Responsible Sourcing

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Meet our Farmers  | Farm Stands |  Climate Friendly Eating  | Coolfood Meals

We understand the power and centrality of food in our daily lives and recognize that the foods we choose to serve have a direct impact on our health, culture, environment and local economies. We are committed to changing the culture of food by nourishing guests with menus that emphasize sustainable, fresh, whole foods that are raised, grown, harvested, and produced locally whenever possible. With each passing year, we seek to find new ways to enhance sustainable food sourcing and educational touch points.

Local & Sustainable Food

• We purchase products from within a 250-mile radius of campus, prioritizing North Carolina vendors, whenever the quality and quantity meet our needs and financial parameters. In the 2023-2024 Academic Year, 17% of our dining hall purchases directly impacted independently owned farms and businesses within 250 miles of campus.
• We seek out third-party certified options, including organic, Fair Trade, Rainforest Alliance, Animal Welfare Approved, and “Best Choice” as defined by Monterey Bay Seafood Watch. We exclusively serve Larry’s Coffee in the dining halls, which is organic, Fair Trade, and locally roasted!
• We complete annual purchasing audits to ensure we are meeting our local and sustainable sourcing goals.
• Our Plant Forward stations in Chase and Top of Lenoir boast tasty vegan recipes from different cuisines each day, and we offer a variety of vegetarian and vegan options daily in our dining halls and food courts.

Climate-Friendly Menus

• The foods we eat have a major impact on the environment. Over a third of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions come from food systems, including the growth, processing, transportation, distribution, preparation, consumption, and disposal of food. 
• Plant-forward eating is a great way to reduce your carbon “foodprint.” Try our Plant Forward station in the dining halls for a tasty vegan meal!
• We serve low-carbon Coolfood Meals, which are recipes certified by the World Resources Institute to have a carbon footprint at least 38% lower than the average regional meal.
• By sourcing local products, we can reduce greenhouse gas emissions from transportation while supporting small and mid-size farmers, who tend to promote higher biodiversity than larger monocrop farms.