Sustainability

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Background

Dining Services produces over 11,000 meals on a typical weekday through UCR’s nineteen food outlets. It also operates two catering services, Arroyo Vista Catering and Citrus Grove Catering. In January 2009 the university selected SYSCO Food Services of Los Angeles, Inc. to be its primary food vendor for the next three years. The agreement with SYSCO includes an important sustainability provision that will help UCR begin tracking product information such as growing region and carbon footprint. Assistance from SYSCO will help UCR develop menus that incorporate more local, sustainable and organic food products, educate consumers about their
dining choices, and track progress towards meeting the goals outlined in this section.

Supporting sustainable food systems is an important undertaking because food purchasing choices touch on a number of environmental issues. Industrialized food production relies heavily on fertilizer, herbicides and pesticides to sustain crops in a monoculture environment. These materials can leach into groundwater and cause severe disruption to aquatic habitats. Food choices are also directly tied to energy consumption. Each stage in a product’s journey from the farm to the plate – growing, harvesting, processing, packaging and transporting – requires energy inputs. Both farming practices and sourcing location drive the embodied energy of a food product. UCR is working to expand its local sourcing and sustainable procurement to support food systems that nurture bodies as well as the environment at a smaller carbon cost. 

Best Practices 

UCR procures limited quantities of local food stuffs including citrus sourced from fields located just across the freeway and eggs produced by hens at Agricultural Operations. All paper napkins are unbleached, and 45 percent of all disposable food service products are compostable and made from renewable resources.  

Short Term Goals

1. Implement a food waste diversion program and educational campaign
2. Divert 25 percent of food waste
3. Establish a tracking system for both sustainable and non-sustainable food
   purchases
4. Begin populating food procurement metrics
5. Procure sustainable foods for 5 percent of total food purchases
6. Create a culinary herb garden
7. Create a campus community garden
8. Develop sustainability guidelines for kitchen equipment
9. Expand the use of sustainable cleaning chemicals, ware washing products, and hand soaps in all dining operations 
10. Increase participation in the UC Systemwide Sustainability Working Group for Food Systems

Intermediate Goals

1. Divert 75 percent of food waste
2. Procure sustainable foods for 20 percent of total food purchases
3. Reduce use of food stuffs with a large carbon footprint
4. Create a seasonal menu that uses local and sustainable foods
5. Investigate the economic feasibility of purchasing sustainable food for 30 percent of total food purchases
6. Partner with Panda Express to green their operations
7. Partner with any current or future corporate entities that provide food on campus
8. Replace the aging dish washing machine at the Aberdeen-Inverness Residential Restaurant
9. Create a labeling system to highlight sustainable food choices for diners
10. Use the community garden to establish an agroecology program

Long Term Goals

1. Achieve zero food waste by 2020
2. Procure sustainable foods for 30 percent of total food purchases
3. Replace aging kitchen equipment with Energy Star appliances
4. Incorporate social justice guidelines in food procurement decisions