A critical look at canteen menus: Taking better advantage of organic potential in OOH

The demand for organic products in out-of-home catering (OOH) is growing, but the proportion remains small. According to the latest BMEL Nutrition Report, the share of organic products in institutional catering in Germany is only 1.3 percent. At BIOFACH 2025, Dr Marisa Hübner will examine the reasons why the potential of organic foods in OOH has been neglected until now.

Each day, more than 17 million people take their meals in communal catering facilities such as daycare centres, schools, company canteens, hospitals and nursing homes. At the same time, 50 percent of Germans believe that restaurants and canteens offer too little organic food (BMEL Nutrition Report 2024).

Challenges and potential of OOH

“Out-of-home catering has great potential for bringing society to adopt a healthier and more sustainable food culture,” says Dr Marisa Hübner, physician and institutional catering visionary. For over one and a half years, she’s been campaigning for a change in OOH as part of the Farm-Food-Climate initiative. The main hurdles are regional availability, rising prices and an excess of red tape.
Nevertheless, Dr Hübner sees tremendous opportunities. “Healthy, sustainable and tasty food should be the standard in all institutional catering facilities. We have to enable the system’s stakeholders to actively participate in shaping this transformation.”

In 2025, the transformation of OOH will also top the agenda at BIOFACH, the World’s Leading Trade Fair for Organic Food. “OOH is a highly significant lever for achieving the goal of 30 percent organic by 2030. At the special ‘Out-of-Home Catering’ space (formerly the HoReCa – GV & Gastro meeting point), at the corresponding congress forum, as part of a Trend Tour on the topic and elsewhere, innovative concepts and products will be introduced that make institutional catering fit for the future,” says Dominik Dietz, Exhibition Director of BIOFACH.

Political backing for organic products in OOH

Another decisive step toward more organic food is the Organic Out-of-Home Catering Ordinance (Bio-AHVV), which came into force in October 2023. It simplifies the use of organic products in OOH and makes businesses that have converted at least 20 percent of their goods purchases to organic visible by means of bronze, silver and gold seals. “Bio-AHVV is an important stimulus,” says Dr Hübner. “However, organic food has to be seen as part of a comprehensive transformation that also includes aspects like reducing food waste, using more plant-based foods and practicing seasonal purchasing.”

A change in visitors’ demands

Pressure from visitors is also growing. Besides the people who come expecting a larger proportion of organic food offerings, there are also different and changing target groups with additional demands, such as plant-based alternatives. The focus is on price, health, environmental aspects and transparency.

“In corporate canteens, I’m already noticing that good food is becoming a flagship for companies,” says Dr Hübner. “But in daycare centres, schools and hospitals, price continues to be the dominant factor, even though in these institutions in particular, health and sustainability concerns have to take precedence.”

The path to a sustainable transformation

Despite the hurdles, Hübner is optimistic about the future. “We have all the knowledge necessary for achieving this transformation. What we need is a new mindset and a willingness to actively shape the future of institutional catering.”

To support this transformation, she cites good, practical examples, such as the Kantine Zukunft (Canteen Future) project in Berlin, which demonstrates that a high organic content is also possible without major cost increases. “OOH has enormous potential for promoting healthy and sustainable menus through the use of creative recipes and innovative approaches,” says Dr Hübner. “Now we just have to exploit this potential.”

About BIOFACH

BIOFACH is the World’s Leading Trade Fair for Organic Food and products. Ever since its founding, it has been a central hub for the international organic food industry and provides a platform for innovation, knowledge-sharing and networking.