Spring/Summer Campus Dining Today

THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY FOOD SERVICES

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The biannual magazine of the The biannual magazine of the National Association of College & National Association of College & University Food Services University Food Services

Advertising Information Advertising of a Submission product or service and Article and Article Submission in this publication does not imply endorsement.

Advertisers assume Advertising of a product or service Rochelle Rizzi, Director of Marketing & Communications Advertising of a product or service Editor in Chief Editor in Chief Rochelle Rizzi, Director of Marketing & Communications in this publication does not imply responsibility and liability for the Editor in Chief Rochelle Rizzi, Director of Marketing & Communications in this publication does not imply Associate Editor Kortney Pitts-Berehula, Marketing Coordinator endorsement.

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Kortney Pitts-Berehula, Marketing Coordinator Associate Editor endorsement. Advertisers assume Kortney Pitts-Berehula, Marketing Coordinator Associate Editor responsibility and liability for the responsibility and liability for the The National of College content Association of any advertising. content of any advertising.

Paul King Contributing Contributing Writers Editor Lyza Bayard & University Food Services is exempt Paul King Contributing Editor Donna Boss Nationalresulting Association from The any liability fromof College The National Association of College Donna Boss Contributing Writers & University FoodEditorial Services is exempt Kristina Hopton-Jones Donna Boss publication of articles.

Contributing Writers & University Food Services is exempt Adolfo Guerra from any liability resulting from Whitney Adolfo Jones Guerra mention of commercial from any liabilityinterests resultingisfrom Elaine Magee publication of articles. Editorial John Lawn Elaine Magee intended entirely asofan information publication articles.

Editorial mention of commercial interests is Sharon Olson Christa Martin mention of and commercial interests is Sharon Olson service to readers should not intended entirely as an information Lindsey Pine intended entirely as an information Stefanie Rakes Lindsey Pine be construed asreaders an endorsement, service to and should not service to readers and should not Bill Trovinger actualbe orconstrued implied, by asNACUFS. an endorsement, be construed as an endorsement, Frank Turchan actual or implied, by NACUFS. The opinions this actual expressed or implied,inby NACUFS. publication do not expressed necessarilyin reflect The opinions this The opinions expressed in this the official opinions NACUFS. publication do of not necessarily reflect publication do not necessarily reflect the official opinions of NACUFS. The number of mailings sentoftoNACUFS. the official opinions President Dawn Aubrey, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign each member institution is based Dawn Aubrey, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign President The number of mailings sent to each President-Elect Amy Beckstrom, University of Colorado Dawn Aubrey, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign President Thedues number of mailings sent to each on annual classification.

There Amy Beckstrom, University of Colorado President-Elect member institution is based on Past President Zia Ahmed, The Ohio State University Amy Beckstrom, University of Colorado President-Elect member institution is based on is an annual $85 charge all additionalThere is Immediate Past President Zia Ahmed, The Ohio State University duesfor classification.

Treasurer Immediate Past President Rich Neumann, OhioThe University Zia Ahmed, Ohio State University annual dues classification.

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NACUFS BOARD OF TRUSTEES NACUFS NACUFSBOARD BOARDOF OFTRUSTEES TRUSTEES

©2015 The National College & University FoodAssociation Services. of ©2015 The National Association of College & University Services.

All rights reserved.

No partFood of this College & University Food Services.

All rights reserved.

No part of this publication shall be reproduced, All rights reserved. No part of this publication shall be reproduced, stored publication in a retrievable or shallsystem, be reproduced, stored in a retrievable system, or transmitted inin any form, by any stored a retrievable system, or transmitted in any form, by any transmitted in any any means, whichwhich includes butform, is but notby means, includes is not means, which mechanical includes but is not limited to electronic, limited to electronic, mechanical limited to electronic, mechanical photocopying, recording, or photocopying, recording, or photocopying, recording, or otherwise without the prior written otherwise without the prior otherwise without the prior written consent of of NACUFS. written consent NACUFS. consent of NACUFS.

Midwest Region President Lance Thornton, Principia College Lance Thornton, Principia College Midwest Region President Lance Thornton, Principia College Midwest Region President Southern Region President Susan Van Gigch, University of Georgia Susan Van Gigch, University of Georgia Southern Region President Susan Van Gigch, University Southern Region President Continental Region President Byron Drake, University of Montana of Georgia Byron Drake, University of Montana Continental Region President Byron Drake, University of Montana Continental Region President Pacific Region President Kris Klinger, University of California – Santa Cruz Kris Klinger, University of California – Santa Cruz Pacific Region President Kris Klinger, University of California – Santa Cruz Pacific Region President 2016 National Conference Chair Russ Meyer, University of Nevada Reno 2016 National Conference Chair Russ Meyer, University of Nevada - Reno Russ Meyer, University of Nevada Reno 2016 National Conference Chair Industry Trustee Greg Hetfield, Hormel Greg Hetfield, Hormel Industry Trustee Greg Hetfield, Hormel of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Industry Trustee Guest Trustee John (Jack) Collins, University John (Jack) Collins, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Guest Trustee John (Jack) Collins, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Guest Trustee Couraud, NACUFS Chief Executive Officer Officer Gretchen Chief Executive Gretchen Couraud, NACUFS Chief Executive Officer Gretchen Couraud, NACUFS

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FROM THE EDITOR

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LEADERSHIP AGENDA

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CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER’S PERSPECTIVE

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S pr ing + Su mmer

2016

FEATURES 14

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MEAL PLAN PROGRAMS

BY DESIGN C re a t i v i t y a n d i n n ova t ion shi n e i n the s e fe a t u re d ca mp u s d i n i n g re n ova t ion s

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WHAT’S HOT

S a t i s f y in g S t u d e n t s ’ In s a t i a ble A p p e t i te Fo r S n a ck s

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Inc re a s i n g M e a l Pla n S a le s W hi le M a i n ta i nin g a n d / o r In c re a s i n g S t u d e n t S a t i s fa ct ion

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C lo s i n g the F r ui t C on s ump t ion G a p

O n g row in g n u mb e rs o f col le g e ca m p u s e s , ch e fs a re p l a c in g ve g e ta ble s in the ce n te r o f th e p l a te a s th e m a in d eli c iou s a nd comp el l in g a tt ra ct ion

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LOCAL SOURCING, SO WHAT’S NEXT?

