| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 73.80 |
| Liaison | Corey Peterson |
| Submission Date | June 2, 2022 |
University of Tasmania
OP-8: Sustainable Dining
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.48 / 2.00 |
Sustainability
Team UTAS Infrastructure Services and Development |
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:
Most campus cafes/restaurants support local small and medium-sized enterprises, actively sourcing local produce for some or all of their staple supplies. Some cafes either swap coffee or breakfast for produce or pay market price depending on volume to very small suppliers.
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:
Most campus cafes/restaurants promote plant-forward options, offering a variety of vegan and vegetarian options and ensuring these options are at the top of menus and are always available and displayed.
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:
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:
Clearly marked food waste sorting and information posters to reduce waste to landfill.
Signage also identifies vegetarian meals in food outlets.
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:
Most campus cafes/restaurants offer small portions as part of their menu to reduce waste. Food is not served in trays in any of the cafes, but in standard size plates.
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:
Most campus cafes/restaurants prepare food according to demand to minimise waste, and any excess food is either diverted to their other business (e.g., food truck), taken home by employees to feed their families or donated to organisations such as Strike It Out (https://www.strikeitout.com/about), which provides food to those in need.
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:
Several cafes/restaurants collect their used cooking oil and turn it into biodiesel. Additionally, one of the cafes uses coffee grinds to make other products (e.g., candles) or donate them to customers for their compost.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:
Food waste from meals preparation is collected for commercial composting.
Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:
A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:
All University outlets are supported by the University with dedicated bins to collect compostable items (including food leftovers, compostable cuttlery and crockery) for composting. With the support of a local government grant, the University recently acquired a commercial in-vessel composter to be located in the new Inveresk Campus, which will be also use for teaching and learning purposes. The composter will take 75-85kg of materials per day from the on-site cafes and the community garden with the composted materials used back in the on-site gardens.
In addition, other campus accommodation buildings have worm farms and various types of composting systems depending on the site, from tumble style to on-ground approaches.
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:
Most campus cafes/restaurants provides ceramic crockery and metalic cutlery for "dine in" meals.
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:
All University outlets are required to provide compostable containers and servide ware for take away meals. This is also a requirement of the City of Hobart regulations.
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:
A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:
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.