Food shortage hits Olympic Village as athletes complain before Paris 2024 games start

Athletes have complained about a shortage of food in the Paris Olympic Village on the eve of the opening of the Games.

The Paris Olympics opening ceremony is set to roll down the Seine on Friday with the Games to be officially opened but the stars of the events have reportedly been left frustrated with the catering situation in the Village, located in the Saint-Denis suburb of the French capital.

According to French outlet L’Equipe , competitors have complained that the amount of food, specifically eggs, which were said to have been rationed at breakfast on Wednesday, and grilled meats, is insufficient. The official Village catering company, Sodexo Live!, acknowledged a “very high demand” for certain products and stated that “volumes will be increased” to “satisfy the needs of the athletes”.

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The Olympic Village is set to dish up approximately 13 million meals during the Olympic and Paralympic Games, but it appears that organizers may have sold themselves short. A spokesperson of the Carrefour group, who are in charge of supplying 600 tonnes of fresh produce to the Village confirmed: "It was requested to revise upwards the quantities initially planned, which the group will be able to satisfy.”

For comparison, the number of meals calculated to be served during the two 15-day periods of the Olympic and Paralympic Games is the equivalent of providing adequate food to 10 soccer World Cups. There are 15,000 international athletes, as well as support teams, officials and volunteers who have access to meals.

The catering on offer was developed over four years’ worth of planning with the aim of halving the carbon footprint of meals produced during the London 2012 Games. In order to meet the target, a quarter of all ingredients will be sourced in a 250km radius from Paris, and all meat, milk and eggs will be from France.

A third of all food is plant-based and two-thirds of all dishes on offer will be vegetarian and include meat-free options. Leftovers will be redistributed to those in need and used coffee grinds will be repurposed for fertilisation.

Michelin-starred chefs Amandine Chaignot, Alexandre Mazzia and Akrame Benallal are among top French chefs who gave their expertise to help craft the menu which includes over 500 different recipes for dishes such as French, Asian and Afro-Caribbean among others.