New York University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

The NYU farmers markets feature local and seasonal produce. Each month, produce is selected by what is in season and from regional/local vendors. Many of the vendors are farmers that educate and answer questions regarding their farm and products. Students are given a reusable NYU Eats bag for the purchase of produce and all left over products are cycled into NYU Eats’ weekly menus in the dining halls.

NYU Eats at Lipton has the majority of sustainable and healthy eating initiatives. It is conveniently located in Lipton residence hall that is home to over 700 first year students. This location features both the "Plant’d" and "Global Bowls" stations which feature sustainability inspired menus and plant-forward meals on a daily basis. Upstein launched a concept called Vedgecraft that focuses entirely on vegan and vegetarian entrees. Third North and Downstein, two other All you care to eat locations, also offer a Plant’d station to ensure students across campus have accessible options. In Brooklyn, Jasper Kane Café also has a Plant’d station.

Across campus we offer the Bread Gal Bakery. The Bread Gal Bakery is NSF food safety certified, a certified WBE, and a local NYC company. In addition, we partner with local farmers in the NYC region for our monthly farmer’s markets.  At our new location at 181 Mercer, BLK & Bold is 100% Black-owned and is a MBE enterprise. We are also featuring Black Seed Bagels, a local small bagel shop through MRS Baking.

Every month, NYU Eats participates Feel Good Foods, which feature ingredients and dishes to reduce our carbon footprint. This event highlights nutritious meals, which can be made with plant-based ingredients, e.g. squash, chickpeas, and more. We hosted two No Red Meat Mondays during the fall semester promoting low impact dining and Campus Sustainability Month. In addition, on our Instagram we highlight plant-forward options each week. In the spring of 2024, we launched limited time offers Turkey burgers at residential locations to incentive students to select a turkey burger over a beef burger in support of lowering the meat-based carbon emissions.

NYU Eats residential all-you-care-to-eat locations feature "Plant’d" stations that feature fully plant-based items. These stations are inspired by the Culinary Institute of America’s Menus of Change Platform, which aims to integrate nutrition and environmental sustainability into delicious globally inspired meals. All vegan and vegetarian foods are clearly marked at all NYU dining halls as well as the online menu. NYU Eats offers many plant-based alternatives such as Beyond Burgers at our grill stations at select locations, We launched a bulk plant-based milk dispenser with a variety of plant-based milk. Each month NYU features a plant or grain-based superfood such as oats, mushrooms or kale. We have also added a concept to our dining location in Upstein called Vedgecraft. Vedgecraft is a bowl concept that focuses entirely on vegan and vegetarian entrees.

All vegan, vegetarian, gluten-free and balanced menu options are identified using a standardized labeling system across all NYU Eats locations. These labels are located above the menu item as well as on digital screen displaying menu items for the day and meal period. Additionally, all labels are prominently placed on online menus. All menu items featuring produce from Fair Trade-certified products, including coffee and chocolate products, sold in NYU Eats’ Markets are identified by Fair-Trade labels. We have also introduced climate labeling. Through this process our recipes are analyzed on eight impact metrics (greenhouse gases, biodiversity, land use, labor risk, processing, soil health, animal welfare, and water usage) and receive ratings.

NYU Eats uses Waste Not, a back of house waste tracking system to track production waste, overproduction waste and wasted out of date inventory. Areas of improvement within the waste stream are identified and these goals are improved upon after discussion and collaboration with culinary and operation teams at each dining location.

All residential dining halls are trayless. Additionally, in alignment with official dietary guidelines, NYU Eats market locations serve portion-controlled meals and reduced self-serve stations in All-you-care-to-eat dining halls.

NYU Eats donates leftover food from three dining locations to the NYU student-run club, Two Birds One Stone. Two Birds One Stone volunteers redistribute untouched leftover food from NYU Eats' dining halls to the NYC homeless through a partnership with the Bowery Mission and City Harvest.

NYU Eats' used cooking oil is picked up by Filtafry and is converted into biodiesel fuel. Our food waste is picked up by Action Carting and processed by an anaerobic digestor in Brooklyn.

Action Carting Environmental Services collects organic food waste from NYU dining locations. All organic food waste collected by Action Carting is diverted from landfills.

Action Carting Environmental Services collects organic food waste from NYU dining locations. All organic food waste collected by Action Carting is diverted from landfills

All residential dining locations, including: Lipton, Third North, Palladium and Downstein utilize reusable plates, cups, and utensils for dine-in meals.

Compostable to-go containers and hot/cold cups are purchased from Eco products, Graphic Packaging, Earth Choice, and Greenware. All compostables comply with ASTM standards are BPI free, 100% renewable, and produced from reclaimed materials.

We partnered with Ozzi containers offering a $5 deposit for a to-go container at Downstein and Third North, two residential All-you-care-to-eat locations. Students can return their container at any point throughout the semester and get their deposit back.

NYU Eats partners with Seastraws, a proud member of the American Sustainable Business Council, to provide all dining locations with paper straws that are 100% backyard compostable. This partnership teaches guests about the benefits of paper instead of plastic, fosters a connection to the ocean. and SeaStraws donating a portion of profits to NGOs are a few reasons why this partnership in our sustainability journey is so exciting.

We have offered stainless steel reusable straws for students who have opted into the Ozzi program to further incentive the program.  We have offered Win it Wednesday’s for select students to receive a free Ozzi container.

NYU Eats makes it a priority to implement programs and practices that are healthier for the campus community and the environment. Creating a more environmentally friendly dining program means diners are provided with choices that will help them minimize their impact on the environment.

NYU Eats purchases foods from local farms and vendors to help support the NY community, provide fresher foods, and reduce pollution due to shorter transportation. NYU Eats buys nearly 20 percent of their food from local vendors and serves locally produced milk at all of their locations. NYU Eats also works to help the larger global community. All NYU Eats dining locations proudly serve Fairtrade coffee and tea. 

All residential and retail locations on NYU's campus serve organic products and hormone-free meat, which also helps to reduce use of pesticides and chemicals that can enter the environment. All of the chicken served at NYU Eats is hormone and antibiotic free. NYU Eats only offers milk and yogurt from cows that have been certified rBGH/rBST free as well as Humane Farm Animal Care (HFAC) certified cage-free shell eggs. NYU Eats is committed to protecting the threatened global fish supply. In collaboration with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch program, Chartwells established a landmark purchasing policy in 2006 that removes unsustainable wild and farmed seafood from its menu, and NYU Eats is proud to adhere to this policy.

NYU Eats grows in-house herbs with five Farmshelf units. Farmshelf units are compact and transparent, allowing for the growth of herbs for use in weekly menu cycles while also engaging guests with new and innovative sustainable urban farming ideas. The units currently grow: mint, sage, amaranth, basil, chives, parsley and thyme. These units reduce dependency on long-distance transportation from outside of New York City for flavorful herbs.

NYU Eats’ in-house dietician provides free dietary counseling to guests as well as a variety of events aimed at educating guests on how to eat well. The most influential of these events includes Teaching Kitchens which is hosted every month. In each Teaching Kitchen, the NYU Eats' dietician provides free cooking classes for 10-14 guests. Additionally, the dietician collaborates with campus offices, such as the Student Health Center and athletics department to educate guests on how to eat for a specific lifestyle or dietary need.