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We have pre- and post-consumer composting at all dining locations on campus. Food waste is processed at Silver Springs Organics Composting Facility.
Our food production management system and training has reduced our pre-consumer food waste by 240 pounds per month.
We have switched all of our disposable ware over to Greenware compostable for our cold cups, lids, portion cups and clamshells. Greenware products are made from NatureWorks and are compostable at Silver Springs Organics Composting Facility. We also offer Zero Waste Catering events served on compostable wares.
To funnel your dining dollars back into our community and bring the freshest dining experience possible, we partner with local artisans and food and beverage providers to source local, natural, and organic products.
Last year, over 36% of our food was local or organic. (Local is defined as from within 250 miles, per AASHE STARS guidelines.)
To further support a local business and equity, we purchase fair trade, organic coffee from Batdorf & Bronson, a local roaster. We are one of their top 10 purchasers in terms of volume.
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Campus Dining is dedicated to sustainability, we are actively seeking out new ways to become more environmentally friendly and are proud of our sustainable initiatives. We would be happy to share more information or answer any questions you may have on our sustainable practices.
Food Donation Program
We are committed to reducing food waste and identifying alternatives for food surplus. Our Food Management Fundamentals provides tools to reduce food surplus through source reduction and internal usage, but there is still a need for an environmentally and socially responsible alternative for disposing edible food waste. Our solution is a Food Donation Program that Dining Services instituted in fall 2012. The surplus food is frozen and the Thurston County Food Bank picks up donations three times per week. Our sustainability intern will track and report these donations.
Chemical-Free Cleaning
Our exclusive "Blue Cleaning" system is utilized at all dining locations. Over the past 2 years, we have reduced our cleaning chemical usage by 38%.
- We utilize ionized water to clean rather than harsh chemicals.
- Use temperature sanitization instead of chemicals, which has reduce the amount of chemical usage at Evergreen.
- Partner with Evergreen to implement and use dishwashers that recycle 70% of the water utilized in the cleaning process
- In addition, we are implementing a microfiber system for all floor cleaning that reduces waste, chemical consumption and water usage.
Tray-less Dining
Tray-less dining saves countless gallons of water and decreases our food waste.
Conserving Resources
We reduced our water and electrical consumption buy allowing our products to thaw naturally, unplugging equipment when not in use, and turning off or dimming the lights during non-working hours.
All office paper used in our operations contains 100% recycled (post-consumer) content.
Annually, we coordinate campus-wide Recyclemania events. |