Decreasing the carbon footprint of food through public procurement—A case study from the municipality of Härnösand

Eating habits are among the strongest drivers of negative environmental impact. Public procurement has been suggested as an efficient lever to catalyze changes within the food system. This study examines alternative purchase processes that may decrease the carbon footprint of publicly procured food through a case study of a municipality in the Northern part of Sweden. The GHG emissions associated with the current food service in the case study were 2.2 kg CO2e per kg food and must be reduced by 40.9% by 2030 to comply with the Paris Agreement; 76% of the emissions derive from food of animal origin (44% from unprocessed red meat). Three alternative diet scenarios, “zero red meat,” “−50% red meat,” and “flexitarian free from red meat,” were explored. Only 6% of the total purchased food kilograms were altered, yet the cutback of meat caused GHG emissions reductions turned out to be as high as 44%. The Swedish Law on Public Procurement, deficient infrastructure, unsustainable food culture, and local politicians' reluctance to change were mentioned as the main obstacles to materializing necessary changes in the food procurement system. The respondents also pointed out essential policy changes at the national and municipal levels.