They are “outlaws”, according to the Justice Animals Savoie (Ajas) association. Over 24% of 175 high schools in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region do not offer at least one vegetarian menu per week in the canteen. A measure yet mandatory since the Climate Law, in force since 2021.
Faced with this observation, the association decided to give notice to Laurent Wauquiez, president of the region, to “enforce the law in these establishments under his supervision”. Without a response from her, she will seize the administrative court, she said in a press release.
“Parcel” data by region
This survey, which comes out on the occasion of the International Day without meat, was carried out on 175 high schools, both public and private. The association explains that it has chosen to focus on these establishments even if all school catering is concerned, from nurseries to universities. She also specifies that “73 high schools” did not provide any response to their requests.
For the region, these figures “discredit” the “seriousness of the study”. Requested by 20 minutes, it warns about these “parcel data”. “Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes has 585 public and private secondary establishments on its territory,” says Florence Dubessy, Deputy Vice-President for Education. The region intervenes in the restoration only for the 305 which are public. »
And why not two vegetarian menus a week?
The elected also targets the menus selected by the association. In her report, she indicates that they date from February and March 2023 and sometimes found on the Internet. For Françoise Dubessy, this methodology is “more than approximate”. She cites the example of the Claude Lebois high school in Saint-Chamond which offered “a vegetarian menu on Friday noon when it is pointed out as not offering one”. “The region does not intend to submit to the delirious injunctions of minority extremist associations”, she concludes, renewing her confidence in the chefs.
“The region has every interest in enforcing this obligation,” insists the environmental group of the regional council in a press release, citing the health, environmental and financial benefits. The elected officials even plead for “two vegetarian menus per week, or a vegetarian option at all meals, no later than January 1, 2025” by supporting the Green MPs who will present this bill on April 6.