Food & Dining
Introduction
Modern industrial food production often has deleterious environmental and social impacts. Institutions can use their food purchases to support their local economies; encourage safe, environmentally friendly and humane farming methods; and help eliminate unsafe working conditions and alleviate poverty for farmers. These actions help reduce environmental impacts, preserve regional farmland, improve local food security, and support fair and resilient food systems. Dining services can also support sustainable food systems by preventing food waste and diverting food materials from the waste stream, by making low impact dining options available, and by educating its customers about more sustainable options and practices.
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The Working Farms Fund: Partnership to Build a Sustainable Local Food System and Support a Diverse New Generation of Farmers
- Emory University (GA)
- The Conservation Fund (GA)
Emory University has partnering with the national non-profit The Conservation Fund (TCF) to support a diverse new generation of farmers in rural Georgia and help build the local food supply …
- Posted May 16, 2023
- Case Studies
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Tiffany Jurge plans Soup and Substance collaboration with SCITC
- Central Michigan University (MI)
- Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College (MI)
Central Michigan University (CMU) presents Soup and Substance events through the Office for Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (OIDEI) for students, faculty, staff and community members. Soup and Substance events …
- Posted May 15, 2023
- Case Studies
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Soup and Substance: Anishinaabek Food Sovereignty
- Central Michigan University (MI)
- Saginaw Chippewa Tribal College (MI)
Central Michigan University (CMU) presents Soup and Substance events through the Office for Institutional Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (OIDEI) for students, faculty, staff and community members. Soup and Substance events …
- Posted May 15, 2023
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Meghan VanDamme leads composting initiative at CMU
- Central Michigan University (MI)
Meghan VanDamme and Central Sustainability collaborated with Facilities Management and CMU Residence Life to erect a compost drop-off at Northwest Apartments. The drop-off promotes sustainability by offering an opportunity for …
- Posted May 15, 2023
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Diverting Food Waste and Educating the Campus Community with Solar Powered Compost Kiosks at Illinois State University
- Illinois State University (IL)
The Illinois State University Compost Kiosks provide a model for other institutions in diverting food waste and reducing single-use plastic while educating and engaging the campus community in the act …
- Posted May 15, 2023
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Colaboration with Community garden in San Juan District
- EARTH University
With the support of a resident of the San Juan District in the Union of Cartago, Costa Rica. We have come together to develop a community garden. With the contribution …
- Posted April 24, 2023
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Waste Diversion at Creighton Softball Game
- Creighton University (NE)
Hattie Ames and Gabby Otero are helping Creighton fans divert their waste from the landfill.
- Posted April 21, 2023
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Fullerton Arboretum Fights Food Insecurity While Helping the Environment
- California State University, Fullerton (CA)
Fullerton Arboretum, a 26-acre botanical garden located at Cal State Fullerton, is making a difference in the campus and environment…and it all starts with fruit.
The Arboretum grows an incredible …
- Posted April 13, 2023
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Food Sustainability and Security
- University of South Florida (Tampa) (FL)
- University of South Florida (FL)
Concerns about population growth, human health, and environmental quality have made food sustainability and security a top priority worldwide. The goal of this program is to provide students with a …
- Posted Feb. 23, 2023
- Academic Programs
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Directory of Programs that Save Leftover Food After Events
- University of California, Merced (CA)
There has been increasing interest in programs which address leftover food at events. As the coordinator of one such program, No Food Left Behind, I receive regular inquiries from other …
- Posted Feb. 6, 2023
- Tools
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Imagining the Future of Campus Food Service and Measuring Success
- Arizona State University (AZ)
- Texas Woman's University (TX)
- AASHE (MA)
Food does not loom large enough in university sustainability metrics given its outsized role in achieving the SDGs. With increasing recognition that transforming food systems is critical for climate resiliency, …
- Posted Feb. 2, 2023
- Videos & Webinars
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UMass Dining Carbon Rating System
- University of Massachusetts Amherst (MA)
Announced on Earth Day, 2022, and in partnership with My Emissions, UMass Dining, the nation's award winnning and largest higher education internally operated dining program, has launched an A-E carbon …
- Posted Jan. 10, 2023
- Case Studies
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Food Justice Fellowships - Rooted in Community
- Saint Mary's College of California (CA)
Food insecurity is defined as the state of being without reliable access to sufficient affordable and nutritious food. Food insecurity in the San Francisco Bay Area (and our state, country …
- Posted Sept. 20, 2022
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UMass Lowell Rooftop Urban Agriculture
- University of Massachusetts Lowell (MA)
Rooftop Urban Agriculture - The Office of Sustainability at University of Massachusetts Lowell has developed an innovative urban agriculture program in partnership with Mill City Grows, a local food justice …
- Posted Aug. 3, 2022
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USC recognized as a top performer in sustainable food and dining
- University of Southern California (CA)
USC is among the Top Performers under the Food & Dining impact area in the 2022 Sustainable Campus Index.
