Landmark Vote Positions Helsinki as a Plant-Based Policy Frontrunner

The initiative, titled “Half Better” (Puolet parempaa), was introduced by City Councillor Mai Kivelä. Under the decision, meat and dairy in public food services will be replaced with nutritious and appealing plant-based options across schools, daycare centers, hospitals, and other municipal institutions.

“This is a victory for climate responsibility, animal welfare, and children’s right to a sustainable future,” Kivelä stated following the vote.

The Half Better initiative builds on a nationwide campaign launched by Greenpeace in Finland. The campaign challenged municipalities across the country to serve “half better” food in public procurement: half as many animal-based products, replaced with nutritious plant-based options. A total of 35 council motions were submitted nationwide. Helsinki’s vote now marks the most significant breakthrough of the campaign at the city level.

The decision opens a pathway for the entire plant-based industry in Finland, says Jukka Kajan, Executive Director of the industry association Plant Based Food Finland: “Helsinki is not only strengthening climate action and improving public health, but also creating long-term market predictability for companies developing plant-based solutions. This is essential for enabling Finland’s world-class innovations to scale and expand internationally.”

From individual choice to system-level change

The decision reflects a broader understanding that food policy is not merely about individual dietary choices, but about structural signals. Helsinki serves millions of meals annually through its public catering services. By reshaping procurement at this scale, the city aims to normalize plant-forward eating patterns and align public spending with its climate and biodiversity commitments.

Kivelä underlines: “This decision is about coherence and responsibility. It does not make sense for a city to fund climate mitigation on one hand while accelerating biodiversity loss and emissions through its food procurement on the other.”

In addition to climate and biodiversity protection and public health, the rationale is also grounded in fiscal responsibility. According to preliminary calculations conducted at Aalto University, plant-based meals are already more cost-effective for Helsinki’s food services. If half of current meat procurement were replaced with sustainable plant proteins, the city could save more than €3 million annually.

A signal to Europe’s public sector

With this vote, Helsinki demonstrates how public procurement can be used as a policy lever to accelerate the protein transition. The move sends a strong signal to policymakers, food industry actors, and institutional caterers across Europe.

The decision also strengthens Finland’s emerging position in the plant-based foods sector, where innovation, food tech development, and sustainable ingredient production are gaining momentum. Unlike in many other European countries, Finland’s plant-based retail market is growing at double-digit rates.

“By building on this momentum, Helsinki sends a strong signal to the entire food sector. It reduces investment risk, encourages innovation, and supports Finland’s position as a competitive player in the global protein transition,” says Jukka Kajan of Plant Based Food Finland.