What if all schools offered only plant-based options for 3 out of 5 lunches a week? Would that be enough to trigger a broader societal shift to eating less meat, and allow us to meet our sustainability commitments?

We’re not talking about making school dinners entirely vegetarian — just 3 lunches a week.

We discuss the benefits and practicalities of such a shift with :

Tim Lenton, Professor of Climate change at the University of Exeter.

Economist Marco Springmann Senior Researcher, Oxford Martin Programme on the Future of Food, University of Oxford.

Nutritionist Collete Fox from Proveg international an organisation working directly with schools in the UK to encourage the provision of healthier school meals.

And Henry Dimbleby founder of the Leon fast food chain is now an advisor to government, responsible for drawing up national rules on school dinners.

We also visit Barrowford primary in Lancashire, which has successfully rolled out more vegetarian school dinners.

BBC Inside Science is produced is partnership with the Open University. Show less