Effective Monday, 19 March 2018, all lunch services and banqueting catered by Vitam and ordered by personnel of Erasmus School of Economics will be 100% plant based. This will become the new standard. However, freedom of choice will not be violated: meat or dairy can still be ordered. By changing the default option, Erasmus School of Economics plans to significantly decrease meat and dairy consumption.
Behavioral economist and advocate Dr Jan Stoop came up with the idea to implement a ‘nudge’ to reduce the carbon foodprint of Erasmus School of Economics. He explains: “It is clear that food consumption is one of the contributors of greenhouse gasses. Especially meat and dairy cause a tremendous amount of problems for the environment. This nudge is a way to steer behavior ‘in the right direction’ without being paternalistic and infringing on freedom of choice. The immediate advantage of the nudge is that, in case excess food is thrown away, it doesn’t contain any wasteful meat or dairy.”
According to Philip Hans Franses, Dean of Erasmus School of Economics, the School sets a new norm: “The norm is that we care for the environment. Relying on insights of economic theory, everybody of Erasmus School of Economics can actively help combatting environmental issues!”
In our efforts to improve eating habits and sustainable consumption on Woudestein campus, Vitam and Erasmus School of Economics are closely working together with the Sustainable Food Lab @ EUR led by Pinar Coskun.
- More information
For more information, please contact Ronald de Groot, Communications Officer of Erasmus School of Economics: rdegroot@ese.eur.nl, +31 6 53 641 846.
