Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.20
Liaison Olivia Conner-Bennett
Submission Date March 2, 2020

STARS v2.2

Stevens Institute of Technology
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.75 / 2.00 Sara Klein
AVP
Student Affairs
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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:
Have invited and hosted local farmers such as Abma Farms in Wyckoff, NJ, to host a farmers market and engage students.

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:
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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:
On Washington Street Wednesdays, students on a meal plan are able to redeem a meal swipe at one of several participating local restaurants. In turn, that correlates to our kitchen staff reducing their production of food by 20% on those particular Wednesdays, as the dining hall traffic slows considerably.

Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
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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:
Meatless Mondays, Ancient Grains Station (fully plant based proteins), Beyond Meat specials, Allergen Friendly Room (meatless chicken nuggets, etc)

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:
Vegan options available Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner. Entrée line has minimum 1 vegan dish per service time. For example, chickpea filling for taco Tuesdays.

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:
Vegan and Vegetarian labeling on all items with distinct symbols on menus and PIDs.

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 program. Track, measure, and reduce food waste at the unit level.

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:
No trays in dining hall, reusable coffee mugs.

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:
When applicable/available, excess food is given to The Hoboken Shelter.

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor divert food materials from the landfill, incinerator or sewer for animal feed or industrial uses?:
Yes

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:
Cooking oil is collected by a company that cleans/recycles it and sells it back to the University.

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:
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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:
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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:
Metal tableware is provided in the dining hall

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:
Compostable to-go meal containers are provided by Huhtamaki, but there is no campus composting program at this time.

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:
Discounts on coffee (15 cents) and tea (20 cents) are offered at all 5 to-go food service sites for those who bring their own mug.

A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
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Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.