Occidental College
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
Reporter |
Sustainability
Office Sustainability Coordinator Facilities Management |
Part 1. Sustainable dining initiatives
Local community engagement
A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:
The student-led FEAST Garden is an urban agriculture project supported by the Urban and Environmental Policy Institute (UEPI). UEPI received a USDA grant to develop a curriculum for urban farmers to sell their products at farmers markets, which is being developed in collaboration with the FEAST Garden.
Sustainability-themed outlet
A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:
Inclusive and local sourcing
A brief description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
Supporting local and small businesses is a high priority for Campus Dining. All produce is sourced through a partnership with farms local to Southern California, baked goods are sourced from small local businesses, and a variety of prepared refrigerated meals are purchased from Four Cafe, an independently owned restaurant about one mile from campus.
Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
Low-impact dining
A brief description of the low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options:
Each Monday at dinner, one of the stations is completely meat-free and/or plant-based for "Meatless Monday."
During October and April, the main dining hall serves a themed plant-based meal at one of the stations for lunch to promote Food Justice Month (Oct) and Earth Month (April).
Vegan dining program
A brief description of the vegan dining program:
Every station in our dining hall has at least one vegan and vegetarian option during each meal period. These options are marked on the menus with a (V) for vegan or a (VL) for vegetarian containing dairy.
Labelling and signage
A brief description of the sustainability labelling and signage in dining halls:
Vegan foods are marked with (V) and vegetarian meals are marked with (VL).
Part 2. Food waste minimization and recovery
Food recovery program
A brief description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system:
Our head chef has worked closely with the kitchen staff to ensure that minimal food waste is produced during the food prep process. We receive fresh food deliveries daily to ensure that all food is fresh, and to prevent spoilage. Most food is served the day it is delivered, which virtually eliminates food waste due to spoilage. As of this year, the kitchen has closely monitored excess food by utilizing MetaFoodX, a food waste reduction technology, in order to make more informed decisions about quantities and menu choices.
All uneaten prepared foods are frozen to maintain freshness before being redistributed off-site to the Hollywood Food Coalition.
Most pre-consumer food scraps from our kitchens are composted on site at the FEAST Garden.
Trayless dining and portion modifications
A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:
In order to minimize post-consumer food waste, our dining service provides a la carte service. We also do not have any trays in our dining hall. This prevents customers from over loading their plates/trays and wasting food. Our serving staff has been trained on portion size.
Food donation
A brief description of the food donation program:
All uneaten prepared foods are frozen to maintain freshness before being redistributed off-site to the Hollywood Food Coalition.
Food materials diversion
A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
Most pre-consumer food scraps from our kitchens are composted on site at the FEAST Garden. Other pre-consumer and all post-consumer food scraps are diverted from landfill using anaerobic digestion.
Composting
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
Whatever is not picked up by the FEAST Garden for onsite composting goes directly from our dining hall kitchen to our compost-only trash compactor. The compostable material is picked-up and composted at a local industrial composting facility.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
All dishes from our dining hall are sent to the dish-washing area via a conveyor belt. Before loading dishes into the dish-washer, Campus Dining staff scrape remaining food scraps off of each plate into compostable trash bags, which are placed in our compost-only trash compactor. The compostable material is picked-up and composted at a local industrial composting facility.
Dine-in service ware
A brief description of the reusable service ware program:
Our main dining hall provides reusable, dine-in service ware for all customers. We also have an "Eco-Clamshell" reusable to go container program that all residential students are automatically enrolled in at the start of each semester, which reduces the number of disposable containers used for dining out.
All of the disposable service items (except for the containers) are compostable, including flatwear, cups, napkins, etc.
Take-away materials
A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:
We no longer offer disposable to-go boxes. All food taken to go is served in a reusable to-go box that must be returned before it is washed and reused. This is through a partnership with ReusePass to track the use of boxes.
For disposables: BPI Certified compostable serviceware is preferred when disposables are necessary, such as for drinks, soups, and pre-packaged items.
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?:
A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:
We no longer offer disposable to-go boxes. All food taken to go is served in a reusable to-go box that must be returned before it is washed and reused. This is through a partnership with ReusePass to track the use of boxes.
Customers receive a discount for bringing their own reusable coffee mug or tumbler at all three dining halls.
Optional Fields
Occidental recently joined the Menus of Change University Research Collaborative (MCURC), a collaboration between colleges conducting research into more sustainable dining habits and options. The Menus of Change Principles primarily distinguish plant-forward menus as a key tenant, along with ethically and sustainably sourced ingredients. Occidental intends to adopt these principles in menu development.
Historically, the college was a signatory of the Real Food Challenge, which has been re-establishing itself over the last year. The college still abides by some of the RFC principles, though a formal commitment has not yet been made.
Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.