Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 53.15
Liaison Sara McIntyre
Submission Date Dec. 20, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Sewanee - The University of the South
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.50 / 2.00 rick wright
Director of Dining
Dining
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1: Sustainable Dining Initiatives 

Sustainable Dining Policy

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a published sustainable dining policy?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainable dining policy:
http://www.sewanee.edu/dining/sustainability-/

On-Campus Sourcing 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor source food from a campus garden or farm?:
Yes

A brief description of the program to source food from a campus garden or farm:
Sewanee Dining purchases directly from our University farm a wide selection of vegetables and herbs

Local Community Engagement 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host a farmers market, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, and/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:
Sewanee Dining is the primary customer of our Local Food Hub, supports the local Farmers Market and Hosts an on Campus Farmers Market every year https://sewanee.locallygrown.net/

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:
Sewanee dining has a vegan program that operates continually during the school year , we continually improve this program and participation the vegan program continues to grow. We most recently participated in 3-day Food Forward Training program that focused on plant-centric recipes https://forwardfood.org/

Low-Impact Dining Events 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events (e.g. Meatless Mondays)?:
No

A brief description of the low impact dining events:
---

Sustainability-Themed Meals 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host sustainability-themed meals (e.g. local harvest dinners)?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-themed meals:
We host local meals daily and plan special events several times a yearly. The next locallly sourced community event will be the November 10 A Local Harvest Meal and Contra Dance featuring local vegetables, lamb and pork, followed by a Thanksgiving meal November 15 where we feature locally grown and purchased turkeys and use locally harvest squash , lettuces and other vegetables

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:
---

Labeling and Signage 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor inform customers about low impact food choices and sustainability practices through labeling and signage in dining halls?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability labeling and signage in dining halls:
We use signage extensively throughout the Dining Hall indicating locally sourced products, individually farms, additionally, Sewanee Dining is a member of Pick Tennessee http://www.picktnproducts.org/ and celebrate this with signage

Outreach and Education 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor engage in outreach efforts to support learning and research about sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the outreach efforts to support learning and research about sustainable food systems:
Sewanee Dining works with university departments , the local community and farmers to encourage continuing education on sustainability and food systems

Other Initiatives 

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have other sustainability-related initiatives (e.g. health and wellness initiatives, making culturally diverse options available)?:
Yes

A brief description of the other sustainability-related dining initiatives:
We work closing with our Health and wellness department to continually educate and inform our community on healthy sustainable choices, we also work with the international student groups to provide represent diverse and authentic food cultures

Part 2: Food and Dining Waste 

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:
---

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?:
No

A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:
---

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 donate all unused portions program exists at this time whenever we can to variety fo community partners, our local food bank, senior citizens center, and Otey Parrish, we also host a Thanksgiving meal at Otey Parrish using the unused portions and menu items form the schools Thanksgiving meal the day before.

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 (e.g. converting cooking oil to fuel, on-site anaerobic digestion)?:
Yes

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
We have a pre-consumer composting program with our University farm, all cooking oil is picked up and recycled by a third party, all cardboard is recycled as well as all metal cans

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:
The University Farm picks pre-consumer compost daily during the school year

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:
All of our service ware is reusable

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)?:
No

A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:
---

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor offer discounts or other incentives to customers who use reusable containers (e.g. mugs) instead of disposable or compostable containers in “to-go” food service operations?:
No

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

Other Materials Management Initiatives 

Has the institution or its primary dining services contractor implemented other materials management initiatives to minimize waste not covered above (e.g. working with vendors and other entities to reduce waste from food packaging)?:
No

A brief description of other dining services materials management initiatives:
---

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives 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.