Organic food in canteens: the Bio-AHVV regulation, the gold, silver and bronze logo and how to switch

Canteens, cafeterias and caterers in Germany may only advertise organic food if they are certified by an approved organic control body. Since 5 October 2023, the rules are set by the Bio-Außer-Haus-Verpflegung-Verordnung (Bio-AHVV). It allows three types of claim: labelling individual organic ingredients, labelling organic dishes, or showing the organic share of total food purchases with a state logo in bronze (20 to 49 %), silver (50 to 89 %) or gold (90 to 100 %). Staples that make up large volumes and carry a moderate organic premium are the best place to start.

The Bio-AHVV at a glance

Item	Rule
Legal reference	BGBl. 2023 I No. 265, signed 27 September 2023
In force since	5 October 2023
Applies to	Out-of-home catering: canteens, cafeterias, caterers, restaurants
Types of claim	Organic ingredients, organic dishes, organic share logo (Sections 3, 4, 8)
Inspections	At least once a year, follow-ups usually unannounced (Section 13)
Special case	Event certificate for events of up to two months (Section 14)

EU Regulation 2018/848 excludes mass catering and leaves it to member states, which Germany has done with the Bio-AHVV. The full German text is on gesetze-im-internet.de. How to read a caterer’s certificate and the DE-ÖKO-xxx code is explained in organic certification in catering.

The logo levels

Level	Organic share of purchases
Bronze	20 to 49 %
Silver	50 to 89 %
Gold	90 to 100 %

The share is rounded to whole percentages (Section 8). Only the official logo from Annex 1 may be used, and a business may never display a higher level than it achieves. The logo describes the whole business unit’s purchasing, not individual dishes.

Calculating the organic share

Under Section 9, the organic share is the monetary value of organic food purchases divided by the value of total food purchases of the business unit.

• The business calculates the share itself and updates it monthly.
• For initial certification, the three months before the inspection count; for later inspections, the last twelve months.
• According to Section 12(2), water and non-food items, among others, are excluded. Confirm the details with your control body.
• If the share drops for more than a month far enough to change the level, the business must report it.
• Invoices and delivery notes are the evidence, so a stock system that flags organic items saves a lot of work.

Because value counts, buying expensive product groups organic raises the share quickly, while organic staples protect the budget.

Getting certified

1. Choose one of Germany’s approved control bodies and compare quotes.
2. Prepare: ingredient overview, supplier certificates, record-keeping.
3. Initial on-site inspection of purchasing, storage, labelling and calculation.
4. Certificate, with or without the organic share level.
5. Ongoing: annual inspection, monthly updates, reporting changes.

Businesses labelling individual ingredients must keep a daily overview of organic ingredients (Section 6). Daycare centres and schools cooking for their own use may label organic ingredients without certification under certain conditions, but need a certificate for the logo (Section 3(3)).

Since February 2025, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture has funded a large part of certification and inspection costs for food service businesses through the Federal Organic Farming Programme, and according to the ministry fully for daycare centres and schools. Check current conditions before certification starts, as funding requires that certification has not yet begun.

Making the switch

Product group	Why it works
Potatoes, grains, pasta, rice	Large volumes, moderate organic premium
Pulses	Cheap, protein-rich, fit plant-forward menus
Milk, yoghurt, quark	Used often, good organic availability
Eggs	Highly visible to guests
Seasonal vegetables and fruit	Keep the menu flexible
Meat	High premium: buy less, buy better

The organic premium can be partly offset by a more plant-forward menu and less food waste. One meat dish fewer per week often frees budget for organic staples, in line with the DGE quality standards. How this fits a wider strategy is covered in sustainable institutional catering.

Ask every supplier for its certificate, except for purchases in retail shops or markets, where Section 10(3) waives the supplier check. Explain the logo to guests and share progress.

Costs

Extra costs depend on which product groups you switch and on the share of food costs in the meal price. Staff, energy and rent do not change. As an orientation from event catering, our cost model adds roughly 10 to 15 % per person for about 30 % organic and 20 to 35 % for a fully organic menu. In canteens the figures may differ; they are guide values, not fixed prices.

Organic in contracts and tenders

If a contractor runs your canteen, put the required organic share into the contract, for example a minimum logo level with the certificate as evidence. Public buyers can include organic criteria in specifications and award criteria, see public catering tenders and, for workplaces, sustainable workplace canteens.

Looking for a caterer already certified under the Bio-AHVV? Use our enquiry form and we will get back to you with suitable caterers.