It is estimated that measures in agriculture, changes in eating habits as part of nationwide development trends, and the reduction of food waste have a high potential to save greenhouse gas emissions in Dortmund. The food-related work of the City of Dortmund, including efforts by the municipal provider of daycare centres for children (FABIDO), aims to both reduce greenhouse gas emissions directly and promote long-term sustainable consumption patterns through healthy food choices for children and accompanying educational measures.

Dortmund's municipal daycare centres’ efforts to contribute to a more sustainable and fair food system also seek to highlight a significant oversight: agriculture and food are not currently included in the German municipal accounting standard for greenhouse gas emissions (BISKO). Consequently, these topics often don't receive adequate attention in local climate protection efforts, despite their significant potential for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The upcoming municipal food strategy, which is currently being developed, will address this challenge.

Procurement

The aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by increasing the share of organic and regional food products is mainly addressed through public procurement. The change in food procurement in municipal daycare centres from conventional to sustainable and fair food products is implemented through framework contracts for a full range of organic products and for products from an organic farm in Dortmund. In addition, food procuring employees in these institutions are encouraged to pay attention to climate-relevant criteria such as organic, regional, seasonal and fair traded when placing orders.

Besides procurement options, recipes used by the daycare centres are another component of the climate-friendly food procurement strategy. These are certified according to the principles of optimised mixed diets (OptimiX) and are monitored by the department of child nutrition in Bochum (Germany). This policy ensures that meat is only consumed once a week. Since meat consumption accounts for a considerable amount of diet-related greenhouse gas emissions, reducing its frequency represents an important opportunity for CO2 reduction.

Meal plans of municipal daycare centres were also reviewed during a project called “MehrWert” by the Consumer Association of North-Rhine Westphalia and received a certificate for their climate-friendly conception. The project resulted in a cookbook with climate-friendly recipes for communal catering and is now used by the staff in daycare centres to add to the existing collection of recipes. It includes the use of alternative products with lower greenhouse gases, for example, the use of spelt instead of rice.

Capacity building

Teaching children about sustainable development and food is one of the principles of the municipal daycare centres in Dortmund. Educators support the children’s enthusiasm and interest in nature and the environment through activities, projects and discussions. For instance, the daycare centres regularly take part in the project “UmweltBewusste Kita” (environmentally conscious daycare centre) of the city’s Energy Management Office. The aim is to reduce the consumption of energy and resources in daycare centres and to raise children’s awareness of environmental issues by planting raised beds with vegetables and experiencing a “day without electricity”. As “electricity-saving detectives”, “water police” and “electricity owls” the children experience playfully how to save energy and learn about the energy cycle.

By taking part in the Fair Daycare NRW (Faire Kita NRW) project, all of the municipal daycare centres in Dortmund were certified with the Fair Daycare award by 2021. During a one-year process, the children, parents and daycare staff learned about the basics of fair and ethical trade. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been a standard for FABIDO, the municipal body responsible for the Dortmund’s daycare centres, since 2017. Through this programme, children and staff acquire new knowledge daily about local and global issues such as waste reduction in their own daycare centre or ocean pollution every day. This education increases their sense of responsibility for their own actions and empowers them to help shape a more democratic, healthier and fairer world.

Urban gardening

Seven municipal daycare centres are participating in the “Querbeet” project, an initiative of the Office for Urban Renewal. This project promotes urban gardening and aligns with the concept of the “edible city”. In these daycare centres, children can grow and harvest fresh vegetables, herbs and fruits, which can help raise their awareness about food production and sustainability. In addition, 150 raised garden beds were built for FABIDO with the support of the “Stadtteilwerkstatt”, a district workshop of the Social Welfare Office, to support urban gardening in the daycare centres. 113 nesting boxes and 114 large insect hotels have been built and installed in the outdoor areas of the facilities.

Communication

In order to raise awareness about the importance of food in climate protection, reports on projects and measures are published in the newsletter for FABIDO employees “FABIDO direct”. FABIDO also communicates its efforts through regular press releases about completed projects, publications in specialist journals and articles on the FABIDO website. FABIDO also participates in the annual city festival DORTBUNT, where it presents its concepts of home economics and ecological education to interested citizens, families and visitors.

