Lyon’s Build Back Better plan invests €9.3million in better food and agriculture

To promote self-sufficiency and resilience to future crises, Greater Lyon, in the South East of France, wants to promote more local production and employment opportunities. The €9.3million food plan includes the following targets:

• Support for organic production (€1million)
• Create an agricultural land board to protect land for food growing and create farm incubators, particularly with the aim of testing new growing structures to supply public school canteens (€2.5million)
• Create a centralised school food procurement office between Greater Lyon and neighbouring councils to increase the power of public procurement of 'good food' (€1.5million)
• 100% organic and 50% local food with one daily vegetarian option in school canteens.

The commitment towards better food and agriculture is part of a bigger 3.6billion package of investment for 2021-26. In the midst of a social, economic and ecological crisis, Greater Lyon has embarked on an ambitious programme of investment to relaunch the economy and promote an ecological transition of the metro area centred around three key areas:

• An ecological transition
• Solidarity
• The partnership between the 59 municipalities that compose the metro area, communities, residents, businesses and academic organisations.

Concrete projects are divided into nine areas ranging from mobility to health and housing. The investment in the environment, energy, agriculture, water and waste comprises a total of €517million. Other notable projects include action on food waste. To reduce the amount of food waste ending up being incinerated, Greater Lyon is also investing 32.1million in:

• Create collection points for food waste
• Establish new composting facilities and distribute composting kits to individual households
• Promote community composting