Overall Rating	Silver - expired
Overall Score	50.27
Liaison	Jessica Thompson
Submission Date	Feb. 18, 2020

STARS v2.2

Northern Michigan University
OP-8: Sustainable Dining

Status	Score	Responsible Party
	2.00 / 2.00	Brandon Sager Sustainability Coordinator Facilities

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Part 1. Sustainable dining initiatives

Local community engagement

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host a farmers market, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or urban agriculture project, or support such a program in the local community?:

Yes

A brief description of the farmers market, CSA or urban agriculture project:

NMU Dining has partnered with the Hoop House, NMU’s solar greenhouse in order to serve locally grown produce on campus. NMU Dining provides the Hoop House with pre-consumer food scraps for composting and coffee grounds for soil. In return, we receive fresh produce. We also give pre-consumer food scraps to Partridge Creek Farm, a local educational farm. And we have sourced produce from the Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center, operated by Michigan State University.
Based on survey results several years ago, the University will continue to consider the viability of partnering more formally with a CSA.

Sustainability-themed outlet

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host a sustainability-themed food outlet on-site, either independently or in partnership with a contractor or retailer?:

Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-themed food outlet:

Sundre Snack and Supply Co., centrally located in Harden Hall, offers products that are Non-GMO, USDA Organic, Recycled, Fair Trade Certified, Local, Green-packaged, All Natural, Clean Label, Vegan, Vegetarian and more. Many products are also sourced locally and within the state of Michigan. Sundre also has a unique line of glass jar salads that are healthy, Vegan, Vegetarian and Gluten Free dining options. The program also allows the glass jars to be returned for a deposit so that they can be reused.

Inclusive and local sourcing

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor support disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through its food and beverage purchasing?:

Yes

A brief description of the support for disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:

NMU Dining procures all shelled eggs on campus from BSB Farms, a local, family owned farm. Fish is purchased from Thill’s, a local fishery, and beef and pork from Superior Angus/Superior Home Farm, also located in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. Additionally, NMU Dining purchases animals from the Marquette County fair each year. NMU Dining has reached its goal of 10% of overall purchases coming from local farms and organizations by 2020 in 2018. In 2018, $368,820, or 10.3% of the NMU Dining budget, was spent on food sourced locally. In 2019, that number grew to $406,800 or 11.3% of the department’s budget.

Estimated percentage of total food and beverage expenditures on products from disadvantaged businesses, social enterprises, and/or local SMEs:

11.30

Low-impact dining

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor host low impact dining events or promote plant-forward options?:

Yes

A brief description of the low impact dining events and/or plant-forward options:

Northern Lights Dining, our primary dining hall, has partnered with students in demonstrations that aim to reduce food waste and promote composting through signage and assisting in sorting waste.
We’ve hosted Morningstar Farms and other vendors to conduct on-campus sample events of plant-based proteins.
More than 30 NMU culinary professionals took part in the Forward Food Experience, sponsored by the Humane Society of the United States, which comprised of 16 hours of intensive training on plant-based diets.
And, as part of a campus-wide Sustainability Week, NMU Dining has hosted Meatless Monday events.
Temaki World Asian Kitchen partners with Northern Vegans, a community group, to feature a vegan-only menu quarterly.
Throughout the year, NMU’s registered dietitian hosts a series of presentations on plant-based diets, the impacts of bottled water, sourcing food locally, as well as others.

Vegan dining program

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a vegan dining program that makes diverse, complete-protein vegan options available to every member of the campus community at every meal?:

Yes

A brief description of the vegan dining program:

As part of the 2018 renovation of Northern Lights Dining, the university’s primary dining hall, a station dedicated to vegan meal options was designed. Additionally, a refrigerator stocked with pre-packaged vegan items is located near Parsnip. More than 100 vegan food items are available daily, including soy milk, nut butters, beans, greens and more.
Menus and food packaging materials created in-house are tagged with vegan options. These options are indicated on menus, food cards, and mobile or online at the NMU My Menu resource.

Labelling and signage

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor inform customers about low impact food choices and sustainability practices through labelling and signage in dining halls?:

Yes

A brief description of the sustainability labelling and signage in dining halls:

Northern Lights Dining has multiple digital screens and physical signage which rotate educational information, including the fact that a portion of offerings procured locally from local farms and suppliers, as well as in partnership with our local 4-H group. Additionally, all menus and food cards at Northern Lights Dining indicate food options that are either vegan or vegetarian.
Throughout our restaurants and retail outlets on campus, food that is sourced locally is recognized on menus and signage.

