| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.55 |
| Liaison | Susan Powers |
| Submission Date | Feb. 22, 2019 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Clarkson University
OP-7: Food and Beverage Purchasing
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.27 / 6.00 |
Alex
French Sustainability Coordinator ISE |
Percentage of dining services food and beverage expenditures on products that are third party verified under one or more recognized food and beverage sustainability standards or Local & Community-Based:
Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (expenditures on conventional animal products)? (If data is not available, respond “No”):
Percentage of total dining services food and beverage expenditures on conventional animal products (meat, poultry, fish/seafood, eggs, and dairy products that do NOT qualify in either the Third Party Verified or Local & Community-Based category):
A brief description of the sustainable food and beverage purchasing program, including how the sustainability impacts of products in specific categories are addressed (e.g. meat, poultry, fish/seafood, eggs, dairy, produce, tea/coffee):
Dining Services sources food from several local farmers, growers, and distributors. The list changes throughout the year depending on seasonality and availability. Our Adirondack Grill serves local food beef and chicken every day and is very popular with students. Our catering chef works with Martin's Farmstand to source some local, organic produce.
An inventory of the institution’s sustainable food and beverage purchases that includes for each product: the description/type; label, brand or producer; and the category in which it is being counted and/or a description of its sustainability attribute(s):
A brief description of the methodology used to conduct the inventory, including the timeframe and how representative samples accounted for seasonal variation (if applicable):
We source our food from two different distributors; Sysco and Renzi. For Sysco purchasing we were able to use Farm Logix, a third party organization that Aramark buys into. This allowed us to quickly query our purchases throughout the year with filters for 3rd party verification and distance. An intern investigated all the businesses that were within the Local & Community-Based radius. The intern looked up each producer online to determine if the producers met the additional size and ownership criteria to qualify as Local & Community based according to the Real Food Calculator definition. When there wasn't enough information available online the intern called the producer directly. If the intern wasn't able to confirm the criteria with the producer, then we assumed the food did not qualify.
We then worked with Aramark to identify the food products that we purchase from Renzi, our second distributor. Our Sustainability Intern worked closely with Aramark staff and the Sustainability Coordinator on a weekly basis to work through this list identifying good food and beverage products. Again, over the course of a semester the intern investigated each producer within 250 miles online and by phone to determine if the producer met the criteria regarding ownership and size.
Percentage of total dining services expenditures on Real Food A (0-100):
Percentage of total dining services expenditures on Real Food B (0-100):
Which of the following food service providers are present on campus and included in the total food and beverage expenditure figures?:
| Present? | Included? | |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by the institution | No | No |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by a contractor | Yes | Yes |
| Student-run food/catering services | Yes | Yes |
| Franchises (e.g. national or global brands) | Yes | Yes |
| Convenience stores | Yes | Yes |
| Vending services | Yes | No |
| Concessions | Yes | Yes |
A brief description of purchased food and beverage products that have other sustainability attributes not recognized above :
$25,700 on products certified as American Humane certified (cage free and enriched cology eggs).
$61,000 on products certified as American Humane Certified (other).
$3,000 on Aquaculture Stewardship Council products.
$9,000 On B-Corp certified.
$2,300 on BAP-2 Star.
$3,900 on Cage Free.
$1,700 on MSC Certified Fisheries.
$60,000 on No Antibiotics Ever (NAE).
$42,000 on Non GMO verified.
$22,000 on WBE Business certification.
Additional percentage of dining services food and beverage expenditures on conventional products with other sustainability attributes not recognized above (0-100) :
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
This inventory was conducted by an intern that we oversaw. We met weekly with him and the director of dining services to review work and ask about data. For purchases that we are claiming as local/community based we had the intern try to find information on the producer website. If that did not give us enough information the intern called the producer directly. If he wasn't able to confirm the criteria for local or community based products then we assumed that the product did not meet the criteria.
Farm Logics: Seeds of Technology was used to query our third party certifications from Sysco-distributed products. Please see both uploaded files to understand inventory.
This inventory was conducted by an intern that we oversaw. We met weekly with him and the director of dining services to review work and ask about data. For purchases that we are claiming as local/community based we had the intern try to find information on the producer website. If that did not give us enough information the intern called the producer directly. If he wasn't able to confirm the criteria for local or community based products then we assumed that the product did not meet the criteria.
Farm Logics: Seeds of Technology was used to query our third party certifications from Sysco-distributed products. Please see both uploaded files to understand inventory.
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.