Sustainability in our Mensas & Cafeterias

Our offer is

Healthy and balanced

A healthy diet is the basis for performance and well-being in everyday student life. That’s why we base our meals on the recommendations of the German Nutrition Society (DGE) and ensure a balanced selection in all Mensas.

Every day, we offer a wide range of vegan and vegetarian dishes as well as fish and meat dishes that are freshly prepared and nutrient-preserving. A high proportion of fresh ingredients is important to us – for example through salad bars and fresh smoothies. The range is supplemented by regularly available wholemeal products.

The use of alcohol in food is avoided as far as possible; if it is used in exceptional cases, it is clearly labelled.

Plant-orientated

Eating vegan and vegetarian food protects the climate and the environment – and fulfils the desire of many of our guests for a plant-based diet. We want to actively promote this contribution with our wide range of dishes.

Vegetarian and/or vegan dishes are served daily in all Mensas, along with purely plant-based side dishes and at least one vegan sauce at the pasta counter. The wok dish is also always vegan. Our dishes are clearly labelled:

• Vegetarian: cheese symbol
• Vegan: carrot symbol

When labelling, we also take hidden ingredients such as gelatine, animal rennet or honey into account. Vegetable and savoury side dishes are usually prepared without butter and are therefore vegan.

Our Cafeterias offer a growing range of purely plant-based snacks, sandwiches and desserts. Our  in-house vegan bakery produces fresh vegan cakes every day.
Plant-based milk alternatives are available at all coffee machines at no extra charge. All large Mensas have coffee machines that are operated exclusively with oat barista.

We take part in Veganuary every year, regularly advertise vegan dishes and are PETA-certified with the Mensa am Medizincampus. We organise vegan cookery training for our kitchen staff to ensure quality.

Please note: The offer may vary during the lecture-free period.

Regional und seasonal

When selecting our food, we pay attention to origin, freshness and quality. Wherever possible, we favour regional and seasonal products and focus on short transport routes. Our fresh meat – beef, pork and turkey – comes exclusively from Germany, and we source our turkey from a regional producer in Altgönna near Jena.

We also prioritise regionality when it comes to drinks: many of our drinks come from producers in Leipzig, Chemnitz, Dresden and Thuringia. The range is complemented by vegan, fair and ecologically produced chocolate and protein bars from a Leipzig-based company as well as tempeh and saitan products from Leipzig-based manufactories.

A special highlight is our Regio-Teller, which is offered every first Thursday of the month in our large Mensa. The ingredients come from regional producers within a radius of around 150 kilometres. This allows us to support local businesses and bring seasonal variety and freshness directly to your plate.

Short transport routes ensure that quality, flavour and nutrients are optimally preserved. Fruit and vegetables are harvested when ripe so that they can develop their full flavour. A display at the serving counter provides information about the origin of the ingredients on the day they are served.

You can recognise the Regio plate in the menu by this icon:

Our Regio-Teller is available in the following Mensas:

• Mensa am Park
• Mensa am Elsterbecken
• Mensa Peterssteinweg
• Mensa Academica
• Mensa am Medizincampus

Fair

Leipzig is a Fairtrade city and Leipzig University bears the title ‘Fairtrade University’. As an official partner, we actively support this commitment and ensure that Fairtrade products are available in the Mensas and Cafeterias on campus.

For our hot drinks, we use coffee, tea and cocoa that are fairly traded, certified and produced in organic quality. We also offer Gepa chocolate bars and Nucao bars with fair trade cocoa. Our range also includes Lemonaid and ChariTea – brands that promote social projects and fair trade.

Fairness is also important to us in-house. Around two thirds of our 300 employees work in Mensas and Cafeterias and are paid according to the collective labour agreement of the federal states (TV-L). We offer attractive working hours without night shifts, only occasional weekend and public holiday work, as well as reliable time off in lieu for overtime. Comprehensive protection against dismissal ensures security and a working environment in which our employees feel comfortable – and our guests feel the same.

Climate friendly

We take climate protection seriously and consciously make our food offerings climate-friendly. This includes offering a wide range of plant-based dishes and reducing food that is particularly harmful to the climate.

Sea friendly

Fish is an important source of food and income worldwide and at the same time comes from a very sensitive ecosystem. According to the WWF (July 2024), over 37% of commercially exploited fish stocks are considered to be overfished and 50% to be overexploited.

For nutritional reasons, however, we do not want to completely dispense with fish dishes. However, we no longer offer fish every day (except in the Mensa am Park), but instead selectively choose products from sustainable catches. We pay attention to certified origin and only use fish with the ASC or MSC seal, which stands for environmentally friendly fishing and responsible aquaculture.

As a matter of principle, we do not use overfished species. Through conscious purchasing and a clear focus on recognised sustainability seals, we make our contribution to counteracting overfishing and protecting the marine habitat.

Without genetic modification

We reject the use of genetically modified food.

As a matter of principle, we therefore do not use any products that are either genetically modified themselves or contain genetically modified ingredients and therefore require labelling in accordance with the two EU regulations on the labelling of genetically modified food and feed.

Further information can be found on the BUND website or under the following links:

• Regulation (EC) 1829/2003 on genetically modified food and feed (German)
• Regulation (EC) 1830/2003 concerning traceability and labelling of genetically modified organisms and traceability of food and feed products produced from genetically modified organisms (German)

Inclusive

We organise our range in such a way that as many people as possible can take part – regardless of their cultural, religious or health background. When designing our menus, we take culturally specific and religious aspects into account, clearly name the animal species in meat products and transparently label gelatine and the use of alcohol.

Allergy sufferers and people with intolerances should also be able to eat in our Mensas and Cafeterias without any worries. Our range is characterised by the correct labelling of ingredients, the flexibility to combine components and a high proportion of plant-based dishes.

Our Mensas and Cafeterias are barrier-free so that they can be used by all guests. We also work together with Lebenshilfe Leipzig and employ people with disabilities in the Mensa am Elsterbecken, who enrich our team with their great commitment.

Social

We pay attention to fair and socially acceptable prices so that all students have access to healthy and balanced food, regardless of their financial situation. We also offer a Children’s Plate for students’ children: Children from the age of 1 to the age of 10 receive one free hot meal per day in our Mensas if one parent purchases a meal or two side dishes at the same time.

In addition, the ‘Freitisch’ vouchers (free meal project) enables students in acute financial need to obtain free food and drink in our Mensas and Cafeterias. The voucher, worth 100 euros, is loaded onto the Mensa Card and can be used for all offers.