<< Back to Report Card
With the publication of the College Sustainability Report Card 2010, more than 1,100 school survey responses from over 300 institutions are now available online. In total, these surveys offer more than 10,000 pages of data collected from colleges and universities during the summer of 2009. To access surveys from other schools, go to the surveys section of the website. To see grades, or to access additional surveys submitted by this school, please click the "Back to Report Card" link at the beginning or end of the survey.
Name: Dennis Carlberg, AIA, LEED AP
Title: Sustainability Director
Date survey submitted: July 23, 2009
1) Total annual food budget: [$11.5 million]
LOCALLY GROWN AND PRODUCED FOOD
Note: Geographic location and seasonal availability are taken into account in assessing your response. "Local" is defined as within 150 miles of your campus.
2) Do you have any formal policies pertaining to local purchases?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe and provide URL, if available:
Whenever possible, BU buys locally to reduce fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions and seeks purveyors that are committed to sustainable agriculture practices.
http://www.bu.edu/dining/about/sustainability.html
Questions 3-5 pertain to locally grown purchases.
3) From how many local farms or growers do you purchase (excluding on-campus farms/gardens)?
[ # 0 ] Number from which you purchase directly.
[ 45] Number from which you purchase through a distributor. Please specify name and location of distributor:
Costa Fruit & Produce, Charlestown, MA: 15 Producers
Sid Wainer & Son, New Bedford, MA: 15 Producers
Sysco Boston, Norton, MA: 10 producers
4) How much do you spend annually on purchasing food that was grown or raised locally?
[$ $919,444.95 ]
5) Please list foods you purchase that are grown or raised locally (e.g., fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, milk, fish, honey, maple syrup; foods that are processed locally should be listed in question 8):
Fruits, vegetables, meat, seafood, milk, honey, maple syrup
Questions 6-8 pertain to locally produced and/or processed items.
6) From how many local processors do you purchase?
[ # 42 ] Number from which you purchase directly.
[ # 95 ] Number from which you purchase through a distributor. Please specify name and location of distributor:
Costa Fruit & Produce, Charlestown, MA: 12 Local Processors
Sysco Boston, Norton, MA: 79 Local Processors
Sid Wainer & Sons: 4 Local Processors
7) How much do you spend annually on purchasing food that was processed locally?
[$ 2,441,997.28 ]
8) Please list items you purchase that are processed locally (e.g., bread, granola, ice cream, baked goods, yogurt, cheese):
Baked goods (bread, pastries, cookies, tortillas), coffee, cheese, salad dressing, honey, humus, cous cous, ice cream, yogurt, chips, water, assorted meat products, tofu, soup, pasta, pizza dough.
9) Do you purchase milk from a local dairy?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please provide name of dairy and location:
Milk and dairy products are purchased through HP Hood and Sons in Lynnfield, MA.
Bulk ice cream is purchased through Richardson’s Dairy Farm in Middleton, MA.
10) Do you source any food from an on-campus farm or garden?
[X ] No
[ ] Yes. Please describe source and amount:
11) Do you participate in a farm-to-school program?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe program:
Dining Services sponsors a weekly Farmer’s Market June through October at the George Sherman Union. The market is located in the middle of our urban campus, and helps connects the BU Community to local producers and vendors. Boston University is the only university in Boston that holds a market within the city limits.
ORGANIC AND SUSTAINABLY PRODUCED FOOD
12) Do you have any formal policies pertaining to the purchase of organic and/or sustainably produced food?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe and provide URL, if available:
Whenever possible, BU buys locally to reduce fuel usage and greenhouse gas emissions and seeks purveyors that are committed to sustainable agriculture practices.
http://www.bu.edu/dining/about/sustainability.html
13) Do you purchase organically grown or produced food?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please list items:
Fruits, vegetables, beans, tofu, yogurt, salad dressing, pasta, rice, baked goods, cereal, cookies, chocolate, and granola.
14) How much do you spend annually on organically grown or produced food?
[$ 171,469.17 ]
For questions 15-19, please indicate percentage based on annual dollar amount spent.
15) Do you purchase cage-free eggs and/or confinement-free meat products?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please indicate (repeat for each product).
[ %] Percentage cage-free eggs
[2 %] Percentage confinement-free. Type of meat product: Plainville Farms Free-Range Turkey
[ 1%] Percentage confinement-free. Type of meat product: Bell & Evans Free-Range Chicken
16) Do you purchase any grass-fed animal products?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please indicate (repeat for each product).
