Overview

• Erle Gesamtschule will offer only halal-certified dishes from the start of the 2025–2026 term, including vegetarian options prepared to Islamic dietary rules.
• Turkish-led caterer Muttis Küche secured the agreement to supply halal meals across ten Gelsenkirchen schools under its latest contract.
• The fully halal plan reflects the city’s long-standing policy of no pork in schools and a student population of roughly 60 percent with migration backgrounds.
• Precedents include Ottersweier’s Mooslandschule and optional halal offerings by Berlin caterers, but Erle is the first to make it mandatory.
• Critics such as Wolfgang Büscher of Die Arche have condemned the move for sidelining traditional German cuisine and called for menu diversity.