| Overall Rating | Bronze - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 38.93 |
| Liaison | Veronica Johnson |
| Submission Date | May 10, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Southwestern University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.63 / 2.00 |
Keara
Hudler Student Sustainability Coordinator Environmental Studies |
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a published sustainable dining policy?:
A brief description of the sustainable dining policy:
Sodexo's Better Tomorrow Plan incorporates initiatives for human health, the planet, local communities, and people. The plan targets the sourcing of all food served, aims to serve as much in-season produce as possible, and works to reduce food waste. The plan also pushes for locally sourced food to be served as often as possible.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor source food from a campus garden or farm?:
A brief description of the program to source food from a campus garden or farm:
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?:
A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:
The university is home to a Community Garden that provides free food to any student who harvests it. It is a student-run organization that utilizes university funds, but no community member is prevented from eating the harvest or participating in any way.
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?:
A brief description of the vegan dining program:
Raw and cooked vegan options are available at every meal. Meatless Mondays have been incorporated into the dining menu as of Fall 2015 in order to promote a more sustainable, plant-based diet.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events (e.g. Meatless Mondays)?:
A brief description of the low impact dining events:
Meatless Mondays formally became a part of dining services in Fall 2015.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host sustainability-themed meals (e.g. local harvest dinners)?:
A brief description of the sustainability-themed meals:
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?:
A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:
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?:
A brief description of the sustainability labeling and signage in dining halls:
Signs are posted for Meatless Mondays highlighting the impact of meat on the environment. Each entree item is served next to an information sheet on ingredients, nutrition, and other notable information regarding sourcing.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor engage in outreach efforts to support learning and research about sustainable food systems?:
A brief description of the outreach efforts to support learning and research about sustainable food systems:
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)?:
A brief description of the other sustainability-related dining initiatives:
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?:
A brief description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system:
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?:
A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:
We went tray less several years ago.
We practice portion control in our all you can eat dining hall and batch cook food to demand needs to eliminate waste.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor donate food that would otherwise go to waste to feed people?:
A brief description of the food donation program:
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)?:
A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
An industrial compost bin is used for all food and dining waste that cannot be composted at the on-campus Community Garden but can be industrially composted.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
The majority of pre-consumer food waste in our dining services on campus is collected and composted by our Waste haul off provider (TDS).
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
Waste that can be composted in the Community Garden's composter is collected by students. All other waste is collected for industrial composting purposes.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor utilize reusable service ware for “dine in” meals?:
A brief description of the reusable service ware program:
All "dine in" food is served on/with reusable dishes.
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)?:
A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:
We use Tatorware spoons, knives, and forks and Eco Products sugar cane to go boxes and paper cups.
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?:
A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:
We sell re-usable mugs in our retail outlet with discounts on refill packages.
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)?:
A brief description of other dining services materials management initiatives:
We participate in one stream recycling and composting of all our products. We also integrate the importance of waste training into all of employee training.
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:
Eco-friendly cleaning products are used in the dining hall. To-go boxes and cups in both the dining hall and the on-campus cafe are made of compostable and/or recyclable - no styrofoam is used.
Eco-friendly cleaning products are used in the dining hall. To-go boxes and cups in both the dining hall and the on-campus cafe are made of compostable and/or recyclable - no styrofoam is used.
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.