Since mid-November, our canteens have been featuring a special regional product: red, yellow, and white beets from organic farms. The beets come from SpeiseGut in Gatow, a community-supported agriculture farm. They are prepared at the regional peeling facility GEKO in Templin so that they can be efficiently processed in university gastronomy.
“What convinced us was that the beets are seasonal, regional, and organic. And the taste is excellent,” says the purchasing team at the university gastronomy service of the Studierendenwerk West:Brandenburg.
Combining community-supported agriculture and a Studierendenwerk means that an agricultural business gains planning security and can sell larger quantities of regional organic food, while university gastronomy is reliably supplied with seasonal vegetables from the region.
How the beetroot ends up on your plate – a journey through time
- April 2024: As part of the cooperation with Kantine Zukunft Brandenburg, the university gastronomy purchasing team visits SpeiseGut in Gatow and holds initial talks.
- November 2024: During joint participation in an event, SpeiseGut, GEKO, and the university gastronomy team coordinate future processes.
- January 2025: The university gastronomy team visits the GEKO peeling plant.
- February 2025: The first batches of beets are peeled and processed on a trial basis.
- September 2025: Recipes are developed and incorporated into the menu planning.
- November 2025: The first dishes featuring red, white, and yellow beets are offered in the canteens.
In about a year and a half, the beetroot has made it from the initial idea to the plate. By the end of the year, an estimated 200 kg of each variety of beetroot will have been processed. By spring 2026, beetroot should be an integral part of the menu.
Beetroot on the menu
If you would like to try red, white, and yellow organic beets from the region, look out for these dishes in our canteens:
- Roasted cabbage with beetroot lentil ragout and sesame potatoes
- Potato and white beet rösti with sunflower seeds, herb sour cream, and marinated leaf salad
- Pollock fillet in sesame breadcrumbs with lentils, yellow beet, roasted potatoes and curry dip
- Three kinds of beet – white beet with herb crust, red beetroot with buckwheat, and yellow beet sauce
- Roasted Brussels sprouts with grapes, shepherd's cheese and hazelnut, served with potatoe-yellow beet mash and Dijon mustard sauce
- Gnocchi mushroom stir-fry with cherry tomatoes and rocket salad, served with yellow beet sauce
- Whole grain pasta with yellow beet, savoy cabbage, leeks and herb pesto
The collaboration with SpeiseGut in Gatow and the peeling company GEKO in Templin strengthens the use of regional organic products in university gastronomy and sends a clear signal for sustainable nutrition in our canteens.