Smith College
OP-7: Food and Beverage Purchasing

Dining services seeks food that is locally grown or processed within 150 miles and environmentally beneficial foods which are organic, hormone or antibiotic free, and humane foods which are cage-free or fair trade. As a member of CISA (Community in Support of Agriculture), a national organization that supports collaboration of local farmers with local institutions and restaurants, the college supports local farmers and spreads awareness of the importance of buying locally. Smith purchases cage-free eggs and fair trade/organic/kosher coffee from Indigo Coffee Company in nearby Florence, MA. Dairy products are purchased from High Lawn Farm in Lee, MA, which come from pastured Jersey cows that do not receive artificial growth hormones. Dining Services purchases Vermont-raised ground beef, brisket, top round and pork from Black River Produce in North Springfield, Vt. Black River produces meats from pasture-fed animals that do not receive antibiotics or hormones. Local, seasonal produce comes from local farmers as much as possible, given the quantities we must obtain. The majority of local produce comes from Outlook Farm in Westhampton, MA, where Dining Services has been purchasing apples for the past 60 years. What Outlook Farm cannot provide at their farm, they purchase from other local farmers and deliver to Smith twice weekly. During February and March, winter vegetables such as carrots, parsnips, radishes, and beets are delivered to campus by bike from Hadley, MA. Black River Produce, located in Southern Vermont, is our other source for locally-grown produce. They provide a list of current, locally grown products and note on their delivery invoices what is locally grown.

We used the criteria provided by the Real Food Challenge to conduct our inventory, and looked at two representative sample months. We chose February and October, as local produce is limited in February, but plentiful in October.