Farmers dumped several tonnes of vegetables grown in Latvia outside Riga City Council today, protesting against the municipality’s food procurement and catering contracts for educational institutions, the farmers’ association Zemnieku saeima announced.
Mārtiņš Trons, a board member of the association, noted that November is a month of patriotism, unity and gratitude. Through this protest, farmers want to remind Riga City Council members that genuine patriotism must be demonstrated through concrete actions.
Although politicians publicly declare that children should eat more locally produced food and that Latvian farmers and producers should be supported, concerns are growing that food products grown in neighbouring countries and third countries could soon account for an even larger share of meals served in schools and kindergartens.
The association pointed out that Riga Municipality launched a 26.8 million euros catering services procurement procedure this year covering 27 educational institutions.
The tender specifications allow certain products to be supplied from locations up to 300 kilometres from Riga’s administrative boundary.
Such a radius covers extensive areas of neighbouring countries, where Latvian supervisory authorities have limited opportunities to verify the actual origin, quality and compliance of food products.
Despite repeated calls from the association to cancel the procurement procedure, Riga City Council has not responded. The association therefore decided to draw public attention to the municipality’s procurement practices through this protest.
Furthermore, another catering procurement procedure covering 101 educational institutions is expected to follow.
“Riga City Council has done Latvian farmers a disservice when it comes to food procurement. On the one hand, support for local producers and high-quality food for children is promised, but on the other, the procurement system does not ensure that products grown by Latvian farmers actually reach school canteens,” Trons said.
“A distance of 300 kilometres from Riga’s administrative boundary means that food grown and produced in neighbouring countries, as well as third countries, could end up on the plates of kindergarten and schoolchildren,”
he added.
Trons also noted that the situation is particularly disappointing given that neighbouring countries have effectively “locked their doors with ten locks” to Latvian farmers in their own public catering procurement procedures, thereby supporting domestic producers.
He stressed that Riga should set an example for the entire country by ensuring genuine opportunities for Latvian farmers to participate in supplying food to schools.
According to Trons, the vegetables dumped outside Riga City Council symbolise local produce that never reaches children’s plates.
Farmers believe that the lowest price continues to be the decisive factor in procurement procedures, while requirements concerning food quality and origin too often remain merely “on paper”.
“Procurement procedures must assess product freshness, seasonality, compliance with quality standards and the sustainability of deliveries. It is equally important to verify what actually ends up on children’s plates,”
Trons said.
He explained that the participation of local producers could be encouraged through carefully designed procurement conditions that comply with European Union principles.
“With the scale of its procurement, Riga has the power to change this situation. The question is whether the municipality has the will to do so,” Trons said, adding that demand creates supply.
The association also pointed out that amendments to the Public Procurement Law came into force at the beginning of the summer, while green public procurement requirements previously established by Cabinet regulations were simultaneously abolished.
According to Zemnieku saeima, these legislative changes increase the risk that the importance attached to food quality, organic products and sustainable deliveries will depend on the choices made by individual contracting authorities.
If the main focus remains on the lowest price, opportunities for local producers, including organic farmers, to participate in supply contracts could diminish.
For farmers, this would mean less predictable demand and greater difficulties in planning investments in the development of their farms.
To address the regulatory gap, guidelines for sustainable food and catering service procurement are currently being developed under the leadership of the Ministry of Agriculture.
The guidelines will propose specific instruments for monitoring and supervising procurement procedures. However, for the time being, they will only be recommendations.
Although the Food Chain Supervision Law authorises the Cabinet of Ministers to establish mandatory requirements, the adoption of the relevant regulations continues to be delayed.
Until binding regulations enter into force, municipalities may choose not to use the proposed control mechanisms, the association explained
“Farmers are fed up with the endless delays and years of promises to support local producers that remain nothing more than words on paper.
We expect concrete action from Riga City Council, the government and the Saeima – transparent procurement conditions, effective monitoring of deliveries and predictable opportunities for cooperation,” Trons stressed.
He added that if changes do not follow, farmers are prepared to continue organising various forms of protest.
Trons also noted that if Riga City Council members are unwilling to accept the “gift”, the association invites Riga residents to take the vegetables free of charge for their own use.
Zemnieku saeima is a farmers’ organisation established in 1999. Its objective is to support Latvian agriculture and horticulture by advocating stable and sustainable growth for the country’s farmers.
The association represents 800 small and large farms across Latvia.
Together, its members manage more than 500,000 hectares of agricultural land and provide employment for more than 6,000 people.