FABIDO engages with approximately 7,000 families daily. These interactions occur during drop off and pick up times, parents' council meetings, and daycare centre events. This ensures parents are actively involved and informed about FABIDO’s sustainable food and environmental programmes.

The activities described were funded through multiple sources. These include:

1. Financial allocations from the Children's Education Act of North Rhine-Westphalia (federal state level)
2. Mandatory and voluntary contributions from the City of Dortmund in its capacity as the provider of daycare services
3. Catering fees paid by parents for meals in Dortmund's municipal daycare centres

FABIDO and its daycare centres serve as a good example of how healthy, sustainable catering can be implemented for out-of-home catering. Dortmund has seen steady progress in increasing the proportion of organic food. Nevertheless, for further measures additional coordination and financial support is certainly necessary.

The initiatives align with the City of Dortmund's sustainability efforts as outlined in the municipal Action Plan “Climate – Air 2030”. They also contribute to Dortmund’s goal of achieving climate-neutrality as fast as possible, exemplified by Dortmund’s participation in the EU mission “100 climate-neutral and smart cities”.

The described activities contribute to prevent food-related health problems and food poverty among Dortmund’s children. This is particularly relevant given that Dortmund has a poverty rate of almost ¼ of the city’s population and approximately five percent of Dortmund’s children suffer from obesity at school entry age. By offering fresh, healthy and sustainable food in public daycare centres, these initiatives not only have positive environmental impacts but also beneficial effects on Dortmund’s social and health policies.

Due to the changes in procurement, the share of organically produced food in terms of turnover, rose from 10 % in 2019 to 35 % in 2023. As part of the “Fair Daycare” certification, daycare centres commit to purchasing at least two fair trade products (often food) – this is verified by the Fair Daycare project office. However, the savings in greenhouse gas emissions through reduced meat consumption and the use of alternative products cannot be qualified in a valid way.

Nevertheless, many daycare centres have reported that parents are increasingly turning to healthier organic products and fair-trade products at home, demonstrating the long-term effectiveness of the activities. Moreover, swap meets for parents, flea markets etc. contributed to the saving of resources in the area of textiles.

In terms of education, various projects and activities focusing on healthy and sustainable food, as well as sustainable development in general, have reached approximately 8,000 children and families in Dortmund. This widespread engagement underscores the comprehensive nature of FABIDO's approach to sustainability and health education.

FABIDO and its municipal daycare centres in Dortmund are addressing the challenge of establishing a sustainable food system by not only providing children with organic, regional and seasonal food but also teaching them about the importance of a sustainable way of life. While public procurement is an important lever to increase the share of organically and regionally produced food products, lasting change can only be achieved by education and empowerment of people from an early age. The food related work of FABIDO contributes to multiple climate protection measures and has the potential to be scaled up in other areas, such as procurement for staff restaurants or catering for municipal events. This work represents an important step towards a more sustainable Dortmund.

Despite positive developments, experience has shown that an overall strategy for FABIDO is necessary for success. The good will and dedication of individual daycare centres is not enough and it needs support (non-material and material) for the local actors in the daycare centres. Initially, food budgets were not sufficient and needed to be increased. Additionally, activities with partners such as the educational farm, the children’s museum “mondo mio”, “Querwaldein e.V.” required central financing by FABIDO to ensure no costs arose for the local facilities.

As a municipal enterprise, FABIDO is subject to the city's procurement regulations and must find ways to tender framework contracts in accordance with these rules. Furthermore, it is not possible to redistribute unused meals or food due to the statutory food regulations (obligation to provide proof, declaration). While FABIDO plans to monitor portion sizes to minimize waste, this regulatory constraint remains a significant hurdle in their sustainability efforts.

The success of the project relies on the shared values, commitment, and the support of the people and partners involved. The employees have excelled in their roles and are actively shaping how the next generation understands and manages food resources and other environmental concerns. A cross-departmental working group consisting of municipal staff members seeks for synergies between measures and projects aiming at local food system change.