- Posted Aug. 3, 2022
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UMN Morris works with partners to launch county-wide composting program
- University of Minnesota, Morris (MN)
UMN Morris helped launch the new countywide composing program. UMN Morris hit a milestone of diverting 1 million pounds of organic material from the landfill with its onsite cold-weather system. …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
- Photographs
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Teaching Kitchen Photo
- Stanford University (CA)
Stanford students learn how to create delicious, nutritious, and environmentally conscious dishes in the R&DE Teaching Kitchen at Stanford. The teaching kitchen provides cooking classes to students, staff, and faculty …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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NSO Stanford Dining Students
- Stanford University (CA)
Students enjoy fresh fruit and fresh air at New Student Orientation
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Malaysian Tofu Laksa
- Stanford University (CA)
Malaysian Tofu Laksa is one of R&DE Stanford Dining’s student favorites
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Jeong Kwan and her assistant Yoon Hee Kim at the O’Donohue Family Stanford Educational Farm
- Stanford University (CA)
Jeong Kwan–a world-renowned chef and Buddhist nun–teaches students, faculty, and staff about plant-forward Korean Buddhist temple cuisine at the O’Donohue Family Stanford Educational Farm, at an event hosted by the …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Stanford students at R&DE Stanford Dining’s Neighborhood BBQ
- Stanford University (CA)
Students enjoy their meals outside Crothers Hall on Stanford’s campus during one of Stanford Dining’s Neighborhood BBQs, fostering community and belonging as part of the campuswide ResX initiative.
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Class at the O'Donohue Family Stanford Educational Farm
- Stanford University (CA)
Class at the O'Donohue Family Stanford Educational Farm
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Sustainable Food & Dining at Bennington College
- Bennington College (VT)
Interior and exterior views of Bennington College's Commons Dining Hall, which serves locally sourced and sustainably produced food. Also featured is the on-campus Purple Carrot Farm, which is student-led with …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
- Photographs
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Cascadia Cornucopia Food Forest
- Cascadia College (WA)
The main sign and welcome space for the campus food forest. The Cascadia Cornucopia Food Forest is an open foraging and growing spot for the campus community to learn about …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
- Photographs
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Sustainable Catering@Penn
- University of Pennsylvania (PA)
Sustainable Catering@Penn - A newly designed webpage at University of Pennsylvania provides search functionality for information about Penn’s Preferred Contract Caterers. Through Catering@Penn, users can now search for caterers based …
- Posted Aug. 1, 2022
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Sustainable Food and Farming (Online Certificate)
- University of Massachusetts Amherst (MA)
The 15-credit Certificate in Sustainable Food and Farming is designed for adults looking to make a career change, returning Veterans, or those pursuing a lifelong interest related to food, gardening, …
- Posted June 10, 2022
- Academic Programs
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Civic Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) Minor
- Virginia Tech (VA)
The Civic Agriculture and Food Systems Pathways minor embodies a commitment to developing and strengthening an economically, environmentally, and socially sustainable agriculture and food systems through building community capacity, using …
- Posted June 10, 2022
- Academic Programs
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Sustainable Food and Farming BS
- West Virginia University (WV)
Sustainable Food and Farming is the study of relationships among organisms and habitats in agricultural ecosystems. Climate and soil properties, activities of other organisms, and management practices affect the growth …
- Posted June 10, 2022
- Academic Programs
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Plant Pathology MS
- West Virginia University (WV)
The Plant Pathology graduate program is ideal for students who desire a career in plant health, food security or the environment. Graduates will be prepared to be leaders and productive …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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Crop Management Minor
- Cornell University (NY)
The minor enables students with majors in fields such as applied economics and management, communication, ESS, IARD and sociology to gain technical and scientific knowledge for careers in areas such …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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Sustainable Food Production Certificate
- Missouri State University (MO)
