Mason Dining works with numerous stakeholders to minimize the environmental and social impacts of our operations through sustainability education, support for local agriculture, and a commitment to sourcing and serving healthy, sustainably-grown foods.
Your Mason Dining team works hard towards these goals and relies on student engagement and enthusiasm to drive sustainability initiatives on your campus. We encourage you to connect with your Mason Dining Sustainability team to answer any questions and get involved with innovative efforts on campus.
Future 50 Foods - Best Station Concept Award
Nation's Restaurant News - Plant Based Dining Takes Off at George Mason University
SUSTAINABLE FOODS AND SOURCES
Sustainable and Plant-forward Options
Animal Welfare Commitments
Fair Trade Certified
Sustainable Seafood
Local Vendors, Farms, and Partners
Crop Share Program
A Crop Share, also known as Community Supported Agriculture (CSA), a remarkable initiative that fosters a shared responsibility between farmers and consumers in. Potomac Vegetable Farms, with over 50 years of experience in growing and providing delicious, nutrient-packed vegetables, is our esteemed collaborator. As stewards of our land, they passionately employ organic practices, even choosing to forgo certification, and proudly label themselves as "Ecoganic." Why should you join? Not only will you access fresh and wholesome flavors of locally-grown vegetables, but you'll also be supporting sustainable agriculture and local farmers in our region. This program only runs in the fall semester, please reach out to Sophia.Nelson@sodexo.com for more up to date information.
Future 50 Foods
WASTE MITIGATION
Food Recovery Network
Active students and dedicated volunteers play a crucial role in operating George Mason’s Food Recovery Network on campus. Collaborating with Mason Dining’s Food Recovery Verified staff, they collect, repackage, and deliver surplus food to various donation locations around campus, including Arise and Campus Catholic Ministries. These partnerships help connect Mason students with nutritious meals. We meticulously track our donations to continually identify opportunities to reduce food waste, diverting it from compost and directing it toward those experiencing food insecurity. Together, we're making a positive impact on both sustainability and addressing hunger within our community.
To get involved check our FRN’s LinkTree.
Compost & BioFuel
Compost - Our resident dining halls have been composting food waste since the 2018 Spring semester. George Mason University is proudly partnered with Veteran Compost, we began a composting program at Southside dining hall in the 2018 Spring semester. Our food waste is picked up by Veteran Compost, a local company that collects food waste from Southside, Ike's and the Globe and turns it into organic soil right here in Fairfax, VA. Mason Dining's food waste is helping farmers grow food!
BioFuel - We recycle all kitchen oil waste (over 7,000 gallons annually). The oil is taken and used to create steam energy at a power plant, which helps reduce fossil fuel consumption.
Leanpath Technology
Our culinary team utilizes the Leanpath program, which weighs, categorizes, and tracks all food waste leaving our kitchens. From here chefs can see better meal plans to utilize ingredients and note what to order less of, saving time and money. This program assists in diverting and sorting waste by communicating the environmental impacts and tracks progress toward sustainability goals.
ECO Compostable Products
In our resident and retail dining locations, we offer ECO Product, BPI-certified, compostable cups, lids, utensils, plates and bowls whenever possible. These products, when disposed of into compost bins, are taken to an industrial compost and biodegrade.
Reduction Efforts
Trayless/Straw-less - In the 2019 Spring semester, we launched a #SkiptheStraw campaign to reduce the use of straws and single-use plastics on campus. We have replaced most lids with straw-less alternatives and have placed straws behind the counter to be given by request only. Additionally, we sell stainless steel straw kits in our convenience stores, and we give out stainless steel straw kits at various campus events!
Portion Control - The plates in our resident dining halls are smaller in size and come in a variety of shapes. This limits portion sizes in the all-you-care-to-eat environment, where customers are able to return for another helping if desired. Switching to these plates alone
Big Belly Pilot – Nothern Neck Starbucks
The Starbucks Northern Neck composting pilot offers the first industrial composting resource available for students, faculty, and staff use. Brought into fruition with collaboration between Facilities Management, University Sustainability, the Patriot Green Fund (PGF), and Operations & Business Services and its vendors, this pilot complements existing pre-consumer composting in residential dining halls, as well as coffee grounds composting. The Starbucks Northern Neck composting pilot will allow Facilities Management and University Sustainability to test different zero waste strategies to improve Mason’s waste diversion rate, supporting data-driven recommendations for implementing both zero waste design standards and composting at more campus sites. Read more on University Sustainability's website here...
EVENTS AND ENGAGEMENT
Weigh the Waste
We have been teaming up with University Sustainability and Student Government to quantify the amount of post-consumer compost, trash, and recycling generated in our dining halls. The initiative takes place in each resident dining hall over the course of three days during lunch. At the end of each night, the waste is weighed and divided by the number of patrons who entered the dining hall during the designated collection time to estimate ounces of waste per person.
Carbon Indicators
How to fight climate change with what you eat!
"The wonderful thing about food is you get three votes a day. Every one of them has the potential to change the world." —Michael Pollan
By opting for a sustainable diet, you are combatting injustices against people, animals, and most importantly - our planet 1. Sustainability is an intersectional standard that invites humans to have compassion for land, water, animals, and each other. By doing so, we can achieve an eco-friendly diet that promotes diversity, human health, environmental and economic well-being, all while combating food insecurity.
While there are many components to reaching a sustainable diet, Mason Dining has decided to narrow in on Carbon Emissions through the food we serve. In 2021, it was reported that 34% of all carbon emissions on earth came from food supply 2 Everyone and everything inevitably leaves behind a carbon footprint. However, some foods wear bigger shoes than others, leaving behind massive footprints that diminish the chances for future food to grow. With awareness and smart food choices, we can reduce our carbon foot print and nourish our immune systems.
To learn more about your personal carbon footprint take an EPA assessment HERE.
Criteria for carbon indicators
Here at Mason Dining, we decided only to look solely at carbon emissions through the food that we prepare and serve.
GREEN – Equal an estimated 25% of the daily carbon footprint target
YELLOW - Equal an estimated 26- 50% of the daily carbon footprint target
RED - Equals an estimated 50-100% of the daily carbon footprint target
When assigning carbon indicators to food, there are several different methodologies. Though we are focusing on carbon emissions, water use, land use, and emissions from methane, nitrogen, and other factors also can contribute to a food’s indicator.
My Emissions - Estimate the carbon footprint of your food
The Environmental Impact of Food Labels
Emission and Energy Use associated with Self Selected Diet in US
How do different foods have different impacts on the environment?
1/3 of all green house gasses in our atmosphere is contributed to food systems 3. Each step of production; including growing, harvesting, transporting, distributing, preparing, consuming, and disposing of foods, releases varying amounts of greenhouse gases 4. These gasses then absorb and trap heat in our atmosphere, resulting in global warming. By measuring the intensity of greenhouse gas emitted along the supply chain, we can better see the impact that specific foods have on the environment. The graph below, from My World Data, visualizes what foods contribute at various points in the supply chain.
Citations:
Coffee Club
The on-campus coffee retailers offer a “buy 9 get one free” incentive to customers who bring a reusable mug. Bring your own mug on your next visit to Starbucks, Dunkin’ Donuts, Chick-fil-A, Einstein Bagels, and convenience stores on campus and ask for a punch card to start building up rewards!
COMING SOON...
Guide to running Food Recovery Network