| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 67.08 |
| Liaison | Philip Mansfield |
| Submission Date | March 4, 2022 |
Carleton University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Gabby
Carrier Sustainability Manager 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:
Carleton Dining Services purchases a variety of products from Carleton’s Biology Department garden to use in our menus across the year. Carleton’s Student Union Food Bank runs a CSA program for students through the summer and fall.
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:
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:
Over 40% of Carleton Dining’s total food and beverages are both produced and processed within 400 kilometers of campus. Approximately 15% of total food and beverage spending is on community-sourced products that are produced or processed within 75 kilometers. The vast majority of community-sourced products are from SMEs.
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:
Carleton Dining hosts a variety of sustainability events across the year that aim to help students better understand the environmental impact of specific food choices, highlighting creative ways to use plant-forward ingredients to prepare dishes. Local food events are hosted regularly, featuring ingredients produced by community-based suppliers. Events highlighting third-party certified ingredients, like Fairtrade and Marine Stewardship Council products, also take place throughout the year.
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:
In the all-you-care-to-eat dining hall, there is a vegan station that runs along the four-week menu cycle of the rest of the dining hall offering a large variety of vegan options including entrées, salads, sides, and baked goods. We take care to provide complete protein sources by offering a variety of different plant-based proteins, while incorporating ingredients such as pulses/legumes, cereals & pseudocereals, nuts, seeds, soy/tofu, etc. to provide vegan and vegetarian diners with a balanced diet that is rich in plant-based protein. Approximately 40% of the offerings in the dining hall's 2021 menu were vegan. Carleton’s foodservice provider, Aramark, has a program called Plant Powered which is featured in the dining hall menu and in retail offerings. The program promotes plant-forward eating and includes a collection of recipes that put healthy plants at the center of plateS. These dishes are identified with a menu icon. Plant Powered recipes are not exclusively vegan and can be found outside of the vegan station in the dining hall. At the retail locations, we offer vegan options at our stations, including our franchise and in house brands.
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:
Permanent signage in the dining hall educates guests about reducing their diet’s environmental footprint by choosing plant-forward dishes in lieu of dishes that center animal byproducts. Signage about third-party certified sustainable ingredients, including Fairtrade and Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), are also posted across the dining hall.
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:
Our food waste reduction program is embedded into our food management process and includes staff training around expected and/or preventable (i.e. trimmings, over-production) food waste, and clear bins and scales to weigh and track waste (while also making our staff more mindful of food waste). The food management process also includes practices such as product labeling and storing to ensure first-in/first-out practices are being followed. Food waste bins are observed by management regularly before being discarded to identify and act on opportunities to reduce waste. The tracked waste is entered into an online reporting system that provides a food waste dashboard that is monitored and used to provide valuable training feedback to reduce pre-consumer waste through enhancing both awareness of waste and for training staff around practical techniques for reducing waste through production planning and efficient culinary practices.
*Trimmings can be both expected and preventable (over-trimming). We don’t consider leftovers waste because we use them again.
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:
Aramark managed operations have implemented trayless dining to reduce food waste and reduce water / energy / chemicals used to clean trays. We have also modified menus to reduce portion sizes, particularly in residential dining operations to encourage diners to try smaller amounts of many different dishes and avoid waste from choosing too much food that they can not consume. Carleton Dining’s kitchens are equipped with a food waste management program known as Leanpath, which utilizes a scale and camera to provide real-time information about the waste we are producing. Based on recent Leanpath data, our team identifies the largest opportunities for waste reduction and creates waste prevention goals for those specific food items. We also continue to monitor and modify menus on an ongoing basis through our food management and auditing process to make changes to the menu in real-time to reduce post-consumer food waste by substituting unpopular menu choices with items that have greater acceptability.
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:
Carleton Dining donates food that would otherwise go to waste on a weekly basis to local community organizations using Second Harvest’s Food Rescue platform.
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:
Used fryer oil from all Dining Services locations is transformed into biofuel by ClearFry.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
Pre-consumer food waste is separated in all Aramark-managed kitchens and diverted to compost bins, which are removed by the University's waste hauler and processed at a regional industrial composting facility.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
Yes, composting bins are available in all dining locations and across campus. This organic waste is also processed at a regional composting facility.
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:
All Aramark residential and catering operations, in addition to our Bakers location, provide reusable service ware/cutlery (china / stainless steel) as a default unless disposables are requested by the diners. Where disposable service ware is offered, compostable options are provided for plates, bowls, cutlery, hot beverage cups, and some take out containers (again with any franchise brand standard exceptions).
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:
Certified compostable options are provided for to-go take-out containers. Clear plastic takeout containers as part of our “express” grab n go program are recyclable PET. Reusable containers were introduced to the dining hall when pandemic-related health & safety measures required takeout operations.
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:
We offer “lug a mug” discounts ($0.25) to incentivize customers to use reusable travel mugs when purchasing a hot beverage.
A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
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:
Gabby Carrier
Sustainability Manager
Aramark Canada
Gabby Carrier
Sustainability Manager
Aramark Canada
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.