There's less than a month to go before the Olympics kick off in Paris. It's a big event for athletes but also for chefs, who are getting ready to serve over 40,000 meals per day. As part of a pledge to limit greenhouse gas emissions, the Paris Games are set to make history by offering more vegetarian cuisine than any previous edition. The committee says the event's plant-based offering will help halve the carbon footprint of meals, compared to the Rio and London games. Our team at Down to Earth got to have a taste.
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00:00Lightly caramelized sweet potato on a bed of hummus, topped with a zesty chimichurri
00:08sauce.
00:10This is one of Charles Guillot's culinary creations for the Paris Olympics.
00:15I enjoy cooking with pulses.
00:19Chickpeas are a great source of protein, great for athletes.
00:24With the help of nutritionists and athletes, Guillot developed more than 500 recipes,
00:30of which a third are vegetarian.
00:33Bold move for the land of Boeuf Bourguignon, where consumption per person of meat is twice
00:39the global average.
00:40For the chef, the games will showcase to the world France's plant-based savoir-faire.
00:48Vegetarian meal doesn't have to be just bland vegetables.
00:50You need some crunch and a different texture to create something that becomes a dish.
00:55Overall, the Paris Olympics aim to achieve a 60% reduction in the use of animal products.
01:03Vegetarian meals are expected to make a big dent in food-related carbon emissions.
01:08For 100 grams of protein, chickpeas generate less than one kilogram of CO2, compared to
01:1450 kilograms for beef.
01:19Athletes will be able to try Guillot's sweet potato dish in several venues.
01:24But for the 15,000 athletes attending, a deconstructed version will be on offer at the Olympic Village,
01:31the committee having to adjust to athletes' specific dietary requirements.
01:37Animal and plant-based sources of protein are not the same.
01:41When we compose a vegetarian meal, we need to associate different sources of plant-based
01:45protein.
01:47That's why traditionally around the world, people combine chickpeas with couscous.
01:51In Asia, they pair rice and lentils.
01:54Or in Latin America, kidney beans and rice.
02:01In a bid to slash planet-warming gases, organisers are not only concerned with what goes on the
02:07plates but where it came from.
02:10No food will come by plane.
02:12Nearly half a million bananas are set to be shipped by boat from the French Caribbean.
02:17And it's all about the local.
02:19Eighty percent of ingredients will be sourced in France, 25 percent within a radius of 250
02:26kilometers from the French capital.
02:29Volron is one of seven farms selected to supply fresh produce for the Games.
02:35It's located less than a 40-minute drive from the Olympic Village.
02:42Back in the day, the farmland here fed Parisians.
02:48Now, history repeats itself as we will feed athletes staying at the Olympics Village less
02:53than 25 kilometers away.
02:57The farm will produce more than 18 tons of potatoes for the event.
03:01I hope my potatoes will give them the energy and strength they need to perform.
03:07From farm to fork, Paris is also set to break ground with the use of plastic-free tableware.
03:15Athletes will be served on reusable dishes only, the first in the history of Olympic
03:20Games.