Yale Sustainable Dining
Yale Dining is passionately committed to sustainability. We have integrated these
values in every aspect of our operation and decision making processes. We believe through this we will provide healthier food, that tastes great and is good for the environment and the people in our community.
Strategic Initiatives
- Continue to develop sustainable supply chain management
- Reduce non-renewable resources used and waste produced
- Use Recycling to minimize operational and environmental impact from waste
- Provide ongoing education through information, training and developmental models for students, guests and employees
- Develop ongoing partnerships with other Yale entities, peer institutions, industry, supply chains, and local, regional, and national resources to develop sustainability initiatives and promote shared learning and resources
What's On The Menu
Click on the links to go to the source’s website!
- Hormone- and antibiotic-free, vegetarian-fed, ground Angusbeef
- Farmer’s Cow milk in residential units
- American Humane certified cage free, vegetarian-fed eggs
- Niman Ranch pork and beef
- Hormone-free, antibiotic-free, Certified Humane chicken
- See the farm your chicken came from on GoogleEarth! Ask your dining hall manager for the production date, and enter the code
- Fair trade and organic coffee and tea
- Vegan entrée and vegetarian entrée available at every meal
- Low-sodium, nitrate-free sliced turkey, baked in-house
- Locally sourced bagels and breads
- Local honey from Swords into Plowshares
- Check out the certification requirements for fisheries here, and for species here
- Organic Yogurt
- Up to 50% locally sourced produce during seasonal availability
- Organic and natural retail options
- Central Catering offers sustainable menu options for events
Local 2 Yale
In cooperation with local and regional farmers, our Local 2 Yale program provides an array of local produce as seasonally available. We will continue to provide fresh healthy food and work closely with producers to ensure quality.
Yale Dining is passionate about the environment. We continue to minimize our environmental impacts in all areas of business—from purchasing our food to managing our waste. We support local farmers that practice sustainability and stewardship of the land.
Erase the Waste
We are constantly engaging in improved methods of food production and purchasing. Did you know that almost a third of all the food purchased in American homes ends up being thrown away, and most of it could have been eaten?
Reducing food waste is important to Yale Dining and to the Yale community, but we can only do this with your help. Some of the waste is made up of peelings, cores and bones, but the majority is, or once was, perfectly good food. The amount of food that is thrown away is not only a waste of food but energy, and water as well. Yale Dining asks you to please be aware of the food you choose during your meals and to help reduce the amount of food that is thrown away in the dining halls.
Trayless dining is another facet of our waste reduction strategies. Studies have consistently shown that using a tray leads to wasting almost twice as much food as trayless diners. Producing less waste saves money on composting and making uneaten food, savings which are put back into supplying even better food in the dining halls. Trayless dining systems vary among dining halls. You can learn more about it through STEP.
What Will Happen by 2013
- 45% sustainable procurement
- 50% of animal protein sustainable
- 50% vegetarian-fed, grass-raised beef
- 95% of chemicals will be Green Seal certified
- 50% increase in locally-preserved products
