Sustainability

Campus Initiatives

We know today's college students want to do the right thing for the planet and we also understand you lead busy lives, that's why our chefs and managers do a lot of the work for you behind the scenes! From purchasing local seasonal produce whenever possible to reducing inorganic and organic waste, your campus team is dedicated to providing you with an exceptional dining experience that is good for you and good for the planet. This commitment was formalized with our Better Tomorrow Plan. The Better Tomorrow Plan includes 18 commitments for a brighter future by focusing on four key priorities: healthy, planet, community and our people. Our team also counts on student engagement and enthusiasm to spread the word about what you're doing together on your campus. We encourage you to work with UWEC's Student Dining Committee to continue to innovate and improve sustainability efforts on campus. If you have additional comments or questions, please contact us. We would love to hear from you.

BluBox Program

The BluBox Program is a reusable food container program launching the fall of 2021. This program is designed to reduce disposable container waste on our beautiful campus. Aligning with the university's sustainability goals, this easy-to-use program will help our campus community contribute to sustainability. The containers are made in the USA, reusable up to 1,000 times, and can then be ground down, recycled and remade into more reusable containers. This is called a "Closed-Loop Technology Solution." For more information on the BluBox program check out the university sustainability page.

Composting

Food waste in landfills creates methane, a greenhouse gas which is 21x more potent than CO2. (www.epa.gov). Our first priority is to reduce food waste. We compost food waste that is unavoidable which reduce greenhouse gas emissions and can also be used to amend soil thereby increasing drought tolerance, improving soil structure and health and reducing need for water and fertilizers.

Trayless

After a Trayless Tuesdays program during 2008–09, Blugold Dining went completely trayless in 2009. Going trayless has reduced food waste by more than 50 percent, and has saved on natural resources needed to wash the more than 6,000 trays a day that had been customarily used. Customers without trays typically waste less food and beverages. It is also a healthier approach to eating, as we all know that at times our eyes are bigger than our stomach. Trayless dining also reduces the amount of water and detergents needed to wash trays - and saves energy too!

Local Suppliers

Menus feature locally grown food whenever possible and financially feasible. Nearly 20 percent of the $4.3 million Blugold Dining spends in a year on food is used to purchased food products produced and distributed within 150 miles of Eau Claire. An innovative partnership with a western Wisconsin business is the newest way that Blugold Dining is contributing to the local economy while also supporting the university's commitment to sustainability. Blugold Dining consistently serves meat products that have been raised and processed locally through agreement with Cadott-based Crescent Meats, a family owned and operated full-service meat processing plant located fewer than 30 miles from Eau Claire. Ninety percent of dairy offered through Blugold Dining - including sour cream, many cheese and nearly 600 gallons per week of milk consumed by the campus community - comes from local vendors.

Sustainable Agriculture

Both Green Mountain Coffee and Starbucks Coffee served in the Davies Center are Rainforest Alliance certified coffees, which ensures that farmers and growers are paid fairly for their products.

Bulk Condiments

Individual packets of condiments are useful in some instance, but they result in extra waste. If you are dining on site you can add the sauce to your item before you leave, please use the bulk dispensers to reduce our waste.

Apex

Our Ecolab Apex dishwashing system, combines technology and products designed to save water and energy, minimizes the impact of waste products on the environment, and has a built-in method of measuring results.