University of Montana
OP-7: Food and Beverage Purchasing
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.73 / 6.00 |
Eva
Rocke Sustainability Director Office of Sustainability |
Percentage of total annual food and beverage expenditures on products that are sustainably or ethically produced:
Percentage of total annual food and beverage expenditures on plant-based foods:
An inventory of food and beverage purchases that qualify as sustainably/ethically produced:
A brief description of the methodology used to conduct the inventory, including the timeframe and how representative samples accounted for seasonal variation (if applicable):
The UM Campus Dining staff, along with professional interns, collected twelve months of purchasing data using our food service management software, CBORD. The data collection period spanned from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2023. This comprehensive data pull encompassed all campus dining operations, including retail, residential, concessions, catering, and convenience store purchases. It is important to note that purchasing data from third-party food service operations (two local businesses that operate space in our food court, an Asian noodle restaurant and a sandwich shop) were not included in this analysis. The collected data was compared against the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) inclusion criteria. Any qualifying purchases were transcribed into the workbook provided by STARS. Each purchase was carefully reviewed and selected to ensure that both the supplier and the products met the highest standards of sustainability and ethical production.
If reporting Real/Good Food Calculator results, provide:
Which of the following food service providers are present on campus and included in the inventory/assessment?:
| Present? | Included? | |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by the institution | Yes | Yes |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by a contractor | No | No |
| Student-run food/catering services | Yes | Yes |
| Franchises (e.g., regional or global brands) | Yes | No |
| Convenience stores | Yes | Yes |
| Vending services | Yes | No |
| Concessions | Yes | Yes |
Total annual dining services budget for food and beverage products:
Optional Fields
UM Dining maintains two distinct purchasing programs: 1) UDS Farm to College (FTC) purchasing criteria includes food products that meet one or more of the following criteria: a. Raised, grown, or wild harvested in Montana or unique to the state b. Processed or manufactured by a Montana-owned business c. Processed or manufactured by any business that primarily uses raw materials from Montana. 2) University Dining Services Sustainable (UDSS) purchasing criteria includes food products that meet one or more of the following criteria: a. Regional – food produced in Montana’s neighboring states, Washington, and Oregon b. Healthy – food that is part of a nutritious and balanced diet and is produced without the use of synthetic pesticides, hormones, antibiotics, or other chemical compounds. c. Fair – food that is fairly or cooperatively traded between producers, processors, retailers, and consumers, and without exploitation of employees. d. Ecological sound – food that is produced in a way that mitigates environmental harm e. Humane – food that has high animal welfare standards throughout the production process.
Website URL where information about the food and beverage purchasing program 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.