Overall Rating	Gold - expired
Overall Score	76.32
Liaison	Karen Oberer
Submission Date	Dec. 11, 2020

STARS v2.2

McGill University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	1.88 / 2.00	Karen Oberer Sustainability Officer McGill Office of Sustainability

"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Sustainable dining initiatives

Local community engagement

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?:

Yes

A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:

The McGill Farmers' Market (MFM) is a weekly fall market and a gathering spot for students, faculty, and community members to discover healthy, local and sustainably produced foods. With more than ten local suppliers, the Market provides the opportunity for downtown residents to connect to the agricultural community of Quebec. Products include organic produce, homemade preserves, baked goods and breads, honey, fair-trade coffee and teas, eggs, maple products, and more.
In addition to the weekly market, the MFM organizes a community supported agriculture (CSA) program, which provides our community with local and seasonal produce throughout the summer and fall. Basket members can choose from a variety of sizes and farms, according to their needs.

Sustainability-themed outlet

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:

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Inclusive and local sourcing

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?:

Yes

A brief description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:

In 2017-18, 49.7% of Student Housing and Hospitality Services food purchasing was spend on products sources from local enterprises, many of them Quebecois SMEs (i.e, companies employing less than 500 staff). These include: Premiere Moisson, Aliments Berthelet Inc., St-Viateur Bagel, Montreal Pita, Bec Soda, among many, many others.

Sources for SME designation: CRIQ (Premiere Moisson); https://ordrecrha.org/, Glassdoor (Berthelet); Journal de Montreal (St-Viateur Bagel); Montreal Pita (dnb.com - marketing firm); LinkedIn (Bec Soda).

Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:

Low-impact dining

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events or promote plant-forward options?:

Yes

A brief description of the low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options:

Food and Dining Services offers Meatless Mondays, which includes a reduced price lunch deal to encourage students to eat less meat and reduce the environmental impact of their diet.

Vegan dining program

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?:

Yes

A brief description of the vegan dining program:

Across McGill, at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, customers can choose from a vegetarian/vegan selection that includes soup, sandwiches, sushi, salads (both vegetable and grain), chef-made entrees, made to order pasta or stir fry, pizza, veggie burgers, soy beverages, and snack items in all dining halls, but not all retail locations due to the variety of food offered at each location. Vegetarian selections are often, but not always, vegan. There is an emphasis on complete-protein options.

Two dining facilities have been awarded Sanitas Per Escam (SPE) certification; both were awarded 2 out of 3 stars, partly because of their daily vegan and vegetarian meal options.

Most upper year students are not on a meal plan; all students have the option to eat off-campus.

Labelling and signage

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?:

Yes

A brief description of the sustainability labelling and signage in dining halls:

Local, Mac Farm, MSC, Vegan and Vegetarian meal options are labelled in residential dining halls to educate students to make choices that align with their dietary priorities and needs.
https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/files/foodservices/8x11_nutritionalposter.pdf

Part 2. Food waste minimization and recovery

Food recovery program

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:

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Trayless dining and portion modifications

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:

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Food donation

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor donate food that would otherwise go to waste to feed people?:

Yes

A brief description of the food donation program:

During holidays, leftover perishable goods (dairy products and vegetables) are donated to the Old Brewery Mission. Ingredients are also donated throughout the school year at the Yellow Door non-profit organization in Montreal.

In addition, McGill's food supplier has a partnership with a local organization, La Tableé des Chefs, to recover unsold items and over-production. These are re-distributed safely to local soup kitchens and food banks.

Moreover, the student-run MealCare program diverts surplus food from McGill’s cafes and cafeterias to help feed people in need. Since it first started operations in 2017, the organization has served more than 25,000 meals to Montrealers facing food security challenges.
https://www.mealcare.org/mcgill-chapter-team

Food materials diversion

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor divert food materials from the landfill, incinerator or sewer for animal feed or industrial uses?:

Yes

Date Revised: May 3, 2022

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:

Since at least 2018, McGill has contracted the services of Compost Montreal to collect cooking oil from residences. In 2019, an average of 380L of useable cooking oil was collected from residences per month. On their website, Compost Montreal indicates that "oil that we collect is transformed into biodiesel, which helps to reduce greenhouse gases and our dependence on fossil fuels."

http://compostmontreal.com/oil.html

Date Revised: May 4, 2022

Composting

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:

Yes

A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:

Yes

A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:

The Food and Dining Services contractor partners with Compost Montreal to divert organic waste from landfills. The organization recycles fryer oil, collects coffee grinds, collect kitchen trims and post-consumer food waste.

Also, Eco Stations in the dining halls allow students to sort their leftovers by either landfill, recycling, or compost. Student Housing and Hospitality Services hires about 30 Waste Educators each year to help students learn to sort their compost properly (see EN-1 for more details about this program.) In 2017-2018 238 tonnes of organic waste was diverted from the landfill. 101,230 litres of agricultural grade soil created, and 207 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions reduced.

https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability/composting

Dine-in service ware

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor utilize reusable service ware for “dine in” meals?:

Yes

A brief description of the reusable service ware program:

McGill provides Ozzi reusable container stations at 4 of McGill's dining halls. Students use a token to obtain a container, which is then returned to the Ozzi machine afterwards. Students save $0.75 when they use an Ozzi container rather than a disposable one.
https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability/ozzi-system-reusable-containers

The Student Society of McGill University (SSMU) operates The Plate Club, which provides free, sustainable, and reusable dishware as an alternative to disposable serving products. They operate a lunch service in the residence dining halls and cafeterias as well as a rental program for special events.
https://theplateclub.wixsite.com/mcgill

Take-away materials

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)?:

Yes

A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:

The salad bowls, smoothie cups, napkins and coffee cups provided in the dining halls are all made with compostable materials.
https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability/greenpractices

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?:

Yes

A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:

There is a "lug-a-mug" option in residence dining halls, where coffee and tea are discounted by 25 cents when clients use their own mug.
https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability/greenpractices

As mentioned above, dining hall students save $0.75 when they use an Ozzi container rather than a disposable one.

Optional Fields

A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:

Eco-kit: every student registered in the Mandatory Meal Plan is provided with an Eco-Kit composed of a reusable SHHS mug and a reusable container called the Eco 2 Go Container.

Eco-stations: sorting stations which collect liquids and compostable/recyclable waste are located in all five residential dining halls Each station has sorting instructions with pictures of the kinds of packaging found in each specific dining hall.
https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability/greenpractices

Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:

https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/sustainability

Additional documentation to support the submission:

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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

For more information about nutrition and Food & Dining Services at McGill, see https://www.mcgill.ca/foodservices/healthy

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.