PARIS, France — All eyes are on Paris to deliver a memorable Olympic Games.
Organizers are focused on delivering an environmentally sustainable experience. That includes a "leaf over beef" approach with food.
Sixty percent of meals will be meat-free, a decision that helps reduce the event's carbon footprint. And no food waste at all? That's what Paris is aiming for.
"Everybody is quite conscious about the challenges that we have to feed the world and being responsible and respectful of the planet as well," Chef Amandine Chaignot said. "This is the kind of ideas we will have during the Olympics as well. Reduce plastic, to have everything locally sourced and in-season and try to put the light on vegetables."
There are plenty of mouths to feed during the Olympics. A total of 13 million meals will be served to athletes, volunteers and media members. Most of the ingredients for those meals will be sourced within 155 miles of Paris, taking full advantage of local farms.
"The challenge for food is for nutrition and diets," said Laurent Pasteur, operations director for Sodexo Live! "It's important. We will do our best to offer everything they need to be more than better on competitions."
At the Olympic Village, there will be no paper plates for the 15,000 athletes. Instead, they'll dine off washable plates. They'll get to experience fresh baguettes every day, starting with breakfast. And, of course, there will be plenty of mouth-watering pastries available for all to enjoy.
The Olympics brings people together from all over the world, and Paris plans to do that one bite at a time.