How does the catering on golf courses and at golf events actually contribute to the health of guests and the carbon footprint of the golf club?
These are questions that come to mind when reading the evaluation of the EAT-Lancet Commission, which was published on October 2 and was compiled with the leading contribution of Johan Rockström from the German Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. 70 scientists from 35 countries drew up a recommendation for a Planetary Health Diet, the application of which would not only lead to a significantly healthier population, but also to a halving of global CO₂ emissions generated by food. Incidentally, the latter are by no means low: a third of all global emissions are generated by the food system.
This also applies to the golf industry. If you look at the CO₂ reports of golf tournaments and golf clubs, you will see that, depending on the delivery routes and type of food, the catering factor makes a significant contribution to the CO₂ emissions of the event and should not be neglected.
“What we put on our plates can save millions of lives, save billions of tons of emissions, stop the loss of biodiversity and create a fair food system,” says Prof. Johan Rockström, summing up the results of the EAT-Lancet Commission study. For the first time, this study also relates the health factor to the impact on planetary boundaries when assessing food.
In practical terms, the recommendations for action from the study are relatively simple when applied to the gastronomy on offer at golf courses:
- The consumption of meat should take a back seat. Menus should focus on dishes with a predominantly plant-based character. According to the study, people in the USA and Canada currently eat seven times more meat than recommended in the Planetary Health Diet, and five times too much in Europe and Latin America.
- Highly processed foods such as French fries have a significantly higher carbon footprint and are much unhealthier than freshly processed foods such as potatoes. Highly processed foods should be significantly outnumbered on the menu.
- Regional and local food that is delivered fresh is healthier for the guest and has a lower carbon footprint than preserved, frozen food that has a long transportation route.
- Food waste must be reduced.
To date, the topic of gastronomy has hardly been considered within the sustainability debate in golf. Although the organizers of major tournaments such as The Open Championship make an effort to raise awareness of the topic among fans by displaying the carbon footprint of food, the average club caterer pays no attention to the delivery routes of wines from distant continents or the carbon footprint of a steak from Argentina that ends up on a golfer’s plate somewhere in Central Europe.
Nevertheless, the operator of a club restaurant is generally faced with the challenge of offering healthy dishes as well as ensuring that the menus have a low carbon footprint. Anyone who encounters a lack of understanding from their guests can now refer to the vast amount of data and facts presented by the EAT-Lancet Commission. There is no longer a lack of arguments in favor of a healthy diet for golfers that is also good for the planet.
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