[<1%] Grass-fed. Type of animal product: Grass-fed beef
[ %] Grass-fed. Type of animal product:
17) Do you purchase hormone- and antibiotic-free meat?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please indicate (repeat for each product).
[ 5 %] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free. Type of meat: Boar’s Head Natural Deli Meats
[ 2 %] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free. Type of meat: Plainville Farms Turkey
[ 1 %] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free. Type of meat: Bell & Evans Chicken
18) Do you purchase hormone- and antibiotic-free dairy products?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please indicate (repeat for each product).
[30 %] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free.Type of dairy product: Milk from HP Hood and Sons.
At this time, all Hood Milk processed in New England is from farmers who pledge not to use artificial growth hormones.
[10 %] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free. Type of dairy product: Yogurt from Stonyfield Farm
[2%] Percentage hormone- and antibiotic-free. Type of dairy product: Ice Cream from Richardson’s Dairy.
19) Do you purchase seafood that meets Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch guidelines or Marine Stewardship Council standards?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please indicate.
[90 %] Percentage purchased that meets guidelines. Please list guidelines used:
In 2008, ARAMARK formed a partnership with the Monterey Bay Aquarium to promote sustainable seafood procurement. Dining Services purchases fresh and frozen fish from two local suppliers, Sysco Boston (Norton, MA) and North Coast Seafood (Boston, MA). Ninety percent of purchases are compliant with the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch program.
20) Do you offer specifically labeled vegan entrees on a daily, weekly, or other regularly scheduled basis?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please specify number of options and the frequency with which they are offered:
Vegan options are specifically labeled and offered in all dining rooms on a daily basis.
21) Please list and give percentages for any other sustainably produced food items you purchase that are not included above:
FAIR TRADE PRODUCTS
22) Do you purchase Fair Trade Certified coffee?
[ ] No
[X ] Some. Please describe:
[ ] All
All coffee locations on campus offer Fair Trade certified coffee with the exception of one Dunkin Donuts location.
Our two local coffee roasters, Red Barn Coffee (Hopkinton, MA) and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (Waterbury, VT) provide the university with multiple Fair Trade varieties. Our Starbucks locations on campus also offer Fair Trade options as well.
23) Do you purchase other Fair Trade Certified food products?
[ ] No
[ X] Yes. Please indicate (repeat for each product).
[ %] Percentage purchased that is Fair Trade Certified. Type of item:
We offer Fair Trade certified products such as bananas during promotional periods like Earth Week.
DISHWARE AND ECO-FRIENDLY INCENTIVES
24) Please indicate which of following your university-operated/contracted dining facilities offers.
[ ] Disposable dishware
[ ] Only reusable dishware
[ X ] Reusable and disposable dishware
25) If you offer disposables, please indicate materials used (check all that apply).
[ X ] Plastic or polystyrene:
[X ] Postconsumer recycled content
[X ] Biodegradable/compostable
[ ] Other
Description (optional):
Currently, 90% of our disposable containers are bio-based and compostable. Our goal for the fall is to have 95% compostable disposables as we introduce post-consumer composting programs into our retail dining.
26) Do your dining facilities offer discounts or cash incentives to individuals using reusable dishware, bringing a bag, or bringing reusable containers?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe:
Dining Services offers a $.10 discount for using refillable coffee mugs at all of our retail locations. Beginning this fall, we will increase the cash incentive and include cold beverages in an effort to increase participation.
27) Do your dining facilities use any polystyrene products (i.e., Styrofoam)?
[X ] No
[ ] Yes. Please describe:
Dining Services made a conscious decision to eliminate all non-compostable disposables, including Polystyrene. The only remaining Polystyrene product is the Dunkin Donuts coffee cup which we are required to purchase as part of a franchise agreement. We continue to work with all of our franchise partners to eliminate all non-compostable disposable products.
FOOD COMPOSTING AND WASTE DIVERSION
28) Do your dining facilities compost preconsumer food scraps?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please indicate the proportion of dining facilities that run preconsumer compost programs (e.g. two out of five dining facilities) and, if available, the combined annual tonnage composted. See below for annual tonnage composted
[ 100%] Proportion of dining facilities that run preconsumer compost programs.
[ n/a ] Annual tonnage of preconsumer compost.
Pre-consumer and post-consumer food wastes are not separated. All dining locations on campus collect pre-consumer food waste.
