Another European public catering reform: Czech university canteens are changing their menus

NÉGYOSZ is working to make plant-based dishes available in Hungarian public catering as well. That is why it is encouraging to see progress in this area in more and more European countries. A recent Czech survey shows that expanding the plant-based offering in university canteens can meet student demand, support sustainability and cut costs at the same time.

On average, plant-based meals cost canteens 30% less to prepare than meat dishes, their environmental footprint is significantly smaller, and demand for them among students keeps growing. If plant-based meals made up 85% of the menu, Czech universities could save up to €2.6 million a year. Most of them, however, have not yet made these dishes a regular part of their menus. These are the findings of ProVeg’s first assessment, which reviewed the plant-based options at 53 canteens across 19 Czech universities in the 2025/2026 academic year.

Public catering: more and more people want plant-based dishes

Interest in plant-based diets is growing among students. According to a 2025 YouGov survey, 56% of Czechs would like canteens to offer at least one plant-based dish every day. Surveys from other countries also show that 88% of students already take sustainability into account when choosing a university.

“Canteens that improve their plant-based options benefit twice: they lower their operating costs and respond to what students actually want. This doesn’t require radical change. Adding one more nutritious plant-based dish to the daily menu is enough,” says Linda Maruščáková, project manager at ProVeg Czech Republic.

Training and student initiatives are helping drive the change. ProVeg Czech Republic offered every participating university consultations, cooking workshops and sharing of best practices. Training kitchen staff and exchanging experience between institutions can therefore also help expand the menu.

Smaller environmental footprint, lower food costs

According to an analysis by Bryant Research, plant-based meals have a carbon footprint 84% smaller on average than meat dishes, and producing them takes less than a tenth of the land.

Around 300,000 students currently study at Czech universities. Calculations show that expanding the plant-based offering could bring significant annual savings on food costs:

• more than €700,000 with a 65% plant-based share;
• €1.6 million with a 75% share;
• up to €2.6 million with an 85% share.

Plant-based dishes can therefore play a role both in making public catering more sustainable and in using available resources more efficiently.

Major differences between Czech university canteens

ProVeg Czech Republic’s assessment revealed major differences between universities. Masaryk University in Brno was the only one to achieve silver level in the Sustainable Menu certification. Charles University and VSB – Technical University of Ostrava also performed well. At the same time, some institutions offer no plant-based dishes at all.

The Prague University of Economics and Business shows how change can happen in practice: over the past year, it has expanded its range of plant-based meals.

“Both students and staff are satisfied with the expanded vegetarian and vegan offering at VŠE’s central canteen. What’s more, we serve the food buffet-style, which meets current demand and also reduces food waste. Our chefs took part in ProVeg’s training, and I think the quality of the dishes is gradually improving,” says Jaroslav Pašmik, the university’s sustainability manager.

The trend is not limited to the Czech Republic

At several European universities, including the University of Cambridge, Imperial College London and the University of Vienna, students themselves voted in referendums to increase the share of plant-based meals in canteens. The Czech and other European examples show that expanding the plant-based offering responds to real demand and can also benefit institutions. The right recipes, training for kitchen staff and consistent institutional support can all contribute to the change.

NÉGYOSZ aims to make plant-based dishes part of the everyday offering in Hungarian public catering, so that anyone can choose them. In doing so, institutions can contribute to healthier eating and to reducing the environmental impact of food, and, as the figures above show, they can even operate more cost-effectively.

(Featured image: Aline Ponce from Pixabay)