Nutrition
Climate-conscious and healthy cafeterias...
Our food supply is responsible for around one-third of global greenhouse gas emissions [ 1 ]. To enable our cafeteria patrons to make informed choices about their meals in a conscious and climate-friendly way, we are introducing climate and health labels in cooperation with Eaternity . Our aim is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, minimize water consumption, and promote a balanced diet through conscious menu planning.
Climate assessment: CO₂ footprint and Daily Food Unit (saturation index)
The climate rating symbol – represented as a scale from A to E in the form of small clouds – shows how climate-friendly a dish is. It is based on two factors combined: the CO₂ footprint and the Daily Food Unit (saturation index) of the dish, developed by the manufacturer Eaternity.
CO₂ footprint
The CO₂ footprint indicates how many CO₂ equivalents (CO₂eq.) are generated during the production of a dish – including all emissions from the production to the processing of a food product. CO₂eq. is a unit of measurement that converts all relevant greenhouse gases (e.g., methane, nitrous oxide) to a common basis – based on a period of 100 years.
Daily Food Unit (Satiety Index)
This shows how well a dish contributes to meeting the daily nutritional needs of an average person for a climate-friendly diet. The assessment takes into account protein, fat, water, energy content, and dry matter (based on the German Nutrition Society's guidelines).
This is how the evaluation is carried out:
Both factors (CO₂ footprint and Daily Food Unit) are calculated (normalized) for the rating. This step makes the climate rating independent of portion size. For example, a dish with a high nutrient content and a low CO₂ footprint receives an "A". Two dishes with the same CO₂ footprint can be rated differently if their nutrient composition differs.
The gram weight next to the dish indicates its CO2 footprint, based on the portion size considered in the assessment. This is then normalized using the nutritional values to determine the climate label. The calculations are based on over 70,000 comparable meals from the Eaternity database, one of the world's largest databases for CO2 equivalent calculations in the food sector. It was developed in collaboration with researchers from ZHAW, the University of Zurich, ETH Zurich, FiBL, Quantis, and other scientific institutions.
In summary:
- The more nutrients with a low CO₂ footprint, the better the climate rating.
- Two dishes with the same CO₂ footprint can have different ratings (e.g. green vs. yellow cloud) depending on their nutritional values.
- The gram amount of CO₂eq under the dish shows the absolute emission output of the dish, which is then calculated using the nutritional values.
Water footprint
The water consumption symbol (water droplet) indicates the amount of water required to prepare a dish and compares this value to the average of all analyzed dishes. Both direct water consumption and water availability in the respective region are crucial factors. Sustainable water use can help reduce dependence on scarce resources by 50% [ 3 ].
This labeling was developed and implemented in cooperation with the BMBF-funded project KlimaPlanReal. KlimaPlanReal is located at Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg-Stendal University of Applied Sciences, and Harz University of Applied Sciences. More information is available at: https://www.studentenwerk-magdeburg.de/mensen-cafeterien/klimabewusst/
