From eurekalert.org
Researchers from the University of Konstanz and the HTW Berlin University of Applied Sciences analysed around 3.7 million menu options from 340 German university canteens
What people eat does not just depend on their own personal preferences. It is also important which foods are offered to them. German university canteens are thus far more than places where people eat together: They are part of the food environment, which encompasses all factors that influence how and what we eat. These include, for example, how easy it is to access certain food groups, which options are offered most commonly, how foods are priced, what advertisement we see, as well as the situations where we eat and with whom. As part of this food environment, German university canteens can have a long-term effect on which dietary choices are visible, available and considered normal in everyday life.
A surprising shift
A recent study by researchers at the University of Konstanz and the HTW Berlin now shows how the menus offered by German university canteens changed between 2015 and 2024. The researchers examined around 3.7 million menu options from 340 German university canteens over a period of ten years – the most comprehensive analysis of its kind.
The results show a significant shift: While 54.3 % of main dishes offered in 2015 were either vegetarian or vegan, this amount increased to 65.1 % in 2024. Growth in vegan options was particularly striking. The share of vegan options increased from 10.7 to 39.7 % – nearly quadrupling.
The substantial expansion of vegan main dishes did not primarily come at the expense of meat-based dishes. Instead, it was mainly the proportion of vegetarian dishes that decreased from 43.6 to 25.4 %, while the proportion of meat-based main dishes declined from 39.9 to 30.3 %. Main dishes with fish remained rare at around 5 %.
"The strong expansion of vegan options cannot be explained by price trends alone", says Julia Koller, co-first author of the study. She conducted the study during her time at the University of Konstanz and now works at the Ministry for Social Affairs, Labour and Health in Baden-Württemberg. "Throughout the entire study period, plant-based main dishes were less expensive than meat-based ones. However, the relative price difference between categories remained largely unchanged. On average, vegan and vegetarian main dishes were equally priced."
A contribution to more sustainable food environments
The researchers estimate that, depending on canteen size, the observed changes could lead to annual reductions of about 8,000 to 40,000 kilograms of CO₂ equivalents per university canteen. The decline in meat-based main dishes accounts for the largest share of these estimated reductions, while the shift from vegetarian to vegan dishes contributes to this reduction to a lesser extent.
The calculations are based on emission values from scientific literature and on modelled assumptions about how changes in supply translate into changes in the number of meals actually served. Thus, they should be taken as illustrative estimates and not as direct measurements of the emissions saved.
The data include the meals offered, not the actual purchasing and eating behaviour of canteen guests. It is therefore possible, for example, that a particular dish appeared less frequently on the menu but was selected often, or vice versa.
The overall trend was evident in every German federal state included in the study: The share of vegan main dishes offered increased everywhere while the share of meat-based main dishes decreased. University canteens across Germany are thus among the country's institutions that have shifted early and clearly towards more plant-based food environments. Not only do they reflect societal changes, but they can shape these changes through the food they offer.
Britta Renner, Professor of Psychological Assessment and Health Psychology at the University of Konstanz, who led the study, emphasizes: "A sustainable dietary transition does not mean that everyone eats the same food. The deciding factor is that food environments offer more attractive plant-based options, and thus more choices at the common table."
Key facts:
- Original publication: Kevin N. Röhl, Julia E. Koller, Jana Straßheim, Johanna Köchling, Christophe Bousquet, Jan Wirsam, Britta Renner: Decade-long shift toward vegan meal options as part of dietary transition in German university canteens. Commun. Sustain. 1, 135 (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s44458-026-00138-3
- Method: The study analysed the menus of 340 German university canteens using data from the OpenMensa database. The dataset consists of around 3.7 million menu options from 2015 to 2024 and represents over one third of German university canteens. Data processing and classification were conducted in close collaboration with Kevin N. Röhl, co-first author, and Jan Wirsam from the HTW Berlin University of Applied Sciences.
- The work conducted at the University of Konstanz was part of the "Collective Appetite" project in the Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, an interdisciplinary research centre that studies the principles behind the collective behaviour of animals and other systems.
- Dr Julia E. Koller worked until April of 2026 as a health psychologist at the University of Konstanz. She now works at the Ministry for Social Affairs, Labour and Health in Baden-Württemberg.
- Professor Britta Renner has led the research group Psychological Assessment and Health Psychology at the University of Konstanz since 2007, and is co-speaker of the Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour.
- Kevin N. Röhl worked until May of 2026 at the HTW Berlin.
- Professor Jan Wirsam is a professor at the HTW Berlin.