This certificate provides information to grow plant-based produce for human consumption using sustainable cropping system practices. Students who complete this certificate will obtain fundamental knowledge of successful plant production systems …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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MS in Environmental Health Science Food Safety Management Track
- University of Sharjah
The Department of Environmental Health Science has launched its graduate program, Master of Science in Environmental Health, in Fall 2020-2021 after receiving its initial accreditation from UAE Ministry of Education. …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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Master of Agriculture and Environment
- University of Sydney (NSW)
The Master of Agriculture and Environment trains students to solve the big challenges in the world: food security, climate change, and management of carbon, water and the environment. With lots …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems Major (B.A.)
- University of New Hampshire (NH)
This B.A. degree program is ideal for students interested in developing a broad base of knowledge and experience in modern agricultural and food systems with the flexibility to take courses …
- Posted June 10, 2022
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Applied Local Food System Minor
- Butler University (IN)
The Applied Local Food System (ALFS) minor and concentration is a truly cross-disciplinary program where students, instructors, community internship host sites, and community members learn through collaboration. As a cohort, …
- Posted May 23, 2022
- Academic Programs
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We Feed Aggie Animals
- Texas A&M University (TX)
- Chartwells Higher Education (NY)
Texas A&M Aggie Dining launched a new "We Feed Aggie Animals" food waste initiative to enhance goals of eliminating food waste while supporting the campus community. Starting in January 2022, …
- Posted May 23, 2022
- Case Studies
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Evaluating Food Packaging Waste in Schools: A Systematic Literature Review
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
Public schools in the U.S. generate about 14,500 tons of municipal solid waste daily, and approximately 42% of that is food packaging generated by school foodservice, contributing significantly to the …
- Posted May 20, 2022
- Publications
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Food sustainability perception at universities: Education and demographic features effects
- Università degli Studi di Torino
- Università degli Studi di Palermo
The 2030 Agenda of the United Nations merged in 17 goals the strong need to change the pattern of human life on the planet in a path of strengthening sustainability …
- Posted May 20, 2022
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Development of the University Food Environment Assessment (Uni-Food) Tool and Process to Benchmark the Healthiness, Equity, and Environmental Sustainability of University Food Environments
- Monash University (VIC)
- University of Sydney (NSW)
- Deakin University
- University of Melbourne (Victoria)
- University of Wollongong (New South Wales)
- University of Tasmania (TAS)
- Flinders University (South Australia)
Globally, there is increasing interest in monitoring actions to create healthy, equitable and environmentally sustainable food environments. Currently, there is a lack of detailed tools for monitoring and benchmarking university …
- Posted May 20, 2022
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Learning from the Dirt: Initiating university food gardens as a cross-disciplinary tertiary teaching tool
- Macquarie University (NSW)
Food gardens are an underdeveloped resource for teaching and research in Australian universities. While some campuses have food or botanical gardens, outside the biological or physical sciences food growing is …
- Posted May 20, 2022
- Publications
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Information Disclosure and Climate-Friendly Consumption: Assessing the Impact of Carbon Labelling at a University Dining Hall
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
Global dietary patterns are increasingly reliant on animal products, which are highly carbon intensive and significantly contribute to climate change. While transitioning towards plant-based diets is regarded as an important …
- Posted May 20, 2022
- Publications
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Contactless Food Box Deliveries: Driving Down Food Insecurity
- University of California, Merced (CA)
The University of California, Merced (UC Merced) launched the Contactless Food Box Delivery Program in December 2020 which continues to this day. 5-10 boxes are delivered every week to those …
- Posted May 19, 2022
- Case Studies
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Washington and Lee Quick Hits: Sustainability Leadership Trip Explores Local Food
- Washington and Lee University (VA)
Washington and Lee University takes student leaders in sustainability on a trip to explore local foods and dining waste. It features the students visiting the campus's local garden that composts …
