Organic Food
Helsinki Childhood Institutions select organic products
By 2015, food in Helsinki school and preschool institutions will be 50 per cent more organic. The ambitious goal was set by the authorities of the Finnish capital. The project aims to improve public health by creating a sustainable habit of early organic consumption and raising awareness among children of the source of food. Teachers will, in turn, focus on children ' s attention on this aspect, study the menu.
Today, there is no other way for people to develop a more conscious attitude towards the environment and, among other things, the sources of nutrition. After a series of “food” scandals in Europe, Finnish parents expressed serious concern about the nutrition of their children. Organic products are considered panacea. They are generally explained by products grown in small quantities on one of the neighbouring farms, as opposed to packaged products at the store that pass through the hands of 5-6 intermediaries before reaching the consumer. It is not known what substances they contain and how to prevent possible harm. In general, the Finns are inclined to the shortest route from the farm to the fork.
Over the past two years, the Helsinki City Council spent some 400,000 euros on the provision of organic food to children ' s institutions. Today, the dishes contain between 12 and 15 per cent of organic ingredients, and this proportion tends to increase.
There's a problem where the Finns are facing. Organic and small supply chains. " We need larger organic ingredient packages to feed 100 or more children ' s kindergartens " , by Aukki Johansson, Director of Palmia, which serves over 300 kindergartens and schools in Helsinki.
According to the statistics of the Finnish Agency Evira, 365 new farms were registered in the organic management system in 2012 alone, a significant leap compared with previous years. Organic agriculture currently stands at 9 per cent of Finland ' s total planting area, and the Government intends to increase this figure to 20 per cent by 2020.