Bowdoin College
OP-7: Low Impact Dining

Variety and choice are hallmarks of the Bowdoin dining program and our vegan programming is no exception. In each dining hall, during each meal period, our menu standards require that at least one vegan entrée be available in addition to a vegan protein and cooked vegetables. At the salad bars, there is an array of rotating fruits and vegetables and we include plain grains, legumes and a variety of composed salads. Some of our most popular vegan items are: eggplant parmesan with vegan cheese, chick pea curry with roasted cauliflower, black bean and sweet potato patties, maple baked butternut squash with cranberries, homemade kimchee, house pickled beets, curried tofu “egg” salad, and mansoor dal. Our students LOVE cauliflower and Brussels sprouts in any form! We bake fresh bread daily for the dining halls, most of which are vegan. Vegan desserts are available and labeled. We produce our own, very popular vegan granola. Several varieties of vegan milk including rice, soy and almond are always available as well as freshly ground peanut butter, dried fruit, wheat germ, soy nuts, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds and nutritional yeast.

In light of Bowdoin’s 2020 carbon neutrality pledge, and the statistics regarding the environmental costs of industrial meat production, and students’ dietary direction trending towards a more plant-based diet, Bowdoin Dining Service has made it a goal to work towards a more vegetable-centric menu in all our operations. We are committed to substantially improving the productivity of the Bowdoin Organic Garden, highlighting and enhancing the vegetarian and vegan aspects of our menus, and looking for ways to increase our impact in the local agricultural community.