School Menus

This research aims to understand the extent to which current school meal menus in Spanish publicly funded primary schools align with sustainability and low-emissions standards, specifically regarding meat consumption. We have analyzed meat consumption patterns in 163 primary school menus randomly collected from across all 17 Spanish autonomous communities, comparing them against the recommended limits published in the EAT-Lancet reports (2019 and 2025). The study employed a quantitative cross-sectional approach with time-stratified sampling. Among the results, we found that 79.1% of schools had unsustainable menus, characterized by excessive meat-based products, and that 87.7% emitted more CO2e than the proposed benchmark. These figures point to significant potential for policy action.