Food

UC's Food Services has incorporated many sustainability initiatives into on-campus dining.  

• Composting: In June 2018, Market Pointe and On the Green Dining Halls both began to collect food scraps for composting.
  
• Food Waste Prevention: Since March 2017, the CenterCourt and MarketPoint@Siddall dining centers have used LeanPath food waste tracking technology to measure and reduce food waste. As of February 2018, LeanPath has enabled these locations to reduce food waste by 65%.
• Cage-Free Eggs and Humane Practice: In collaboration with Humane Society of the United States, Dining Services developed a new set of animal welfare principles and purchasing commitments which include: the purchase of only cage-free shell and liquid eggs, crate-free veal and gestation crate-free pork.
• Food Focus Committee: Food Services hosts a monthly meeting that anyone can participate in to provide feedback on dining options at UC. Meetings are held the second Wednesday of each month.
  
• Trayless Dining: UC practices trayless dining service to reduce wasted food and water use.  This practice has been in place since 2008.
  
• Local Food: UC purchases produce from a purveyor that deals with local farms in the community. Produce items that thrive locally (apples, tomatoes, melon, squash, etc.) are grown in our region. Approximately 65% of annual dining services purchases are sustainable food (e.g., local, and/or certified organic/cage free/humane and/or certified Fair Trade).
  
• Sustainable Seafood: All seafood offered at UC is sourced sustainable in conjunction with the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Program.
• Vegetarian Options: A designated vegan entree is offered at each meal at the "Vegan Corner" station. The majority of other stations offer menu options prepared with ingredients selected by the diner, creating the opportunity to customize vegetarian versions.
  
• On-campus Ingredients: Bearcats Café has a small herb garden located on the TUC patio. The restaurant incorporates these items into their menu and food preparation as much as possible.
  
• Cooking Oil: A cooking oil filtration system is used and all spent oil is recycled via RTI.
• Coffee Ground Composting: Spent coffee grounds from all on-campus Starbucks locations and several other cafes and markets are also collected for composting.
  
• Compostable To-Go Containers: Available for the to-go food option at Stadium View Café, all containers are made from compostable materials. This program eliminates the use of approximately 12,500 Styrofoam containers each year.
• Plastic Bag Campaign: Plastic bags were eliminated from the Catskeller meal exchange area, the DAAP Café, and the SSLC Subway.
• Napkin Holders: Tork Xpressnap reduces napkin usage by at least 25% compare to traditional dispenser systems. Our compostable napkins are 100% recycled with the message pre-printed with the claim “100% recycled, Save the environment, one napkin at a time".