| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 62.46 |
| Liaison | Morgan Hartman |
| Submission Date | Jan. 31, 2020 |
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.60 / 2.00 |
Pam
Edwards Assistant Director Housing Dining Service |
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?:
A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:
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 support disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through its food and beverage purchasing?:
A brief description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
The University supports local farmers through the purchase of local foods.
Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events or promote plant-forward options?:
A brief description of the low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options:
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 and the University is willing to work with students, staff, faculty, and others to identify additional vegan entrees to serve. Vegan entrees are classified by having at least five grams of protein.
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?:
A brief description of the sustainability labelling 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 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:
At the beginning of 2019, the Lean Path Program was in the preliminary stages of being implemented in the dining centers.
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.
Recommended portion sizes are encouraged through posting of nutrition information with the defined portion size for the menu item.
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?:
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.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
Cather Dining has a compost bin in the small garden and Selleck Dining has composting containers in the department through the University Eco Huskers 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:
The university has an aerobic biodigester in the Selleck Dining hall and will be expanding it throughout University Dining Services.
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. Along with this, East Dining has been using Ozzi to-go containers.
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?:
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.
A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
University Dining Services provides options representative of different cultures, such as Halal, Brazilian and other cultures are made available for students. Along with that, plastic bags have been eliminated and replaced with paper sacks while reusable bags can be purchased in convenience stores. Last but not least, compostable dining containers are required throughout the University but at the present time there is not a process in place for the used compostable products to be composted.
Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs 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.