Part 2. Food waste minimization and recovery

Food recovery program

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor participate in a competition or commitment program and/or use a food waste prevention system to track and improve its food management practices?:

Yes

A brief description of the food recovery competition or commitment program or food waste prevention system:

Using the Oracle Micros software system, we carefully track the number of patrons and when they frequent our dining hall. Using this data, we are able to forecast more precisely how much food to make, minimizing waste.
NMU Dining is committed to buying in bulk when feasible using bulk dispensers for various drinks, condiments and cereals, leading to a reduction in the amount of packaging materials used. Most of our dining purchases are made through one primary vendor, decreasing the amount of time and energy spent making deliveries.

Trayless dining and portion modifications

Has the institution or its primary dining services contractor implemented trayless dining (in which trays are removed from or not available in dining halls) and/or modified menus/portions to reduce post-consumer food waste?:

Yes

A brief description of the trayless dining or modified menu/portion program:

NMU Dining no longer utilizes trays, which encourage over consumption, and implemented proper portion controls when plating food. Prior to this change, meat servings were 7-8 oz., and now portions are between 2-3 oz. By plating food upon request, and serving the appropriate portion sizes, food waste has been reduced dramatically. As a result, the water and chemicals used to clean trays and plates has also declined.

Food donation

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor donate food that would otherwise go to waste to feed people?:

Yes

A brief description of the food donation program:

As part of our Food Waste Recovery Network, more than 1,500 pounds of food is donated weekly to the Room at the Inn, a local warming shelter.

Food materials diversion

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor divert food materials from the landfill, incinerator or sewer for animal feed or industrial uses?:

Yes

A brief description of the food materials diversion program:

NMU Dining partners with Sanimax to remove and recycle oil used during the food preparation process. Sanimax removes this oil from our dining facilities and recycles it to be used in marketable products. For more information on Sanimax please visit http://www.sanimax.com/

Composting

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a pre-consumer composting program?:

Yes

A brief description of the pre-consumer composting program:

NMU Dining employs a compost program whereby food scraps are donated to Partridge Creek Farm, a local, educational farm, for their compost and incubator programs. Additionally, pre-consumer food scraps and coffee grounds are given to the Hoop House, NMU’s solar greenhouse. In return, we receive fresh produce.

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor have a post-consumer composting program?:

A brief description of the post-consumer composting program:

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Dine-in service ware

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor utilize reusable service ware for “dine in” meals?:

Yes

A brief description of the reusable service ware program:

All service ware used for dine in meals is reusable. In the NMU dining halls, all plates, silverware, cups and mugs are brought to a conveyor by the guest and then washed and reused.

Take-away materials

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor provide reusable and/or third party certified compostable containers and service ware for “to-go” meals (in conjunction with an on-site composting program)?:

Yes

A brief description of the compostable containers and service ware:

Ninety percent of our to-go containers and service ware used at restaurants and retail outlets are made from recycled materials and are compostable. We use biodegradable paper plates, recycled napkins, Cornware utensils and Pepsi’s compostable cups.

Does the institution or its primary dining services contractor offer discounts or other incentives to customers who use reusable containers instead of disposable or compostable containers in “to-go” food service operations?:

Yes

A brief description of the reusable container discount or incentives program:

All residence hall residents receive a free reusable mug and can get discounts and advantages for utilizing the mug on beverage at locations throughout campus, such as reduced price coffee at Starbucks. Commuters, faculty and staff can also purchase these BPA-free reusable mugs to take advantage of the same discounts/incentives.

Optional Fields

A brief description of other sustainability-related initiatives not covered above:

NMU Dining has partnered with academic departments in hosting Modern Languages Week bi-annually. Menus feature dishes native to that country, and are paired with educational materials about the language and the food.
Our retail outlets also host festivals that celebrate other country’s food and heritage, including Dia de los Muertos and Lantern Festival.
As part of the 2018 renovation of Northern Lights Dining, our premier dining hall, a station was created specifically to highlight cuisine from around the globe.
The cardboard containers for all shelled eggs, procured from locally owned BSB Farms, are saved and returned to the farm for reuse.
Green cleaning products are used extensively throughout all NMU Dining facilities, improving air and water quality, and reducing waste and pollution.
More information about NMU Dining’s sustainability efforts can be found at http://meet.nmu.edu/dining/?page_id=104.

Website URL where information about the sustainable dining programs is available:

http://meet.nmu.edu/dining/?page_id=104

Additional documentation to support the submission:

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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

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