Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 74.49
Liaison Krista Bailey
Submission Date Dec. 17, 2020

STARS v2.2

Pennsylvania State University
OP-7: Food and Beverage Purchasing

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.58 / 6.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Percentage of total annual food and beverage expenditures on products that are sustainably or ethically produced:
0.48

Percentage of total annual food and beverage expenditures on plant-based foods:
18.32

An inventory of food and beverage purchases that qualify as sustainably/ethically produced:
A brief description of the methodology used to conduct the inventory, including the timeframe and how representative samples accounted for seasonal variation (if applicable):

Data provided is based on actual usage and expenditures for the listed time period. Purchase and inventory data is maintained in an electronic food management and inventory system that maintains historical data for all HFS locations.

The reporting timeframe is July 2018-June 2019

Penn State wishes to not showcase total spend; therefore, the inventory is percentages of total only.


Website URL where the institution’s validated Real/Good Food Calculator results are publicly posted:
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Which of the following food service providers are present on campus and included in the inventory/assessment?:
Present? Included?
Dining operations and catering services operated by the institution Yes Yes
Dining operations and catering services operated by a contractor No No
Student-run food/catering services No No
Franchises (e.g., regional or global brands) Yes Yes
Convenience stores Yes Yes
Vending services Yes Yes
Concessions Yes No

Total annual dining services budget for food and beverage products:
$1 million - $4.9 million

A brief description of the institution’s sustainable food and beverage purchasing program:

All products meeting our PA/Green standards are purchased on a competitive bid basis and, in addition to meeting our standards, are also our best pricing alternatives. We currently allow for a small cost premium for PA produce items on the UP campus, in order to encourage our produce suppliers to source PA grown products.

We continue to put great efforts into increasing the number of PA vendors we purchase from directly, as well as the amount that we purchase from them. In 2016 we also established a hyper-local standard that includes product from the county in which the campus resides and surrounding counties.

Since its establishment in 2016, some hyper-local produce has been purchased from the Penn State Student Farm. Although there is no specific policy that requires these purchases, Housing & Food Service's head chef actively encourages the managing chefs to buy from the student farm, especially when it has surpluses.


Website URL where information about the food and beverage purchasing program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

NOTE: Penn State Housing and Food Services elected not to showcase total spend for food purchases. Therefore, all the information in the spreadsheet is strictly percentage of total.


NOTE: Penn State Housing and Food Services elected not to showcase total spend for food purchases. Therefore, all the information in the spreadsheet is strictly percentage of total.

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.