All higher education institutions in Turku and the campus restaurants located on their premises are participating in the Responsible Food on Campus campaign week, which will be held from October 27 to November 2. “A healthy lunch is an act for nature,” the organisers of the campaign week remind.
Responsible Food on Campus week is celebrated during week 44. Responsible food brings together human well-being and environmentally conscious dietary decisions.
"The Responsible Food on Campus week is a great opportunity to reflect on your own relationship with food. Which choices in sustainable eating feel difficult? How could sustainable food be made easy?" asks Saska Tuomasjukka, Senior Researcher at the University of Turku’s Nutrition and Food Research Centre and one of the theme week’s organizers.
"One everyday relief is close by: in campus restaurants, food is already more sustainable by default than in lunch restaurants in general. When you take a break and eat a healthy lunch in the middle of a work or study day, you’ll feel better and have more energy to keep going," Tuomasjukka emphasizes.
The campaign is part of the broader sustainability and responsibility collaboration between Turku’s higher education institutions, aiming to make responsible practices a part of everyday life for both employees and students.
"Campus restaurants are easy places to make sustainable choices. For protein sources, it’s worth favoring plant proteins such as tofu and legumes, as well as wild-caught fish—especially Finnish lake fish. Among carbohydrates, rice’s impact on biodiversity is twelve times that of potatoes. Besides potatoes, barley and oats are good choices. Many meals also include coffee, which is often the heaviest component of the meal in terms of impact. You can reduce its footprint by choosing organic coffee or by switching to tea," says project researcher Aino Tarkkio from the Nutrition and Food Research Centre.
The theme week is organized by researchers from the Nutrition and Food Research Center at the University of Turku in collaboration with the University’s Sustainable Campus Life Working Group and with the Turku universities joint cooperation group for sustainable development. The University of Turku Fair-Trade University Support Group and the Student Union of the University of Turku (TYY) are also supporting the campaign.
