| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 72.34 |
| Liaison | Ciannat Howett |
| Submission Date | July 25, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Emory University
OP-6: Food and Beverage Purchasing
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.00 / 4.00 |
Emily
Cumbie-Drake Sustainability Programs Coordinator Office of Sustainability Initiatives |
Percentage of dining services food and beverage expenditures that are local and community-based and/or third party verified:
Date Revised: Oct. 7, 2014
A copy of an inventory, list or sample of sustainable food and beverage purchases:
An inventory, list or sample of sustainable food and beverage purchases:
Does the institution wish to pursue Part 2 of this credit (food and beverage expenditures for on-site franchises, convenience stores, vending services, or concessions)?:
Date Revised: Oct. 7, 2014
Percentage of on-site franchise, convenience store, vending services, and concessions food and beverage purchases that are local and community-based and/or third party verified:
Date Revised: Oct. 7, 2014
A copy of an inventory, list or sample of on-site franchise, convenience store, vending machine, and/or concessions food and beverage purchases that are sustainably produced:
An inventory, list or sample of on-site franchise, convenience store, vending machine, and/or concessions food and beverage purchases that are sustainably produced:
A brief description of the sustainable food and beverage purchasing program:
Emory has developed a Sustainable Food Committee to help guide the transition to more local and sustainable purchases. In 2007 this committee developed a set of guidelines to help meet our institutional goal of ensuring 75% of all food served will be locally or sustainably grown by 2015. These guidelines define "local" food as being from Georgia and food from the surrounding 8 states as "regional." Sustainably grown is defined as products that adhere to one or more of the following criteria:
• Certified USDA Organic
• Produced free from routine use of antibiotics and hormones
• Sourced from Certified Grass-Fed Animals (American Grass-Fed Association)
• Certified Humanely Raised (Humane Animal Farm Care)
• Certified Sustainable (Food Alliance Certified or alternative certification)
• Seafood Watch Southeast “Best” or “Good” Approved List
• Certified by Marine Stewardship Council
• Recognized by Sustainable Seafood Forum
• Certified Fair Trade
Currently, food purchasing is contracted out to Sodexo USA Food Service. Sodexo works in conjunction with approved vendors (primarily driven by Sysco, Destiny Organics, Sara Lee Bakery and FreshPoint – listed in the order of high to low contribution to sustainable purchasing). As of fiscal year 2013, 25.6% of Emory University's main campus food purchases are local or sustainable.
A brief description of the methodology used to track/inventory sustainable food and beverage purchases:
In 2013, Sodexo contracted with a third-party company, Ecova, to develop an Emory-specific tracking database for local and sustainable food purchases for Fiscal Years (FY) 2012-2014 based on the Sustainable Food Purchasing Guidelines developed by Emory’s Sustainable Food Committee. Ecova collected purchase invoices from Emory’s suppliers, as well as details on product locality and sustainability of purchases in each food category. Ecova was able to gather data on food purchases for 86% of Emory University’s food and beverage spend in FY 2012 and 2013.
Total annual food and beverage expenditures:
Which of the following food service providers are present on campus and included in the total food and beverage expenditure figures?:
| Present? | Included? | |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by the institution | No | No |
| Dining operations and catering services operated by a contractor | Yes | Yes |
| Franchises | Yes | Yes |
| Convenience stores | Yes | Yes |
| Vending services | Yes | No |
| Concessions | No | No |
Has the institution achieved the following?:
| Yes or No | |
| Fair Trade Campus, College or University status | No |
| Certification under the Green Seal Standard for Restaurants and Food Services (GS-46) | No |
| Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certification | No |
| Signatory of the Real Food Campus Commitment (U.S.) | No |
A brief description of other sustainable restaurant and food service standards that the institution’s dining services operations are certified under:
The website URL where information about the institution's sustainable food and beverage purchasing efforts is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Emory's Sustainable Food Purchasing Guidelines can be found here: http://sustainability.emory.edu/uploads/press/2013/05/2013050714054301/SustFoodPurchGuidelns5-1-13.pdf
Emory does not use the STARS definition of local (“being based or originating within 250 miles (400 kilometres) of the institution”) because this radius does not make sense for the Southeast region. Our food supply is more seasonal and draws over the course of the year from surrounding states. Thus, Emory has adopted a definition of local food as deriving from Georgia and eight surrounding states. The percentage of sustainable food purchases listed here is based on a comprehensive assessment by ECOVA, as described.
Emory does not include vending services in its local and sustainable food purchases, but data for on-site franchises and the only campus convenience store will be included in this section. We are unable to extract this data from our total dining services tracking because Emory’s contracted food service provider makes purchases for on-site franchises and convenience stores along with residential dining purchases.
Emory's Sustainable Food Purchasing Guidelines can be found here: http://sustainability.emory.edu/uploads/press/2013/05/2013050714054301/SustFoodPurchGuidelns5-1-13.pdf
Emory does not use the STARS definition of local (“being based or originating within 250 miles (400 kilometres) of the institution”) because this radius does not make sense for the Southeast region. Our food supply is more seasonal and draws over the course of the year from surrounding states. Thus, Emory has adopted a definition of local food as deriving from Georgia and eight surrounding states. The percentage of sustainable food purchases listed here is based on a comprehensive assessment by ECOVA, as described.
Emory does not include vending services in its local and sustainable food purchases, but data for on-site franchises and the only campus convenience store will be included in this section. We are unable to extract this data from our total dining services tracking because Emory’s contracted food service provider makes purchases for on-site franchises and convenience stores along with residential dining purchases.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.