Many workplaces resist plant-based lunches despite substantial climate benefits
University of Copenhagen
Are organisations ready for plant-based food at work? A new study from the University of Copenhagen explores this question and shows that only a small proportion of workplaces in Denmark exhibit readiness for this change – despite its potential to reduce the climate footprint of workplace lunches. In general, introducing plant-based food is likely to stir strong emotions.
All over the world, millions of meals are served for lunch every day across workplaces. There is huge potential to reduce the carbon footprint of these meals if meat dishes are replaced with plant-based ones.
However, according to a new study conducted by researchers from the University of Copenhagen, only a small percentage of workplaces in Denmark are ready for more plant-based lunch, and the issue is something that can stir strong emotions.
In collaboration with canteen and catering company Jespers Torvekøkken, the researchers investigated readiness for change across 62 workplaces in the Capital Region of Denmark and examined how different levels of readiness is related to the climate footprint of the food served for lunch.
Small share of workplaces is change-ready
“We find that only 13% of workplaces are ready to make their lunches more plant-based, while 42% are resistant to change. The remaining 45% of workplaces show varying degrees of readiness”, says Thomas Bøker Lund, lead author of the study and Associate Professor at the Department of Food and Resource Economics at the University of Copenhagen.
“We also see a strong correlation between the level of readiness at a workplace and the type of food people eat for lunch. Traditional Danish dishes with meat as the main ingredient are very common at workplaces that are resistant to change, while they are less common in organisations that are more ready for change,” explains Mette Weinreich Hansen, co-author of the study and Associate Professor at the Department of Food and Resource Economics.
The difference is reflected in the climate footprint of the lunch food. Workplaces that are more ready for change have a 28% lower climate footprint than those that are more resistant to change.
Male-dominated workplaces are more resistant
The study also finds that change-readiness is associated with both the sector in which a workplace operates in and the characteristics of its employees.
Workplaces with high tertiary activities, i.e. in service- and knowledge-intensive sectors, tend to be more open to more plant-based lunches, while resistance is more common in primary industries and production.
“Employees’ own food habits also matters. Workplaces where employees eat less meat in their everyday lives tend to be more open to change. By contrast, resistance is generally higher in workplaces with a larger proportion of male employees,” says Thomas Bøker Lund.
Emotional resistance is strong
The study also shows that the prospect of more plant-based lunches at work can stir strong emotions. To explore the extent of this further, the researchers followed up the findings from the study with a nationally representative survey comprising Danish employees who receive lunch at their workplace. These findings are outlined in a Danish report.
“The national survey tells us that resistance is surprisingly widespread. 40% of those who get lunch through their workplace would be annoyed, while 22% would even be angry. At the same time, around half feel that their freedom would be restricted. Many have an immediate reaction that essentially says: ‘No bloody way – no one is going to tell me what I should eat,’” says Thomas Bøker Lund, lead author of the study and Associate Professor at the Department of Food and Resource Economics at the University of Copenhagen.
Some of the resistance may be an instinctive reaction
Although many people resist being told what to eat and report that they would react with annoyance or anger, other findings from the national study raise questions about how deep this resistance actually runs.
“We see no clear tendency for satisfaction with canteen food to be lower among employees at workplaces that serve plant-based food than among employees at workplaces that do not – as long as there is no more than one vegetarian day a week. This could indicate that some of the resistance is an instinctive reaction,” says Thomas Bøker Lund.
The researchers therefore believe that many workplaces could potentially move their canteen food in a greener direction.
“We are currently investigating more closely how far you can go without creating lasting dissatisfaction,” says Thomas Bøker Lund.
“We must also remember that the canteen food itself can make a difference to how people with an immediate resistance actually respond,” points out Mette Weinreich Hansen, continuing:
“If plant-based dishes are made tasty and appealing, and the sceptical canteen customer has a positive experience, that could probably shift their attitude. This means that the catering and foodservice industry has a central role to play in making green changes to canteen food into a positive dining experience.”
[BOX] HOW MUCH CO₂ CAN BE SAVED BY SERVING A VEGETARIAN MEAL?
A recent British study from a large-scale catering kitchen in England shows that the climate footprint of lunches served at workplaces and institutions can be significantly reduced by replacing meat dishes with vegetarian or vegan alternatives. In many cases, the climate footprint is reduced by more than 80%.
In the Danish study, researchers from the University of Copenhagen calculated the climate footprint of lunch options provided by canteen and catering company Jespers Torvekøkken. The calculations show that a vegetarian lunch has, on average, a 60% lower climate footprint than a lunch containing meat.
[BOX] ABOUT THE STUDY:
- The national population survey was conducted among Danes aged 18–69 in December 2024. The results are based on responses from 891 respondents, around 500 of whom have access to a workplace-based lunch scheme.
- The workplace-level study was conducted in 2024 and involved employees from 62 workplaces in the Capital Region of Denmark.
- The report Plant-based canteen food in Danish workplaces – prevalence, readiness and resistance is part of the research project Normplant, which is supported by the Danish Plant Fund.
- Parts of the findings have been published in the scientific journal npj Climate Action.
Journal
npj Climate Action
Subject of Research
People
Article Title
Unearthing heterogeneity in readiness and resistance to sustainable change and carbon footprints in organisations
Menus in German university canteens change fundamentally
Researchers from the University of Konstanz and the HTW Berlin University of Applied Sciences analyzed 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 analyzed 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.
Journal
Communications Sustainability
No comments:
Post a Comment