Colorado’s dining services faces challenges in going green

BOULDER, Colo. — CU’s Dining Services, much like the rest of the university, prioritizes the development and implementation of sustainable initiatives, but there are still institutional challenges that make environmental efficiency hard to attain. At CU, 2.2 million meals per year are served, averaging out to over 6,000 meals per day. The realities of feeding that many people set challenges that restrict the university’s abilities to fully embrace being eco-friendly.

“The term ‘sustainable’ can be broad. In food services, it means energy and water conservation, waste management, resource recovery, food sourcing and outreach and education,” said Lauren Heising, CU’s Coordinator for Sustainable Dining.

Heising said that food must be farmed, packaged, often processed and most likely transported anywhere from 25 to 2,000 miles across land or water until it reaches the mouths of consumers. The food is then prepared, and the packaging and excess food waste must be disposed of.

This process unavoidably consumes a mass amount of resources and energy, especially for an institution like CU that feeds thousands of students. Dining Services has several strategies to increase sustainability, particularly with energy and water conservation and waste management.

“Dining centers are energy hogs, so we are always looking for more efficient equipment,” said Heising, who listed dishwashing machines that use less water, spray nozzles that release smaller amounts of water, occupancy censors and compact fluorescent light bulbs as examples of CU’s more efficient equipment.

Yet there are still some roadblocks discouraging CU from fully transitioning to total sustainability in the kitchen.

“Unlike household appliances, there aren’t as many pieces of equipment available that meet [green] criteria,” said Heising.

Dealing with waste also comes with its challenges. Within dining halls, it is easier to control where waste goes, and most packaging waste from food is ultimately recycled. Heising said the waste issue arises