The invention relates to a shell catalyst containing ruthenium as an active metal, alone or together with at least one other metal of the auxiliary group IB, VIIB or VIII of the periodical system of the elements (CAS version), and applied to a carrier containing silicon dioxide as a carrier material. The invention also relates to a method for producing said shell catalyst, and to a method for hydrogenating an organic compound containing hydrogenable groups, preferably for hydrogenating a carbocyclic aromatic group to form the corresponding carbocyclic aliphatic groups or for hydrogenating aldehydes to form the corresponding alcohols, using the inventive shell catalyst. The invention further relates to the use of the inventive shell catalyst for hydrogenating an organic compound containing hydrogenable groups, preferably for hydrogenating a carbocyclic aromatic group to form the corresponding carbocyclic aliphatic groups or for hydrogenating aldehydes to form the corresponding alcohols.