- Posted May 19, 2022
- Videos & Webinars
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Students’ knowledge and expectations about sustainable food systems in higher education
- University of Kassel
- Universidad Politécnica de Madrid
- University of Copenhagen
- Szkoła Główna Gospodarstwa Wiejskiego (Warsaw)
- ISARA Agro School for Life
- Eesti Maaülikool, EMÜ
- FH Münster
- University of Gastronomic Sciences (Piedmont)
To clarify needs and requests of the young generation to the contemporary and future education on food systems, this paper aims to examine the following issues: students’ background knowledge, students’ …
- Posted May 11, 2022
- Publications
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The Perceived Importance and Intended Purchasing Patterns of Sustainable Foods in Australian University Students
- Western Sydney University (NSW)
- University of Tasmania (TAS)
Although there has been considerable research on consumers’ opinions about sustainable foods and purchasing behaviors, the experience of university students remains unclear. This study aims to characterize university students’ perceptions …
- Posted May 11, 2022
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Higher education institutions, SDG2 and agri-food sustainability: lessons from Chulalongkorn University and Thailand
- Chulalongkorn University
This paper examines higher education efforts linking United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDGs) and agri-food system sustainability given reports of stagnant movement for SDG2 in Southeast Asia and lack of …
- Posted May 11, 2022
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A comprehensive approach for the feasibility assessment of on-campus food waste composting
- American University of Sharjah
- German Jordanian University
Food waste management is increasingly emphasized globally due to its economic and environmental impacts and the strategic transformation towards sustainability. This can be observed from the increasing number of Zero …
- Posted May 11, 2022
- Publications
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Integration of food waste composting and vegetable gardens in a university campus
- University of A Coruña (a Coruña)
Local composting (household, community and small scale applications) is considered a sustainable option for bio-waste recovery and is receiving increasing demand from society. Higher education institutions are no exception, but …
- Posted May 11, 2022
- Publications
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Reducing the environmental impact of food service in universities using life cycle assessment
- Eckerd College (FL)
This study aims to use life cycle assessment to determine the environmental impact of food purchases at a small, liberal arts college. The authors also use the results to develop …
- Posted May 11, 2022
- Publications
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From tensions to transformation: Teaching food systems in a graduate dietetics course
- University of Toronto (ON)
Dietitians are deeply embedded within food systems, so food systems concepts are becoming an essential component of dietetic education in Canada. Yet how can we, as educators, better prepare future …
- Posted May 11, 2022
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This tab provides access to data collected through AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS). STARS is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. STARS enables meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements developed with broad participation from the campus sustainability community.
All responses reference content from reports under the latest version of STARS, version 2.2. AASHE membership and log-in is required.
OP 7: Food and Beverage Purchasing
- Percent of sustainably or ethically produced food and beverage expenditures
- Percent of plant-based food expenditures
- Sustainable food and beverage purchasing inventory
- Description of the sustainable food and beverage purchasing program
- Website URL - Sustainable food and beverage purchasing
OP 8: Sustainable Dining
- Description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project
- Description of the sustainability-themed food outlet
- Description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs
- Description of low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options
- Description of the vegan dining program
- Description of sustainability labelling and signage in dining halls
- Description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system
- Description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program
- Description of the food donation program
- Description of the food materials diversion program
- Description of the pre-consumer composting program
- Description of the post-consumer composting program
- Description of the reusable serviceware program
- Description of the compostable materials and serviceware program
- Description of the reusable container discount or incentives program
- Website URL - Sustainable dining programs
Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.