Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 59.82
Liaison Joanne Wong
Submission Date Feb. 10, 2021

STARS v2.2

Mills College
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00 Merilee McCormick
General Manager
Bon Appetit Management Company
"---" 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:
Mills Community Farm hosts a farm stand every Tuesday outside of the Bon Appetit @ Mills dining facility. Bon Appetit is committed to purchasing ALL remaining produce from the harvest and using in recipes and sold in the dining hall, including: produce from the harvest, farm flower bouquets, teas, seeds for planting, and honey. The Mills Community Farm has completely eliminated waste of farm ingredients through the partnership with Bon Appetit and the Mills Pantry to supply food to students in need.

Mills Community Farm has a CSA farm program and Bon Appetit @ Mills also offers a produce box and utilizes Mills farm ingredients.
Yes, Mills Community Farm hosts a farm stand every Tuesday outside of the Bon Appetit @ Mills dining facility. All remaining produce after the Mills farm stand weekly harvest is purchased by Bon Appetit @ Mills and used in recipes and sold in the dining hall, including: produce from the harvest, farm flower bouquets, teas, seeds for planting, and honey.

Yes, Mills Community Farm has a CSA farm program and Bon Appetit @ Mills also offers a produce box and utilizes Mills farm ingredients.

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:
Bon Appetit @ Mills has an onsite Mills Community Farm pop up in the main dining facility throughout the year.

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:
Yes, Bon Appetit @ Mills purchases from local farms and small and medium sized companies, including: Mills Community Farm, SF Fine Bakery (Golden Octagon, Inc.), Equator Estates Coffee and Tea, San Francisco and LA Specialty, Zuckerman Farms, Vesta Food Service, Happy Boy Farms, Michael Bosworth, Vinces Shellfish, and Del Monte Meat.

Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
18.30

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:
Yes, we host a number of low impact dining events, including an annual Eat Local Challenge, Earth Week, and an annual National Farmworker Awareness Week. Through educational materials on each table, and in signage throughout the café, we share information about the benefits of prioritizing plant-based proteins for one’s health and the environment, and offer plant-forward meals multiple times per week in each café. We also offer Meatless Mondays at our main dining facility.

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:
Yes, we prioritize plant-based proteins in the cafes and a complete protein vegan option is available to the campus communities at every meal served in our cafés. We communicate vegan options to our guests using the Vegan Circle of Responsibility icon, on both online menus and menus in the café.

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:
We inform guests about low impact food choices and sustainability practices in many ways. On guest tables and in signs around the cafe, we share information about pressing sustainability issues and relevant policies, including antibiotics use on animal farms, animal welfare issues such as gestation crate use, sustainable seafood, and farmworkers rights. Using our Circle of Responsibility (COR) program, we communicate sustainability attributes of ingredients through our online and in-café menus. Menus are labeled with COR icons that denote the following (and more):

If the dish includes local ingredients, and which farm they are from
If the dish includes animal products from a farm with a third party animal welfare certification
If the dish includes seafood rated as Green or Yellow by the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program
If the dish is vegetarian and/or vegan

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?:
No

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:
Yes, we are trayless in our all-you-care-to-eat café on campus at Mills College, and train all servers in portion control to help minimize post-consumer food waste.

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:
Yes, we donate food to Chefs to End Hunger, and are currently Food Recovery Verified.

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

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
Collects cooking oil to be converted to fuel.

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:
All Dining Services pre-consumer and post-consumer food scraps, coffee cups, waxed cardboard, and food-soiled paper are directed into the compost bin.

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:
All Dining Services pre-consumer and post-consumer food scraps, coffee cups, waxed cardboard, and food-soiled paper are directed into the compost bin.

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:
Yes, we have a reusable clamshell program and we utilized compostable containers for to go meals, and have a composting program on campus that is able to accept those containers.

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:
Yes, we have a reusable clamshell program and we utilized compostable containers for to go meals, and have a composting program on campus that is able to accept those containers.

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:
Yes, we offer the discount incentives to customers who use reusable containers and bottles. Example: Customers receive a $0.20 discount for bringing in their own mugs for coffee.

Optional Fields

A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
Bon Appetit's founding philosophy is:

"Our Dream is to be the premier onsite restaurant company known for its culinary expertise and commitment to socially responsible practices. We are a culture driven to create food that is alive with flavor and nutrition, prepared from scratch using authentic ingredients. We do this in a socially responsible manner for the well-being of our guests, communities, and the environment."

Culturally diverse options are consistently made available at the dining hall, and there are also culturally themed meals for events such as Chinese New Year and Black History Month. Bon Appetit also hosts Wellness Wednesdays the first Wednesday of the month to encourage healthy eating and lifestyles.

Bon Appetit works with vendors to reduce food waste packaging from the source. Bon Appetit also works to reduce customer food packaging waste with simple practices like asking customers “For Here?” instead of instantly offering a to go box, as well as keeping china within eye line of the customers and to go boxes out of sight, so that customers are able to make better choices in packaging.

Culturally diverse options are consistently made available at the dining hall, and there are also culturally themed meals for events such as Chinese New Year and Black History Month. Bon Appetit also hosts Wellness Wednesdays the first Wednesday of the month to encourage healthy eating and lifestyles.

Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:
http://www.mills.cafebonappetit.com

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Additional website URLs where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:
www.bamco.com
https://inside.mills.edu/about-mills/sustainability/farm-food.php

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.