despite that tap water is perfectly safe to drink across most of Europe (see this article about drinking water in Europe). So shifting to refillable bottles and, more importantly, places to refill them, is a fantastic change.

Meanwhile, as noted in The Nation’s “The Toll of the Olympics on the Environment” (thanks, Shelley!), the saga of trying to make the environmental disaster that is the iconic river Seine swimmable for the Olympic triathlon events has driven home the issue of humanity’s impact on the planet. France has spent over a billion dollars on the project, and yet the men’s triathlon still had to be postponed on Monday because of high bacteria levels due to sewage run-off into the river from heavy rains. They went ahead with both the men’s and women’s events the next day, but as I watched the women swim in that dirty river, I couldn’t help but pull a face. Exciting to swim in the Seine as an Olympic competitor? Maybe. Disgusting to swim in the Seine? Definitely.

Back to the plant-based food options. There is no question that plant-based foods are a more sustainable option than animal products. Besides offering a more sustainable approach and, as a by-product, reducing animal suffering, this change debunks a prevalent myth about what athletes require for nutrition. All of us, not just the elite athletes, benefit from balanced nutrition. And of course the Olympics are continuing to serve animal products at the games. But the shift in proportions, with more plant-based ingredients than ever before, challenges the idea that athletes need inordinate amounts of animal protein to be strong competitors. And while vegans are in the minority, there are at least seven vegan athletes competing at the Paris Olympics, in sports ranging from rugby and basketball to track & field, fencing, and tennis. You can read about them here.

Let’s here it for plant-based food options at the Olympics. And here’s hoping that even after the competition is over, the high-profile commitment to reducing the carbon footprint of eating in France has a longterm influence and spills into the rest of the country.