| Overall Rating | Bronze - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 26.70 |
| Liaison | Raymond Bowdish |
| Submission Date | Feb. 4, 2020 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
State University of New York at Potsdam
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.50 / 2.00 |
Raymond
Bowdish WISER Center Coordinator Biology |
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a published sustainable dining policy?:
A brief description of the sustainable dining policy:
We purchase local whenever possible. When and if we can buy and/or afford local we buy.
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:
Campus greenhouses and cafeteria growing racks provide a variety of micro greens and traditional produce products. The campus food security garden also supplies food products that are not sufficient for storage at local food pantries. Dining services processes these "ugly foods" into processed foods for cafeterias and catering.
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:
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:
We offer vegan dishes at various dining operations and have a Grab n Go progran that does Vegan meals daily.
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:
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:
PACES Dining Services produces a Local Foods Day providing lunch and dinner sourced from local farms. They also partner with our campus sustainability center and local non-profit groups like Garden Share, to have community dinners designed to showcase local food products and the farmers producing them.
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:
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:
The campus sustainability Center (WISER Center) and PACES dining services have teamed up for a wide variety of classroom and community events that teach about sustainable foods and how they are created.
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:
Residential program has a mindful plate concept. This concept directs customer to proper portion with scoop sizes that coordinate with the recommended portion for protein, starch, & vegetable.
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:
In all location but one. Working to be trayless at all location for fall 2020
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:
Pre consumer waste is donated to a local farm and our oil is picked up by a company
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 commissary campus kitchen produces approximately 2,000 lbs/week of per-consumer waste to local farmers to use for compost.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
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:
Flatware is used for residential dining and catering services, not retail dinning.
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:
Students can purchase reusable containers. Upon returning the container to dining services the containers are properly sanitized and receive either a fresh clean container or a voucher card for future use.
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:
Deposits on reusable dining to-go containers can be retrieved when containers are returned at the end of the semester or academic year.
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:
Oil used from fryers is picked up weekly by a local company to keep it out of the land fill.
Also, our ChefTech inventory management system provides data to analyze use patterns an adjust them weekly. Production sheets from this system are the primary means of managing food waste from excess inventory and over purchasing.
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.