The Sustainable Food Program

Students Mattias Lanas & Kate Kyder with freshly harvested lettuce from Wilbur garden.

Overview

The Sustainable Food Program is a collaborative effort led and managed by Stanford Dining that includes strategic partnerships with vendors and suppliers, students, staff, faculty and other campus stakeholders. Through these partnerships, the Sustainable Food Program seeks to create positive impact across three areas of focus: education, outreach, and awareness; collaboration and partnership; and operational and culinary excellence.

Sustainable Food Program Strategic Objectives

In keeping with the mission of Stanford Dining and its parent organization, Residential & Dining Enterprises, the Sustainable Food Program is guided by the following strategic objectives:

• Develop additional food-related curricula with faculty that explore theoretical frameworks through the lens of meaningful, practical, and hands-on experiences
• Continue to design awareness events and ongoing sustainability campaigns that align with and support our strategic partners
• Expand opportunities for students to design, implement, and manage Sustainable Food Program initiatives
• Establish an ongoing initiative with faculty, researchers and student groups to implement creative design solutions that promote and encourage healthy and sustainable eating habits and behaviors in our dining halls
• Fully integrate our culinary standards and sustainable food purchasing metrics into our internal reporting processes, with the goal of doubling our sustainable food purchases by 2015

New Sustainability Initatives for 2011-2012

• Niman Ranch fresh pork
• Organic whole apples
• Living Laboratory: behavioral research and design
• Education: Growing, Cooking, and Eating Food
• Fair Food Project

Current Sustainability Initiatives for Stanford Dining

• Cage-free eggs from Wilcox Family Farms
• Marin Sun Farms Grass-fed beef hamburger patties
• 100 percent Organic non-fat milk
• Wild Alaska Salmon from Taku River Reds
• Organic produce from ALBA Organics
• Waste oil to biodiesel recycling
• Spa water, water stations, and reusable water bottle giveaways
• Wash Your Mug program
• Dining in the Daylight
• Kitchen Efficiency Initiative
• Love Food, Hate Waste: waste reduction and composting campaign
• Agroecologically managed dining hall gardens
• Trayless Dining
• Partnership with SPOON
• Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Business Partner

Recognition and Awards for our commitment to sustainability

Stanford Dining was one of the first university food service operations in the United States certified as a green business (by Santa Clara County).

Stanford Dining won the Acterra Business Environmental Award for Sustainability

Stanford received an “A” for Food and Recycling on the Sustainable Endowments Institute’s 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, and 2011 College Sustainability Report Card.

PG&E Award for Leadership in Applying Green Building Design 2006.