Reduce / Reuse / Recycle

July 13, 2008

 

Japanese City Teaches Students about Food and Environment by Recycling School Lunch Waste

Keywords: Local government Reduce / Reuse / Recycle 

The city of Sapporo on the island of Hokkaido in northern Japan has been operating a project named Sapporo School Lunch Food Recycling since fiscal 2006, one of its initiatives to encourage the separation and reuse of food waste. The project aims to make compost from residues generated when preparing school lunches and any uneaten leftovers and then use it to grow various crops. These are then, in full circle, used in school meals. According to the city, the project also brings about other educational benefits such as enhancing students' awareness of environmental values and fostering "children who treat things with care."

In fiscal 2007, the city collected food waste from 182 elementary and junior high schools, representing 60 percent of all its schools. Five schools selected as model schools grew crops using recycled compost that were then used to make their school lunches. Students also went on a school trip to observe the functioning of recycling plants.

At the Food and Environment Forum to Learn through Food Recycling, held on February 22, 2008, students from the model schools reported that they were more aware of food issues than before. They also said that both the number of students who said they didn't like vegetables and the amount of their lunch leftovers had both decreased. The junior high school students clearly recognized environment and food issues as problems that they need to face. In their presentation they appealed to the public to take action -- with slogans such as "Let's begin with what we can do now," "Eat more local foods," and "Eat food in season" -- to reduce the amount of food-related carbon dioxide emissions, to which the audience responded with bursts of applause.

http://www.city.sapporo.jp/city/english/
- Convenience Stores Sell Food Grown from Own Food Waste Compost (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1245-e
- Seven-Eleven Launches New Box Lunch to Promote Food Education (Related JFS article)
http://www.japanfs.org/db/1968-e

Posted: 2008/07/13 02:27:27 PM
Japanese  

 

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