| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.82 |
| Liaison | Holli Fajack |
| Submission Date | Jan. 29, 2021 |
California State University, Long Beach
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.80 / 2.00 |
Jenny
Lew Parkside Sr Manager Forty-Niner Shops Dining Services |
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host a farmers market, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or urban agriculture project, or support such a program in the local community?:
A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:
Associated Students, Inc.(ASI) hosts a Farmers' Market that takes place bi-weekly during the academic year. Since its introduction in 2013, the Farmers Market has expanded in both vendor options and student participation.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host a sustainability-themed food outlet on-site, either independently or in partnership with a contractor or retailer?:
A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:
N/A
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor support disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through its food and beverage purchasing?:
A brief description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
N/A
Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events or promote plant-forward options?:
A brief description of the low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options:
Mindful Monday meals are served in the residential dining halls to raise awareness about low-impact food options. All residential dining halls also offer at least one plant-based option at each of their food stations.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a vegan dining program that makes diverse, complete-protein vegan options available to every member of the campus community at every meal?:
A brief description of the vegan dining program:
Vegan options are offered daily in all residential dining areas and many of the retail dining facilities on campus. Residential dining areas also host Mindful Mondays where nutritional information is shared about the benefits of vegan dining.
The 49er Shops run the majority of on-campus restaurants as well as the residential dining halls. At all 49er Shops restaurants, vegetarian and vegan options are available and clearly indicated on the posted menus.
The three dining halls each have a dedicated vegetarian and vegan section which provides a diverse rotating menu of delicious, nutritious dishes.
In 2015, the 49er Shops was recognized by PETA for going above and beyond to provide students with vegan options and remains committed to increasing the number of vegetarian and vegan menu items at all dining locations.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor inform customers about low impact food choices and sustainability practices through labelling and signage in dining halls?:
A brief description of the sustainability labelling and signage in dining halls:
The vegetarian and vegan food stations at all residential dining halls are clearly labeled. At many of the retail dining facilities on campus, vegetarian and vegan options are labeled on digital and printed menus with green solid leaves (for vegetarian) or outlined leaves (for vegan).
Signage at dish drop areas informs students that the food they scrape into the bin will be diverted from the waste stream via composting. Similar signage is available via mounted tv screens and table tents that further educate students about how to properly sort their waste.
For back-of-house operations, staff use color-coded zero waste bins to properly sort all kitchen waste by stream type (black for trash, green for food waste, and blue for mixed recycling). Each bin is appropriately labeled in both English and Spanish. Similar signage is mounted on central kitchen areas to provide a summary of how to properly divert kitchen waste.
At the Chart Room salad bar, signage indicates the items which have been sourced from local farmers and/or the campus garden.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor participate in a competition or commitment program and/or use a food waste prevention system to track and improve its food management practices?:
A brief description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system:
The 49er Shops participates in the Lean Path Program, a program designed to help commercial kitchens track and monitor food operations in order to prevent waste and save money. http://www.leanpath.com/
Furthermore, as part of CSU system-wide policy, CSULB is required to divert food waste from landfills and incinerators through an Organics Recycling program. It also is mandated to report annually the amount of food waste generated and types of programming focused on minimizing the amount of organic waste generated on site to the CalRecycle State Agency Reporting Center (SARC), per AB 1826 Solid Waste: Organic Recycling.
For more information, please visit: http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=201320140AB1826&search_keywords
Has the institution or its primary dining services contractor implemented trayless dining (in which trays are removed from or not available in dining halls) and/or modified menus/portions to reduce post-consumer food waste?:
A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:
Trayless dining is the standard in all dining halls. Trays are provided only for those students requiring them due to special needs.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor donate food that would otherwise go to waste to feed people?:
A brief description of the food donation program:
Food Finders is a program that links donated food to pantries and shelters in order to bridge the hunger gap in communities. In the 2019 calendar year, 49er Shops donated 6,620 lbs of food to the organization.
The 49er Shops also donates food to the Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) Beach Pantry, which provides food items for students in need.
The university also uses Beach Bites to distribute surplus food from various on campus events. Beach Bites is a mobile app that is available for CSULB students who are iOS or Android users. The app alerts students about available food from on-campus catered events and meetings.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor divert food materials from the landfill, incinerator or sewer for animal feed or industrial uses?:
A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
The 49er Shops contracts with a local vendor, Baker Commodities, to collect used cooking oil from campus restaurants. Baker Commodities processes the cooking oil and converts it into biofuel.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
Composting bins are provided for all back-of-house residential dining kitchen areas. The bins are color-coded green for compost and labeled with bilingual (English/Spanish) signage with graphics indicating acceptable and non-acceptable items.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
The composting stations near the dish drop areas of all residential dining halls inform students to scrape all leftover food into appropriate bins. Signage is color-coded green and indicates which items are acceptable for the composting stream.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor utilize reusable service ware for “dine in” meals?:
A brief description of the reusable service ware program:
Campus residents are provided washable china and flatware with all food items served directly onto china plates.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor provide reusable and/or third party certified compostable containers and service ware for “to-go” meals (in conjunction with an on-site composting program)?:
A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:
All incoming residential students are provided with reusable to-go containers for use at the residential dining halls. These "Green Beach" clamshell-style containers and cups must be returned to the dining halls for repeated use.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor offer discounts or other incentives to customers who use reusable containers instead of disposable or compostable containers in “to-go” food service operations?:
A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:
All convenience stores and Starbucks locations provided small discounts to customers who bring their own reusable mug.
A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
Residential Dining Allergen Project
The Residential Dining Halls are the residents' “home away from home," being that many of them are on their own for the first time. Living away from home means the sense of security in knowing what is in the food they are consuming is gone. Our Dining Allergen Project aims to decrease the fear, especially for our residents with food allergies, by clearly labeling the top eight allergens that can be found in the meals offered at our three residential dining facilities. The “Big Eight” are eight foods that account for ninety percent of allergens in the United States (FDA, 2017), which include any protein derivatives from milk, eggs, fish, crustacean/shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans. All students and guests of the residential dining halls have an easy and informative representation of the different food allergens in the meals being served. Displayed on both the residential dining guides and the menu boards are graphic depicting the allergens that are present in each food.
Zero Waste Dining Hall Staff Training
Waste Not is a campus-wide program designed to help reduce wasteful practices and improve recycling infrastructure across the university. The program has been implemented in both back-of-house and front-of-house at all three residential dining halls on campus. As part of the program, dining staff is provided an on-boarding training at the beginning of each semester to teach them about using the appropriately labeled bins and to help them properly dispose of their kitchen waste.
CSU Sustainability Policy – Sustainable Food Service
At the system-wide level, the CSU Sustainability Policy (adopted 2014) mandates that tracking and reporting is grounded in the Real Food Challenge guidelines, or equivalent, with the goal of campuses increasing their sustainable food purchases to 20 percent of the total food budget by 2020. The Policy also outlines that campuses and foodservice organizations collaborate to provide information and/or training on sustainable foodservice operations to staff and patrons.
For more information, please visit: https://calstate.policystat.com/policy/6987526/latest/
Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Additional information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://www.csulb.edu/sustainability/program-initiatives/food-dining
Additional information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://www.csulb.edu/sustainability/program-initiatives/food-dining
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.