Klüh Catering is further expanding its commitment in the field of sustainable catering and has now become a partner in the recently launched research and practical project “Green Hospital Food”. The initiative, which is funded by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Regional Identity, aims to develop sustainable concepts for climate-friendly, health-promoting and economically viable catering in hospitals and to successfully implement them in practice.
The project is being carried out jointly by TU Dortmund University, Essen University Hospital – represented by the Centre for Integrative Medicine and Planetary Health and the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine – and Klüh Catering as the central implementation partner. As a multi-award-winning care caterer, Klüh Catering is contributing its many years of experience in clinical catering to the project. The aim of the project is to support Essen University Hospital on its path to achieving climate-neutral health care by 2027 and taking on a pioneering role as a “green hospital” This includes adapting the meals of patients and staff to the recommendations of the German Nutrition Society (DGE), reducing food waste by 50%, preventing malnutrition on the basis of individualised patient data, and establishing a regional network of suppliers.
The project is being carried out by an interdisciplinary team from the fields of medicine, nutritional science, communal catering, artificial intelligence and communication. It develops plant-based, sensorially appealing dishes, analyses eating behaviour in order to detect malnutrition at an early stage and reduce food waste, evaluates returned food with the aid of AI-supported technologies, and shapes the nutritional environment in a targeted manner through nudging approaches and gamification to encourage healthy choices. The findings will then be summarised in an evidence-based guideline, which is also intended to serve as orientation for other clinics.
“Sustainability is a central component of our strategic orientation. Our involvement in “Green Hospital Food” gives us the opportunity, together with strong partners, to further develop innovative approaches to hospital catering and actively contribute to the transformation of the healthcare sector,” says Thorsten Greth, Managing Director at Klüh Catering. “Our aim is to create solutions that are both environmentally sound and work well in everyday hospital settings.”
Through its commitment, Klüh Catering is building on existing initiatives in the field of responsible catering. For example, the company is already part of networks and partnerships such as the “Allianz für verantwortungsvolle Esskultur” (Alliance for Responsible Culinary Culture), which promote sustainable food culture and forward-looking catering concepts. The participation in “Green Hospital Food” underscores this strategic approach and our commitment to further developing and implementing sustainable catering concepts in collaboration with partners from research and practice.
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