Norrkoeping puts sustainable seafood on the school menu
22 000 Swedish children can now choose a sustainable fish alternative for lunch after Norrkoeping Local Authority successfully certified all of its 57 school kitchens to the Marine Stewardship Council Chain of Custody standard. Norrkoeping is the first caterer in Scandinavia to secure MSC certification of a foodservice outlet, and can now display the MSC ecolabel on its school menus, repoerts www.megafishnet.com with reference to MSC.
The MSC schools project - funded by the Swedish Postcode Lottery Foundation - was launched in December 2008 to encourage awareness of sustainable fishing and stimulate the uptake of MSC certified fish in Swedish schools. The project is based on a hugely successful UK initiative - Fish and Kids - which has already reached over 3500 schools in 25 local education authorities across the UK. Norrköping is pioneering the project in Sweden together with the MSC and - over the past 9 months - has helped the MSC to develop the guidance material for future project partners.
The official launch took place today in Lindö, Norrköping at Braviksskolan, where 300 children were served MSC certified sustainable fish and had the opportunity to test the curriculum-linked education resources and website. Representatives from Swedish Postcode Lottery Foundation and the MSC joined the children to celebrate the event.
What Norrkoeping LEA says
Ingrid Kalm, Head of Catering in Norrkoeping, said: ‘We were already sourcing a great deal of ecological products but we aim to increase this uptake further in accordance with the political decisions made in local government. MSC certified sustainable seafood falls within the category of ecological products and belongs on the school menu. In addition it is important for us to actively support sustainable fishing and to teach our guests to think in the same way.'
What the Postcode Lottery says
The Postcode Lottery is a fundraising mechanism and all its profit is donated to charities. The vision of the Lottery is to improve conditions for mankind and for the environment. Welcoming the Norrköping initiative, Niclas Kjellström-Matseke, Managing Director of the Swedish Postcode Lottery said, ‘The MSC's foodservice project for Swedish schools is an important way to teach the next generation about sustainable fishing.'
What the MSC says
Susanna Blomqvist, project manager for the MSC said: "This is a fantastic achievement and the result of hard work by Norrkoeping during the past year. By certifying the first school kitchens in Scandinavia, Norrkeping is leading the way for the foodservice sector by demonstrating that the concept really works on the Swedish market. Through the certification of the entire supply line it is now possible for other outlets to attempt an MSC-certification. Norrköping is leading the way for MSC certified seafood in Swedish foodservice. I would encourage other LEAs to see what the project has to offer."