Project Community Catering
A visit to the cafeteria is an essential part of student life. It serves not only as a place to eat, but also as a meeting place and a welcome break from the stress of university life. As part of the project seminar, students carry out their own research project on communal catering. The seminar is aimed at Masters students in Nutritional Sciences as well as students studying to become teachers in vocational colleges. Together they will discuss issues related to sustainable catering in such institutions, the challenges of optimal menu planning and the nutritional needs of specific population groups. The seminar will be led by Prof Dr Alexandra Brutzer and Prof Dr Sarah Eger.
Registration and time table
Date: 17th of April to 17th of July 2025
Enrolment takes place during the relevant enrolment period via BASIS.
Schedule/Program
Kick-off event, introduction to communal catering.
Excursion 1: Mensa CAMPO
DGE presentation on community catering & quality assurance (DGE - Prof. Dr Margit Bölts), project management & work sequence for the study projects - Part 1
Excursion 2: Diätküche UKB
Nutritional physiology input
Work sequence for the individual study projects - Part 2
Work sequence for the individual study projects - Part 3
Sustainable catering (Consumer advice centre NRW)
Closing event, presentation of the results of the study projects
Outlook & conclusion
Frequently asked questions:
In small groups (from 3 to 5 students), independent projects are carried out on topics related to institutional catering. Sustainability in institutional catering, certification and standards, and catering concepts can be analysed and discussed. Two field trips to institutional catering facilities provide an exclusive insight into the processes and organisational structures. Within the framework of the research projects, students should also critically discuss and reflect on the main topics with their cooperation partners.
The planning and implementation of their own research projects includes the development of a specific research question, the selection of an appropriate conceptual framework and research design, as well as the subsequent steps of data collection, analysis and project presentation.
Transfer WS 25/26
What role does nutrition play in achieving sustainable social coexistence? What potential for social transformation does the food and nutrition industry have? What central role can communal catering institutions play in particular? Here at the University of Bonn, the canteens of the Studierendenwerk provide communal catering. They face the daily challenge of offering nutritious, sustainable, healthy and affordable menus. In some places, this seems like an almost impossible task. Taking regionality, fair trade, organic produce and ecological sustainability into account is a challenge that must be overcome.
To provide a varied and healthy range of food in a commercial kitchen, it is necessary to regularly adjust and change the composition of ingredients in order to meet the ever-increasing challenges of food procurement while maintaining consistent quality. This is precisely where a service learning teaching project could be beneficial. In service learning courses, students collaborate with social actors to develop and implement solutions. Students and their learning experiences form an important link between scientific research and social action.
As part of the 'Community Catering' Service Learning Project organised by the Institute of Nutrition and Food Sciences, students collaborated with CAMPO Mensa to develop a menu offered during Healthy Campus Week, which took place from 3 to 7 November 2025. This menu contributed to the ongoing process of adapting and improving the cafeteria kitchens. Working alongside experts from the student services organisation (Studierendenwerk Bonn), new ideas and menu concepts were discussed, tested, and ultimately implemented.
In recent years, several teaching projects based on service learning have addressed the topic of nutrition from different perspectives. One such project was the 2coffee grounds initiative" ("Kaffeesatzprojekt"), which formed part of the agricultural and nutritional sciences module. In this project, students developed a method of processing coffee grounds from cafés and canteens run by the Studierendenwerk to create grill igniters. As part of the Media Practice Film/Video module on the Media Studies programme at the University of Bonn, students collaborated with the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Advice Centre (Verbraucherzentrale NRW) and Slow Food Deutschland e.V. to produce short films about food waste and sustainable nutrition in the lives of students. In the project seminar 'Urban Food Transition' (Urbane Ernährungswende), run in collaboration with the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Advice Centre and the Bio-Stadt Bonn (city council initiative to further organic production), the prospects and possibilities of a food transformation in Bonn were examined. The students brought together local stakeholders from various relevant sectors and established the groundwork for future collaboration. Building on the success of previous collaborations with the North Rhine-Westphalia Consumer Advice Centre and the Bonn Student Services Organisation (Studierendenwerk Bonn), the Community Catering project once again brings a professional perspective to the process of nutritional transformation. We look forward to continuing our excellent cooperation with all the partners and institutes involved, and to embarking on further projects and initiatives that will contribute to the sustainable transformation of diets at the university and in urban society.
