Over a span of 27 days, Olympic athletes and spectators will consume 14 million regionally sourced, environmentally sustainable meals at 44 venues across London. Much of the food that will be served during the summer games will be sourced in the U.K., The Daily Beast reports. The fish will be sustainable; the eggs will come from cage-free hens, and the milk and chicken will be organic.
Rosie Boycott, chair of Mayor Boris Johnson’s London Food directive, said the Olympic food service organizers hope the strategies they’re using to bring fresh, eco-conscious food to the mouths of millions will be replicated throughout the U.K. and across the globe after the Games end.
“Back in 2007 the organizers determined that this was an unprecedented opportunity to look at our diets and our health, at our catering industry, at the state of our farms, and to commit to a long-term plan for good food and environmental stewardship,” she told The Daily Beast.
Among the locally sourced Olympic menu items are Welsh lamb, Leicestershire Stilton pie, Isle of Wight tomatoes and sourdough bread from the London borough of Tower Hamlets.
Even big name Olympic food providers are on board. McDonald’s, for example, has agreed to serve chicken and potatoes grown in the U.K.
“The thing that nobody knows yet is, will McDonald’s continue to follow the Olympic food standards afterward?” Boycott told The Daily Beast. “We’re waiting to hear, and hoping.”
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