5 things: District saves 70 trash bags a week by sending food waste to local farms for composting

In this edition of 5 Things, Food Management highlights five things you may have missed recently about developments affecting onsite dining.

Here’s your list for today:

 1.    District saves food waste costs through compost program

Students at North Andover Public Schools in Massachusetts are helping reduce waste on the local level by composting food scraps and more in their cafeterias through the North Andover Green Schools Program, an initiative that encourages composting during school lunch. The program currently yields about 2,000 pounds of food waste that is taken to local farms, saving about 70 trash bags per week.

Read more: Composting reduces food waste at North Andover schools

 2.    Multiple daily snacks becoming more common, especially among the young

Almost half of U.S. consumers now have three or more snacks daily—up 8% in the last two years, according to market research firm Circana Group. And the younger generation—mainly millennials and Gen Z, from teens to people in their early forties—are likely driving this soaring phenomenon. 

Read more: Millennials and Gen Z’s rebellion against their parents’ rules is spawning a $181 billion industry that makes everything into a snack

 3.    Rice to add a sixth dining facility to accommodate growing undergrad enrollment

Related:5 things: CEP participation grew nearly 21% in past year, FRAC report finds

Rice University will open two new residential colleges and a dining hall to accommodate a growing student body, with construction expected to be completed on the colleges and the new “servery” dining facility by fall 2026. Senior administrators say undergraduate enrollment will increase to 4,800 students by fall 2024 from the current 4,552 undergraduates, and having two dorms will help around 80% of that population live on campus. The new servery will be Rice's sixth dining space affiliated with the undergraduate colleges.

Read more: Growth prompts Rice University to add two new colleges and dining hall

 4.    Brooklyn hospital dining facility gets “massive upgrade”

The dining facility at Brookdale Hospital & Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. recently underwent a massive upgrade, a process that took “a lot of blood, sweat, and tears,” noted Senior Director of Food & Nutrition Patrick LaMont. The highlights of the Lamont led update include a much talked about redesigned kitchen that features a state of the industry food delivery system, and Brookdale has also reinvented its approach to the retail side of its Grab-N-Go operation with an updated POS System as well as a new vending supply partner that shares LaMont’s vision for bringing customer service to a new level.

Related:5 tech things: Aramark launches biometric age verification at Major League ballpark

Read more: Brookdale Medical’s Food & Nutrition Director Reveals “2.0” Dining Strategy

 5.    Legends Hospitality supports luxury goods retailer Century 21’s reopening

Century 21, an off-price luxury goods retailer located in New York City’s Financial District, reopened its doors after a near three year closure after filing for bankruptcy, with the company citing sports/entertainment services firm Legends Hospitality as the main supporter of the grand homecoming. Legends Hospitality President Dan Smith said in a statement that through their support of the retailer, “we have enhanced the in-store and e-commerce experience,” as Legends looks to bring the company to a global audience in 2023.

Read more: Century 21: a closer look at reopening

Bonus: 14 over-the-top plant-based Freakshakes to freak out your summer

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]