| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.27 |
| Liaison | Morgan Hartman |
| Submission Date | Feb. 20, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.38 / 2.00 |
Pam
Edwards Assistant Director Housing Dining Service |
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a published sustainable dining policy?:
A brief description of the sustainable dining policy:
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:
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:
Vegan and vegetarian options are provided at every meal. Vegan entrees are classified by having at least five grams of protein.
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:
The two residence hall dining centers serve regularly scheduled Good. Fresh. Local. meals with food sourced from local (Nebraska) farmers and producers.
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:
The two residence hall dining centers provide the meals serving local food (food purchased from farms and producers in Nebraska).
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:
Good. Fresh. Local. menu items are identified by labels and signage.
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 University Dining Services Assistant Director presents classes on the UNL campus about the Good. Fresh. Local. program. In addition, programs are presented in the community explaining the organizaiton of the Good. Fresh. Local. program.
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:
University Dining Services provides information for students on different components of wellness. In addition, options representative of different cultures, such as Halal, Brazilian and other cultures are made available for students.
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:
Dining Services does not have computerized food waste prevention system to track and improve practices but does have manual programs in place to track and reduce food waste.
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:
Trayless dining was implemented at the university in spring 2009 and is still being used. Students are provided different sized bowls and plates. Trays are used only in instances of special need.
Students initiated a program to increase the awareness about food waste and to decrease its occurrence.
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:
Donations of leftover food are made through FoodNet; a service in which individuals pick up food donations rather than having it delivered. Food donations come mainly from conferences held at the university during the summer months.
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:
Cooking oil that has been used in the dining centers is picked up by a waste management service that picks up used food service grease and sells it for cosmetics and soaps.
Discussion about a food materials diversion program has been initiated but has not yet been put in place in the dining centers.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
At this time there is not a campus-wide pre-consumer composting program.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
At this time there is not a post-consumer composting program for the dining centers.
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:
Reusable service ware consists of china dishes, plastic glasses and stainless silverware.
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:
UNL Dining offers limited to-go options.
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:
With minimal to-go food options, UNL does not offer discounts for reusable mugs.
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:
The university instituted a policy that all disposable dishes, dining utensils, and beverage containers must be compostable and would be required to be composted in a professional facility.
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.