Reykjavík City adopts comprehensive food policy

From food security to a diverse food culture

The vision ensures that food consumption, production, and handling avoid environmental harm on both a local and global scale, while providing residents with easy access to quality options at farmers markets, grocery stores, restaurants, and vegetable gardens.

Meat production, food waste, and—to a lesser extent—transportation drive a significant share of greenhouse gas emissions tied to food systems. Aligning with municipal climate goals, the policy calls for lowering the carbon footprint of local food production and routinely tracking progress.

Five overarching goals anchor the strategy: effective leadership, greater visibility for food production in Reykjavík, sustainability and improved resource use, healthy food and food security, and a more diverse culinary culture. Each goal features specific actions that the City will carry out alongside residents and stakeholders.

Gardens, wellness, and education

Planned initiatives include expanding the network of public vegetable gardens and bringing them to preschools and community centers, giving more residents—including children—the opportunity to learn firsthand about growing crops and food origins. The policy also aims to broaden food-related education, teaching residents how to harvest locally available natural resources like mushrooms, berries, and herbs from the surrounding environment.

Every cafeteria will offer a vegetarian option, while preschools, primary schools, and other city workplaces that serve children will remove processed meats from their menus barring exceptional circumstances. Guidelines recommend serving these products no more than four times a year. Altogether, roughly 20,000 children eat lunch at local preschools and primary schools. All of the City's primary schools will offer oatmeal every morning. Staff will prepare city-provided food as close as possible to the point of service.

Officials are planning an annual education week for both residents and businesses focused on reducing food waste—currently one of the greatest challenges in food management. The policy further emphasizes supporting farmers markets, food markets, and street festivals that enrich the local culinary scene and bring vibrant community spirit to neighborhoods.       

Nearly 30,000 meals a day

Every working day, nearly 30,000 people eat lunch through city-provided services—mostly preschool and primary school children, along with staff, nursing home residents, and Department of Welfare clients. This massive scale gives the municipality a unique opportunity to lead by example in food services.

To ensure steady progress, the City Council proposes appointing a dedicated nutrition project manager with a clear mandate to execute these actions across all municipal departments.

• View data and the recording from the City Council meeting
• Related interview with a doctor of nutritional science