29) Do your dining facilities compost postconsumer food scraps?
[ ] No
[ X] Yes. Please indicate the proportion of dining facilities that run postconsumer compost programs (e.g. two out of five dining facilities) and, if available, the combined annual tonnage composted.
[ 50%] Proportion of dining facilities that run postconsumer compost programs.
[ n/a ] Annual tonnage of postconsumer compost.
The majority of our post-consumer food waste is generated in our residential dining facilities which, is collected for composting (5 total). Dining Services collects over 400 tons of food waste on an annual basis. That’s an increase of 300% from the previous year. The collected food waste is brought to local industrial composting facilities and resold as a soil amendment. Beginning this fall, we will introduce post-consumer programs into our retail operations.
30) Do your dining facilities donate excess food to a food bank, soup kitchen, or shelter, etc.?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe:
On a daily basis during the academic year, leftover baked goods, bagels and pastries are picked up by the Community Service Center and distributed it to area meal programs, food pantries, and shelters.
31) Do your dining facilities have a trayless dining program?
[ ] No
[ ] Sometimes--on specific days, on certain occasions, or in specific locations. Please describe:
[ X ] Yes--standard practice. Please describe program including date started and, if available, data on reduced food waste or water consumption:
Dining Services eliminated trays at all residential dining facilities in September 2008.
32) Please tell us about any other steps your dining facilities have taken to reduce waste (e.g., food waste auditing, recycling used cooking oil for biodiesel production):
In an effort to reduce energy usage, Dining Services is working with both National Grid and NSTAR on conducting energy audits of our large kitchens on campus. We also purchase ENERGY STAR rated kitchen equipment when replacements are due.
In January 2009, Dining Services converted to green cleaning products. The Ecolab green cleaning system includes dish detergent, glass cleaner, and an all purpose cleaner for floors, walls, countertops, equipment, fixtures, tiles, and sinks. The products are designed to maximize operational efficiency and lower energy and water consumption without compromising effectiveness. Additionally, the products are designed with minimal packaging, further conserving resources from the beginning of the product life cycle to the end.
RECYCLING OF TRADITIONAL MATERIALS
33) Please indicate which traditional materials your dining facilities recycle (check all that apply).
[ ] None
[ X] Aluminum
[ X] Cardboard*
[X ] Glass
[ X ] Paper
[X ] Plastics (all)
[ ] Plastics (some)
[X ] Other. Please list: Cooking oil**
*Dining Services has installed cardboard balers at multiple Dining locations across campus.
**Cooking oil is recycled locally at the rate of 40,000 pounds per year.
34) Are recycling receptacles located throughout dining locations?
[ ] No
[X ] Yes. Please describe:
All retail dining locations have recycling receptacles. Recycling receptacles in residential dining locations are located just outside the dining facility.
35) What is the dining services' current waste-diversion rate (the percentage of recyclable waste diverted from traditional disposal)?
[ 7 %]
The percentage reflects diversion from university-wide waste disposal. Dumpsters and compactors for trash are used by other departments in addition to Dining Services. At this time, we do not have trash figures specific to Dining Services.
The University generates 8171 tons of waste yearly. Dining services diverted 544 tons of material from the waste stream. The material diverted was 429 tons of food waste, 90 tons of cardboard and 25 tons of cans and bottles. This was a 244% increase from prior year .The University recycled a total of 1308 tons with dining services accounting for 42% of the total amount recycled.
AFFILIATIONS
Questions 36-37 are for informational purposes only; responses will NOT be included in the Report Card evaluation process.
36) Indicate if your dining services are:
[ X] Contracted. Please describe: ARAMARK
[ ] School operated. Please describe:
[ ] Other. Please describe:
37) Is the dining services director, or another dining services staff person, a member of any campus-wide environmental/sustainability initiatives or committees at your school?
[ ] No
[ X ] Yes. Please describe:
Dining Services formed a Sustainability Committee in 2007. The committee meets on a monthly basis and is comprised of staff from Dining Services, Facilities Management & Planning, Auxiliary Services and the Office of Sustainability.
In 2008, Dining Services hired Kelly Dunn, a full-time sustainability coordinator to oversee sustainability initiatives within the dining program. Ms. Dunn is an experienced sustainability professional with a background in developing effective waste reduction and education outreach programs. She chairs the Dining Sustainability Committee, and is also a member of the BU Waste Management and Recycling Working Group, a sub-committee of the university Sustainability Committee.
<< Back to Report Card