As more on-site foodservice providers adopt green initiatives within their operations, the industry is joining a national response to a problem much bigger in scope than any of its self-interests.
Foodservice providers who have chosen to embrace more ecofriendly business practices now grasp the enormity of the sustainability challenge and the complexity inherent to it. Often, the solutions can seem overwhelming because they require trade-offs between costs, conscience, compliance and commitment. For example, is organic lettuce shipped to the East Coast from California “greener” because of its lack of pesticides, or is conventionally grown lettuce that is produced locally, which requires less fuel to transport to end users, more environmentally friendly?
But just because all of the answers are not yet evident is no reason to bury our heads in the sand. As we experiment, we learn and see the wisdom and folly of our actions.
Alan Wood, foodservice director for Aramark Business Services at the Environmental Protection Agency facility in Research Triangle Park, N.C., continues to learn every day. He is determined to keep increasing the use of compostable or biodegradable earth-friendly packaging at his account even though some of the products are more expensive than their paper, plastic and foam alternatives. He purchases flatware and to-go containers made from sugar cane, corn-based drinking straws, and plates, bowls and cups made from potatoes and limestone. Napkins also are 100-percent recyclable. Food scraps, food brought back on trays, egg shells, coffee grounds and filters are collected and are taken with other biodegradable refuse to a composting facility from which the EPA purchases the compost and uses it for other purposes on the facility’s grounds.
In addition, frying oil is delivered to a farmer who converts it into biodiesel fuel and uses it to operate his tractors. The company store sells water held in bottles made of corn and provides biodegradable shopping bags. In addition, the convenience store offers environmentally safe, chemical-free dry cleaning services and also sells biodegradable plates and cups for home use. Wood also uses Energy Star light bulbs and green-certified cleaning products. Water use is closely monitored, too. Even noise pollution isn’t ignored: Catering carts have pneumatic wheels, which are quieter.
Wood says he hopes many others in the industry also will adopt these initiatives in order to create a greater demand for more ecofriendly packaging and organic foods, which subsequently would drive down the high costs currently associated with those products.
Bon Appétit Management Co. has increased its commitment to provide sustainable options to clients since Fedele Bauccio, chief executive of the Palo Alto, Calif.-based company, issued a mandate in 1999 to buy extensively from local farmers and producers of artisanal products. On Earth Day this year, the company said it would start reducing its own greenhouse gas emissions by cutting its use of beef by 25 percent, source all meat and poultry and nearly all fruits and vegetables from North America only, serve only domestically bottled water, reduce food waste by 25 percent in three years or less through a composting program, and audit the energy efficiency of its kitchen equipment. Next April 22, on “Low Carbon Diet Day,” the company will introduce a carbon point system so guests can calculate the impact their personal food choices make on the environment and adjust them accordingly if they want.
A rating system also is under development at Harvard University Dining Services, or HUDS. It is part of the 30-month-old Food Literacy Project, conceived by Ted Mayer, executive director of Harvard’s dining services. The initiative was started to help consumers make informed food choices through a focus on agriculture, nutrition, food preparation and community.
The project, which includes an information-packed website, a farmers market and educational displays about portion sizes, is a partnership between HUDS, the Harvard School of Public Health, Harvard University Health Services, and members of the college and university communities.
The creation of a rating system is a joint project between HUDS and an undergraduate environmental science and public policy class taught by professor Bill Clark of the Kennedy School of Government.
“The project’s goal is to devise a rating system that will help students make choices based on the environmental impact of producing each food item,” says Jessica Zdeb, coordinator of the Food Literacy Project and a 2004 Harvard graduate. “In deciding which factors to consider, we’re looking at the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, criteria as a guide.”
According to Zdeb, a student intern from the class will work with HUDS and Clark to devise the system, which will be completed within the next year.
As more pioneers tackle the sustainability challenge, new solutions will be revealed. Perhaps as a result of the most crucial experiment we’ve ever conducted, humanity will be better able to take care of its home environment.