Almost 40 years ago, the Studentenwerk Oldenburg pioneered a daily meal based on a wholefood diet in the Uhlhornsweg canteen. The ingredients consisted of fresh, minimally processed and partly organic products and were 100% vegetarian. This approach was almost unique in communal catering in 1983 and laid the foundation for sustainable action with organically produced food for the university catering of the Studentenwerk Oldenburg at an early stage. This course was continued: in 1992, the daily vegetarian main course was introduced in all canteens, and in the Uhlhornsweg canteen, the offer of at least one vegan dish is now standard.

The Studentenwerk Oldenburg was already buying organic food, including vegetables, in the 1980s. Back then, partnerships with organic farms in the region paved the way for organic certification in 2004.

Following the launch of the fair trade "Nicaragua coffee", sometimes called "Soli coffee" at the time, all catering establishments have now been offering coffee specialities made exclusively from fair trade coffee and espresso beans, which are also grown organically, for many years.

To this day, less is more! When selecting products, our purchasing department takes care to source products without additives that require labelling, such as preservatives and colourings, wherever possible.

Our eggs and egg products come from free-range or organic hens. For the animals, this means, among other things, year-round access to the outdoors, natural daylight, scratching opportunities, no genetic engineering or growth promoters and no forced moulting of the animals.

In 1998, it was unusual for meat from species-appropriate animal husbandry to be used in communal catering. Since then, we have sourced 100% of our pork, beef, lamb and cold cuts from Neuland farms. Thanks to the high level of acceptance from our guests, we are not only able to contribute to significantly higher animal welfare, we also protect our environment by avoiding imported feed and genetic engineering in feeding. We have answered the strict criteria that apply to animal husbandry in our Mensa FAQ.

We have been sourcing the milk, cream, sour cream, yoghurt and quark used in our operations from an organic dairy in the Bremen area since 1998. Some of the cheese we use also comes from organic farms. An additional plus point: most of the products are supplied in large containers, which saves on packaging waste.

Having processed organic products since the 1980s, the Studentenwerk was finally certified in accordance with the EC Organic Regulation in 2004 and has been officially authorised to advertise with the organic seal ever since. Annual inspections guarantee that the strict criteria are adhered to. The notices in the catering establishments show which products are 100% organic. In recent years, around a third of our procured products have come from organic farming.

The Studentenwerk now only offers fish that, according to Greenpeace, is not endangered by overfishing or comes from organic aquaculture.

Vegans can easily cater for themselves during the breaks. Vegan sandwiches are part of the standard repertoire in all Studentenwerk cafeterias.

The Studentenwerk has completely dispensed with palm oil, which was previously used for deep-frying - for example for chips. Instead, rapeseed and other vegetable oils are used, as palm oil is usually not grown sustainably.

The "INTERNORGA Future Prize", the most important award in the catering industry in 2016, goes to Studentenwerk Oldenburg. The jury particularly appreciated the fact that sustainability has played an important role in the Studentenwerk for decades: "The Studentenwerk Oldenburg shows that sustainability and high quality can be combined with a student-friendly price."

Since December 2016, Emden/Leer University of Applied Sciences has been able to call itself a Fairtrade University. Studentenwerk Oldenburg, which has a canteen and a café lounge on the Emden campus, not only makes its contribution every day with coffee, tea, sweets and cold drinks. On the occasion of Fairtrade Week, it also organises an annual Fairtrade Canteen Day, on which a 3-course menu with fair trade ingredients is offered.

Since the 2018/2019 winter semester, our largest cafeteria has done away with disposable packaging at the dessert and smoothie counter. By switching to reusable containers, around 28,000 disposable containers were saved in 2019 alone.

Since the beginning of 2019, you can enjoy coffee in a reusable cup for a €1 deposit at the Emden campus. The reusable cups have also been available at the Wilhelmshaven campus since 2020. The RECUP system is now in use in all our facilities (exception: Mensa Ofener Straße in Oldenburg).

Since April 2021, meals can be taken home in REBOWL trays in all Studierendenwerk canteens. This sustainable alternative to reusable packaging, which is subject to a charge, is only subject to a €5 deposit. This means that using the REBOWLS is free of charge.

Since December 2021, the University of Oldenburg has been able to call itself a Fairtrade University. The Studierendenwerk makes its contribution primarily by procuring fairly traded products, such as tea, coffee, sweets and fresh drinks, not only on a daily basis in the cafeterias and canteens, but also at special events at the university.

Since March 2024, we have been using exclusively reusable deposit cups in the Uhlhornsweg cafeteria. The white “cafeteria cups” that have been standard for decades have thus been abolished.

Although these were intended for reuse, their production is so energy-intensive that they only show a positive balance after many, many uses. Unfortunately, the cups did not reach this lifespan, as they were often not returned by our guests. As a result, the student union had to buy around 5,000 new cups every year.

Reusable cups with a deposit system are therefore the more sustainable alternative.
The deposit system started with cups from RECUP, and at the end of 2025, we switched to reusable cups from the manufacturer Logi4Cup, which we call MoinCup.

In summer 2025, most of the Studierendenwerk's canteens and cafeterias were awarded the new organic logo in bronze. This makes Oldenburg one of the first student services organisations to receive this certification.

What does the bronze seal mean?

The organic seal in bronze shows: Between 20 and 49 per cent of the food in the respective canteen or cafeteria comes from organic farming. This means that our guests can recognise our commitment to sustainable canteen operations at first glance.

The monetary cost of goods is used as the basis for calculating the proportion of organic food. In simple terms, this means that if we buy food for 10 euros, we spend at least 2 euros of this on organic products.

The following facilities are already certified:

• Uhlhornsweg canteen
• Cafeteria Uhlhornsweg
• Wechloy canteen
• CaféBars on the Haarentor campus
• Canteen Ofener Straße
• Wilhelmshaven Canteen

In addition to bronze, there are also silver (over 50 per cent) and gold (over 90 per cent) levels of organic content.

What does this change in the canteen/cafeteria offer?

In short: nothing. Organic food has long been part of our sustainability concept - the new seal just makes this commitment even more transparent and officially visible.

When did the new label come into existence?

The legal basis for the new seals was only created in 2023 by a regulation with the beautiful name Bio-Außer-Haus-Verpflegung-Verordnung (Bio-AHVV). As a result, there are not yet many establishments that carry the seal. We are proud to be one of the pioneers here! Over 20 years ago, we were one of the first student services organisations to be awarded the state organic seal. Now we are delighted to be able to show our guests even more precisely how important sustainability is to us in our canteen operations.