School meals in Lyon, France's second largest city, have become the subject for a war of words between politicians, and the city itself has become the stage for farmers protests over the last few days.
The reason for all of the outcry is that Grégory Doucet, the city's mayor, has made the decision to temporarily remove meat from school lunch menus during the Covid crisis.
Mr Doucet is being accused by other French politicians of trying to promote vegetarianism, although he says the reason for the decision is to speed up food distribution in light of coronavirus hygiene and social distancing protocols. His critics claim that he is using the outbreak to promote a lifestyle agenda.
The Interior Minister, Gerald Darmanin, described it as an “insult to French farmers and butchers,” claiming that "the moralist and elitist politics of the 'Greens' exclude the working class.” while Beatrice de Montille, a right-wing official said that "in the city of gastronomy, the ecological majority takes advantage of the health crisis to pass ideological measures without consultations."
The Agricultural Minister, Julien Denormandie, is equally critical, saying “Let’s stop putting ideology on our children's plates!” and "Let's just give them what they need to grow well. Meat is part of it." He has called on the local prefect to reverse the decision.
The strange thing is that, as the mayor has pointed out, his right-wing predecessor "took exactly the same measure" during the first wave of the pandemic and nobody paid much attention.
It seems like a huge reaction to a temporary measure that is so far only scheduled to last until the Easter holidays. Mr Doucet has promised that the student's meals in the 206 schools in Lyon will remain balanced, and that they are actually not vegan or vegetarian, as they will still include eggs and fish.
The city explanation for the change of menu does seem to make sense, as deputy mayor Stephanie Leger explained that schools would be serving “a single menu without meat to more quickly serve students and streamline meals.”
So, what is the real issue here, is the problem that Mr Doucet is a member of France's Green Party, and why is cutting meat from school meals a problem rather than a good thing?
You might think that France would be one of the countries at the front of every food trend, and it is hard to see a reason that schools in Lyon or anywhere else across the country should not embrace meatless meals. Nutritionists agree that a vegetarian diet is safe for children as long as they get enough protein and iron, it avoids issues with many allergies and religious beliefs, is more sustainable and would save the schools money.
Comments like those by Mr Denormandie implying that children need to eat meat seem curiously old-fashioned but he is not alone.
It's truly unusual for French famers and central government to get along about anything but it seems the idea of meat-free schools has managed to unite them as the farmers have taken their tractors to the streets of Lyon in protest.
So, what should France, and the world, be feeding it's children, is there a case for the choice of a healthy mostly plant-based diet, or should we be supporting the meat farming lobby and taking the traditional but far less sustainable option?
