Claremont McKenna College
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

CMC contracts with Bon Appétit Management Company for Collins Dining Hall and the Hub food store. Bon Appétit Management Company’s definition of sustainability: A sustainable future for food service means flavorful food that’s healthy and economically viable for all, produced through practices that respect farmers, workers, and animals; nourish the community; and replenish our shared natural resources for future generations. Bon Appetit's path toward greater social responsibility and sustainability started as a quest for flavor. When you cook from scratch, you want the freshest ingredients. That led us to launch our Farm to Fork program back in 1999, long before local food became the phenomenon it is today. Working directly with farmers and ranchers opened our eyes to the many problems of our modern food supply: while it is abundant and cheap, it has many hidden costs, such as environmental pollution and worker abuse. We want to play a part in making it better. LEADING BY EXAMPLE We are proud to be the first food service company to commit to: Supporting local agriculture (with a defined purchasing target), since 1999 Striving to serve only seafood that meets Seafood Watch® sustainability guidelines for commercial buyers, since 2002 Reducing antibiotic use in farm animals (2003) Serving rBGH-free milk (2003) Switching to cage-free shell eggs (2005) and cage-free liquid eggs (2016) Tackling food’s role in climate change (2007) Addressing farmworkers’ rights (2009) Switching to humanely raised ground beef (2012) Phasing out pork raised with gestation crates (2016) Banning plastic straws and stirrers companywide (by October 2019)

http://collins-cmc.cafebonappetit.com/wellness/sustainability/animal-welfare -Vegetarian/vegan options offered every meal day (always). -COR icons are used consistently to denote foods with particular nutritional qualities (In Balance, Vegan, Vegetarian, Well-Being, and Made without Gluten). -Our menus emphasize the use of fresh vegetables, fruits, legumes and whole grains as a featured ingredient. Our first choice is to use locally and sustainably produced items. In addition, Bon Appetit and CMC, stress the following: "Launched in 2007, our Low Carbon Diet program was the product of two years of research. We designed the Low Carbon Diet to reduce our carbon “foodprint.” And we did it, meeting our goals and resulting in reductions of the equivalent of approximately 5 million pounds of carbon dioxide each month. After a few years of happily maintaining our weight, we decided it was time to mentally move from a time-limited diet aimed at a quick reduction to a long-term, sustained way of living. Enter the Low Carbon Lifestyle, a new set of commitments that we can live for the foreseeable future and continue our dedication to reducing the climate-changing impacts of our food choices. We consulted with food and climate change experts across the country, from the Environmental Working Group to the Union of Concerned Scientists and Rainforest Alliance. We settled on these four focus areas: Prioritizing Plant-Based Proteins: Serving reasonable, clearly defined portions of animal proteins based on U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommendations Skewing the menu mix away from beef and cheese Emphasizing plant-based proteins Tracking the ounces of various proteins we serve per guest per meal period, to make sure we stay on target"

Once a semester, the Impossible Burger event happens. In addition, students host a farm to fork dinner twice a year, which incorporates vegetables and herbs from the student garden and is 100% plant-based.

CMC hosts a farm-to-fork meal using vegetables from the CMC garden. Happens once a year, and students cook in a dorm kitchen; serves 30 people.

Labels exist on relevant food, taken from these themes: Vegetarian Vegan Made without Gluten-Containing Ingredients In Balance Farm to Fork Seafood Watch Humane Also, there are ingredient lists in several locations, including details posted daily on the CMC website and at the exact location of the food. http://collins-cmc.cafebonappetit.com/wellness/

Yes, this is posted on the website: https://collins-cmc.cafebonappetit.com/wellness/#sustainability There is also a Weigh the Waste campaign and a few events that promote plant based, all student initiated and run with the help of CMC Dining Services.

Bon Appetit, CMC's dining provider, has committed to: Supporting local agriculture (with a defined purchasing target), since 1999 Striving to serve only seafood that meets Seafood Watch® sustainability guidelines for commercial buyers, since 2002 Reducing antibiotic use in farm animals (2003) Serving rBGH-free milk (2003) Switching to cage-free shell eggs (2005) and cage-free liquid eggs (2016) Tackling food’s role in climate change (2007) Addressing farmworkers’ rights (2009) Switching to humanely raised ground beef (2012) Phasing out pork raised with gestation crates (2016) Banning plastic straws and stirrers companywide (by October 2019)

All pre- consumer food is composted through a City of Claremont composting program.

No trays in dining halls. We work with food banks and nonprofit organizations such as the Food Recovery Network (press release) to take excess, nutrient-dense food from our cafés and get it to food-insecure people. All other post-consumer food, in addition to pre-consumer food waste, is composted with the City of Claremont organic food recycling program.

Collins Dining Hall and the Athenaeum donate food through Food Recovery Network, which, with student help, delivers food to a local food bank.

Collins Dining Hall and CMC's Athenaeum and the faster food operation named the Hub all compost food waste through the City of Claremont's organic food waste program. Collins and the Athenaeum donate pre- and post- consumer food waste at the end of every week throughout the academic year.

Collins Dining Hall and CMC's Athenaeum and the faster food operation named the Hub all compost pre-consumer food waste through the City of Claremont's organic food waste program.

Collins Dining Hall, CMC's Athenaeum and the faster food operation named the Hub all compost the food that is not donated to a food bank through the City of Claremont's organic food waste program.

Reusable service ware is provided for dine-in meals, and plastic takeout ware must be specifically requested.

Collins Dining Hall provides a deposit and check-out system for reusable to-go containers for all students enrolled in the college meal plan. Reusable to-go cups are also provided for beverages.

Deposit and check-out system for reusable containers allows an initial $5 security deposit and year-long use, while disposable containers cost $0.50 to $1.00 each meal.

As part of our Low Carbon Diet program, Bon Appétit launched a 12-week Food Waste Reduction campaign in all cafés nationwide. By April 2009, we reduced food waste generated in our cafés by 30% through educating chefs and kitchen staff on proper portioning and prepping techniques, a daily waste-monitoring program in all kitchens, and a consumer-waste reduction educational campaign, which included weighing and measuring food at dish return stations and encouraging trayless dining where appropriate. As a result of these efforts, we achieved a weekly reduction in CO2-equivalent emissions between 40 and 50 tons. In 2014 we launched the Imperfectly Delicious Produce program, working with our farmers, suppliers, and chefs to source cosmetically challenged produce that would otherwise be left to rot in the fields or discarded in the processing plant.