Webinar_Sustainable food procurement in the healthcare sector

Hospital food. When we think about this type of food, images of tasteless mashed potatoes, impossible to cut fish filets and fruit wrapped in a plastic bag may come to our mind.

The poor quality of food served in many of Europe’s hospitals has become a growing concern as evidence of links between an unhealthy diet and chronic diseases mounts.

Dietetic-nutritional factors are a preventable cause of disease. Therefore, hospitals are expected to serve nutritious and tasty meals that treat diseases and promote a healthy and balanced diet. However, this is not always the case. Additionally, the foods that hospitals choose to purchase and the way in which they are produced, processed and transported can have a profound effect on the environment. More than 30% of Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions come from the food and drink sector.

Fortunately, there are hospitals, throughout Spain and Europe, that are prepared to face these challenges and are committed to new purchasing and consumption models to contribute to a safer, fairer, more sustainable and prosperous future.

Sustainable purchasing has the potential to make hospital food healthier and more appetizing. Hospitals that pursue a sustainability agenda tend to use more plant-based foods and less ultra-processed foods. Purchasing organic products reduces patients’ exposure to potentially harmful pesticides, additives, and antibiotic residues, and increases patient intake of vitamins and minerals. In addition, sustainable purchasing also includes aspects of reducing food waste, short-supply products, in order to contribute to the local economy, and fair trade products.

With these challenges on the table and the connection with good practices that are taking place in the country and abroad, we organize a webinar where we will listen to different inspiring and illustrative experiences.

Objectives

  1. Introduce the RENASCENCE project, as well as experiences from Austria and Spain on the creation and implementation of sustainable food strategies in healthcare that promote health and sustainability.
  2. Inspire other actors, including healthcare professionals and public authorities, to implement a sustainable food strategy.
  3. Debate the strategic opportunity of sustainable food procurement in the healthcare sector.

Date and time: January 31, 2023 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Program

  • Paola Hernandez, Project Officer at Mensa Cívica
  • Goiuri Alberdi, PhD at the University of the Basque Country and researcher of the European project RENASCENCE Horizon 2020.
  • Christina Schmidt, Director of Kitchen Management at the Hospital Hietzing, Neurological Center Rosenhügel, Austria
  • Silvia Larrañeta, Project manager at the Council for Organic Agriculture Production of Navarra (CPAEN)
  • Yolanda Fernández, Head of the Hospitality Service at the Hospital Germans Trias i Pujol & Project Manager of the prevention and reduction of food waste programme.

Translation will be provided

Registration here

Further information: nuria@municipiosagroeco.red