{"id":26709,"date":"2026-05-25T10:00:38","date_gmt":"2026-05-25T14:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/?p=26709"},"modified":"2026-05-08T12:02:56","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T16:02:56","slug":"new-york-citys-food-policy-changes-offer-environmental-benefits","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/2026\/05\/25\/new-york-citys-food-policy-changes-offer-environmental-benefits\/","title":{"rendered":"New York City\u2019s Food Policy Changes Offer Environmental Benefits"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

by Reed Mangels, PhD, RD<\/p>\n

In 2022, New York City revised their standards<\/a> for meals and snacks served in public schools, hospitals, and other programs. The revised standards called for a reduced use of red and processed meat and cheese and greater use of whole or minimally-processed plant protein. The revisions were done to promote better individual, community, and environmental health (1). A recent study examined the effect of these revised standards on greenhouse gas emissions and the nutrient content of meals (2).<\/p>\n

What is the study? <\/strong><\/p>\n

This study used menu data from four agencies (public schools, NYC Health + Hospitals, Department of Corrections, and the Administration for Children\u2019s Services) that serve 77% of all city meals. The researchers compared the menus in the period before the revised standards were enacted and the period when the standards were in effect. They evaluated changes in the \u201ccenter-of-the-plate protein source.\u201d They examined nutrient content and estimated greenhouse gas emissions based on entr\u00e9es, side dishes, and beverages. The estimated greenhouse gas emissions included production and processing but did not include transportation, serving, and waste from served food that was not eaten. The results reflect the menus that were served; not necessarily what was eaten (2).<\/p>\n

What did this study find?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The main finding of this study was that, overall, greenhouse gas emissions decreased by 21% per portion with the revision in standards to promote greater use of whole or minimally-processed plant protein in place of red and processed meat. There was no statistically significant change in the nutrient content of total menu offerings when the menus from before and after the new standards were compared (2).<\/p>\n

The largest reduction in beef servings was seen in preK-8 schools which had a 17% reduction in beef. The NYC Health + Hospitals acute care meal program had the largest increase (52%) in vegetarian food items. In most agencies there was an increased use of whole or minimally processed plant proteins (2).<\/p>\n

The results of this study suggest that menu changes that increase the use of whole or minimally-processed plant protein can result in a sizeable reduction in greenhouse gas emissions with little effect on the nutritional quality of the menus. These results can be used to make a case to local, state, and federal governments for markedly increasing the use of plant protein and decreasing\/eliminating animal products in public food systems.<\/p>\n

References:<\/em><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. NYC Health. New York City Food Standards. Meals and Snacks Purchased and Served. https:\/\/www.nyc.gov\/assets\/doh\/downloads\/pdf\/cardio\/cardio-meals-snacks-standards.pdf<\/a>. 2022.<\/li>\n
  2. Moore ERH, Moran AJ, Stadler L, et al. Menu changes under NYC’s revised food standards were associated with a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. Health Aff (Millwood)<\/em>. 2026;45:585-593.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    To read about the environmental effects of vegan diets see:<\/p>\n

    Environment<\/a><\/p>\n

    To read more about food policy in New York City see:<\/p>\n

    New York City Moves to Phase Out Processed Meat in Meals and Snacks Served by City Agencies
    \nand their Contractors<\/a><\/p>\n

    New York City School Lunch Program Features \u201cVegan Fridays\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    by Reed Mangels, PhD, RD In 2022, New York City revised their standards for meals and snacks served in public schools, hospitals, and other programs. The revised standards called for a reduced use of red and processed meat and cheese and greater use of whole or minimally-processed plant protein. The revisions were done to promote […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26709"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26709\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26711,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26709\/revisions\/26711"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vrg.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}