‘Climate action starts in the kitchen,’ says UN, launching #Recipe4Change campaign

With the Paris Agreement on climate change entering into force today, famed chefs Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca are joining the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Fund (SDG Fund) to tackle climate change from a different perspective: sustainable cooking.

“Food should not be a threat to sustainability, but a source of more sustainable development,” said the Roca brothers, in a news release.

Over the next three months, the brothers – UN Development Programme (UNDP) Goodwill Ambassadors for the SDG Fund – will offer cooking challenges that invite social media users on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to submit sustainable recipes (#Recipe4Change).

“The beginning of the Paris Agreement also marks a new chapter for humanity and demonstrates that countries are serious about addressing climate change. More importantly, a greater understanding of climate change can be set in motion in our own communities and kitchens,” they said.

In early October, the Paris Agreement cleared the final threshold of 55 countries representing 55 per cent of global emissions required for the accord to enter into effect.

A woman fires a fuel-efficient stove made in the Rwanda camp for internally displaced people (IDPs), near Tawila, North Darfur. UN Photo/Albert González Farran

To achieve the SDGs, there must be a greater awareness and understanding of how people’s food choices can impact sustainability, health and the environment. By putting sustainable cooking at the forefront of their restaurant’s mission, the Roca brothers are eager to share their expertise, provide fresh approaches, and offer more resilient food practices.

Simple changes in cooking can contribute to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, especially food sourcing, waste reduction and preparation can contribute to better food security and nutritional outcomes.

As part of the #Recipe4Change contest, the Roca brothers will pose a series of monthly challenges, selecting one winning recipe for each of these challenges. At the end of the contest, the Rocas will recognize a global winner among all of the recipes received during the contest.

The winner will spend a day with the chefs in their celebrated restaurant, El Celler de Can Roca in Spain, where they will have the opportunity to prepare the winning recipe in the Rocas’ kitchen and dine with the chefs.

Along with monthly sustainable food challenges, the Roca brothers will share regular tips and techniques to reduce the impact of cooking on the environment. They will offer best practices and ideas designed to mitigate climate change as well as cooking methods that reduce energy consumption and water usage, and enhance food preservation.

“The challenges of food security are complex and require more integrated approaches to mitigate the effects of our changing climate,” said Paloma Duran, Director of the SDG Fund.

With one in five people still lacking access to electricity and more than 1.8 billion without clean water, “we must rethink how we prepare, store and transport food. The Roca brothers serve as important champions for our ongoing work on this vital issue,” she stressed.

“Tackling climate change and achieving the SDGs should be a collective effort that involves governments, business, international organizations, but also citizens who can everyday make small but meaningful decisions in how they cook and what they eat,” she added.