A look back at the kickoff event for the collaborative project: “The Idea of a Shared Kitchen for Daycare Centers and Schools in Witzenhausen”

@Nachhaltigkeitsmanagement in der internationalen Ernährungswirtschaft

At the beginning of the year, the city of Witzenhausen, the University of Kassel, and the BioBitte Roundtable discussed the idea of a community kitchen for daycare centers and schools in Witzenhausen. This led to the creation of a seminar titled “Designing Sustainable Agricultural and Food Systems” for the University of Kassel’s master’s program in “Organic Agriculture.”

The basic idea is to make school meals for our children more cost-effective, but above all more locally sourced and environmentally friendly.

On May 27, 2026, the cooperative project got off to a successful start with selected stakeholders who directly prepare, plan, and finance the children’s daily meals in Witzenhausen.

At the kick-off event, the initial findings of a survey on the current situation in the kitchens of daycare centers and schools were presented. There was also a guest lecture by Martina Keller (University of Freiburg), who serves as coordinator of the project "BioRegion Kassel – City and Countryside" and "Bioregional Lunch Programs at Daycare Centers and Schools in the City of Kassel" at the University of Giessen. Finally, there was ample time for discussion, questions, suggestions, and comments.

It became clear that Witzenhausen is home to motivated people who are interested in and curious about sustainable change, who want to exchange ideas and network, and who have a positive attitude toward the topic of bioregional food.

We received a wealth of information, which the students are now processing into a participatory concept and will present to the stakeholders at the closing event in early July.