Mayor Adams Announces Cross-Sector Partnership to Reduce Food-Related Carbon Emissions Across NYC

April 18, 2024

Watch a recording of this announcment on YouTube

Leading New York City-Based Institutions Commit to Administration's Plant-Powered Carbon Challenge to Reduce Food-Related Carbon Emissions by 25 Percent by 2030

Administration to Provide Tools to Track Emissions and Share Best Practices on Shifting Towards Plant-Forward Menu

NEW YORK- New York City Mayor Eric Adams today announced a partnership with several leading national and New York City-based institutions to reduce food-related carbon emissions. The city's integrated greenhouse gas inventory found that 20 percent of New York City's overall emissions comes from the production and consumption of food. As the city has committed to reduce its emissions by a third by 2030, the Adams administration's Plant-Powered Carbon Challenge is a leadership initiative for New York City's private sector to join this mission by reducing food-related carbon emissions by 25 percent by 2030. To reach this ambitious climate target, Plant-Powered Carbon Challenge partners are committing to procuring and serving more plant-based foods, which have a significantly lower carbon footprint than animal-sourced foods. The commitments made by Plant-Powered Carbon Challenge partners have the potential to reduce emissions by nearly 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide per year - the equivalent of removing approximately 100 million car miles from New York City streets or planting 45 thousand acres of forest. The Mayor's Office of Food Policy (MOFP), in partnership with nonprofit Greener by Default will assist partners in tracking emissions and sharing best practices on shifting towards plant-forward menus. New York City is the only city with a cross-sector initiative of this size focused on greenhouse gas reduction.

Read the full Mayoral Press Release.