Overall Rating Bronze
Overall Score 38.87
Liaison Sam Edwards
Submission Date March 1, 2025

STARS v2.2

Quinnipiac University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.62 / 2.00
"---" 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:

We partner with Quinnipiac's sustainability club (SEA) for a local Farmers Market. We also partner with other local vendors such as Sardilli Produce & Dairy.


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?:
No

A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:

Starbucks offers sustainable fair trade offerings in the dining station


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:

Quinnipiac purchases from numerous Women-owned businesses;

We work with Havens Harvest for food recovery, which regularly diverts consumable food to Women of the Village, a partner of Havens Harvest.


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:

Every food station has a vegan option as well as a station that is 100% vegan in the dining hall.

We host a few events throughout the semester promoting our Ozzi containers, Food  Facts, and Stop Food Waste Day that is celebrated globally.


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:

All stations and all dining halls (North Haven, York Hill, Cafe Q, and Bobcat Den) offer a vegan option daily.


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 have signage that lets students now about locally sourced products.

We have climate friendly labeling on all of our TV screens which means (This icon recognizes recipes with low greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs). Our recipes that achieve the Climate Friendly attribute have agricultural and ingredient processing impacts that are lower than 70% of all products assessed by HowGood.)


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?:
Yes

A brief description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system:

Waste Not 2.0: Daily pre-service discussion regarding food waste and utilize production logs in order to minimize food waste next time recipes are made.


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:

We offer a variety of options for students to purchase their food such as china plates, ozzi containers, and compostable plates.  QU no longer offers trays.


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:

We work with Haven's harvest which works with a numerous amount of shelters and foods banks in the area such as Women of the Village, daycare centers, senior centers, schools, subsidized housing sites, clinics, faith communities, food pantries, and other non-profits.


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?:
No

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
---

Composting 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
No

A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
---

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
No

A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
---

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:

We have silverware/ reusable utensils and china plates offered at some stations


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:

We utilize Ozzi containers and we also use compostable plates.


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?:
No

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

Optional Fields

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

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.