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2016 NATIONAL CONFERENCE

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NACUFS EDUCATION

M e nu Id e a P ro ce s s & M e a l Pla n n i n g P r io r i t ie s

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FOOD: VEGETABLES TAKE CENTER PLATE

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FROM THE EDITOR

F ROM T H E editor

C A M P U S D I N I N G TO DAY

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ROCHELLE RIZZI

editor in chief rrizzi@nacufs.org

Having been with the organization for a sweet seven months, I’m proud to be a part of such an exciting transformation and beloved association.

Assisting our members in data-driven decision making is (believe it or not), fun for me. Sure, it’s also exciting to create aesthetically pleasing collateral. More than anything, we’re enjoying tracking member behavior and examining the science behind the design — the design of systems, membership offerings, advertising packages, and policies. Below are a few updates from the department of Marketing & Communications. We’re having a strong start to 2016. Thank you!

Marketing Our social media engagement has been more regular, as the NACUFS office pushes out member news daily in between weekly e-blasts. We have seen about a 20% increase in our followers and are developing processes to boost exposure for regional events, such as creating regional event listings on the official NACUFS Facebook page.

Organic search on the website has increased 5% in the last 18 months. In seeing an increase in organic search, we know this can be word of mouth advertising and supports the hypothesis that our brand recognition is increasing.

We have seen a 16% increase in new web users. Of that increase, we are seeing a 4.74% increase in user sessions in the United States and 34.66% increase from Canadian user sessions.

Brand and Communications Following the board adoption of a brand guide, we’ve made great progress on brand, logo, and communications.

Developing a consistent brand for NACUFS across the entire organization is essential so that members and prospective members can visibly identify NACUFS, our regions, and all NACUFS conferences as one. We should have consistent conference branding by 2017 which includes recognition of our regional host schools.

This spring we introduced one mobile app for all conferences to improve our members’ experience through technology and move our conferences to greater sustainability. We will be evaluating data from the mobile app to assess this pilot and improve member engagement.

If you’ve been on our website recently, you’ll note a number of changes which feature our members, our services, and our regional news more prominently.

I’ve really enjoyed working with our volunteers over the past several months, whether through the member survey task force, the regional conference planning, or the marketing committee.

Amazing people. Please continue to introduce yourself. I always enjoy hearing from you.

Enjoy this issue of Campus Dining Today.

Thank you to all our contributors!

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LEADERSHIP

AGENDA

L E A DE R S HIP

C A M P U S D I N I N G TO DAY

10 DAWN AUBREY

NACUFS president daubrey@illinois.edu

agenda

I’m very pleased to be sharing with you a progress report on the State of ONE NACUFS – a national association with six vibrant regions. We are working as one to create the greatest member value with a consistent and positive experience for all institutional and industry members while supporting and promoting excellence in collegiate dining. There has been tremendous progress over the past year and I’d like to update you on great news and happenings.

Additionally, the task force reviewed each of the strategic plan assessments prepared by committees and task forces related to relevant NACUFS programs.

Through this assessment process, over 30 members gave input on their views of how NACUFS’ current activities help support our mission to support and promote excellence in collegiate dining.

The task force then had to examine how to align all products with the strategic plan to ensure member value.

Governance Transition Update

The task force considered all of this information and began work on a balanced portfolio of products, programs, and services. This portfolio must meet member needs and be financially sustainable. Further aligning with the strategic plan, organizational capacity is also a major consideration. Initial findings and recommendations will go to the board of trustees for examination at their April board meeting (April 18 and 19).

The governance transition is on schedule and on track. Last fall we launched an open call for the board of trustees president-elect and six at-large trustees.

The open call yielded four nominations for president-elect and twelve nominations for at-large candidates.

A number of people self-nominated, representing a significant increase from past years. The nominating committee proposed a slate which the board will review and consider at its April meeting.

We also launched an open call for regional directors and director-elect positions, resulting in 14 nominations for seven positions. Coming soon, we will unveil an open call for volunteers.

This fall, we are envisioning the first ever off-site orientation for all regional directors and director-elects. As leaders of their regions and serving on the NACUFS nominating committee, these individuals will play a key role in the governance of NACUFS. These future leaders deserve our support and leadership development.

Membership Survey Task Force Last fall we appointed a membership survey task force who met for two intensive days in February in Atlanta, GA. Their charge from the board of trustees was to conduct a member survey to determine member value through the lens of the strategic plan.

Over two days, these 12 members dissected comprehensive financial data; membership data; the NACUFS products, programs, and services portfolio; and initial membership survey results.

The excellent response to our membership survey by both institutional and industry members gave the task force solid data to consider member input. The error rate for the institutional survey was 4.6% and the error rate for the industry survey was 6.6%, which are statistically valid results according to the principles of survey science.

Thank you to all members who responded to the survey, participated in the assessment process, and are serving on the task force. This work will lay the foundation for a comprehensive view of ONE NACUFS. Ultimately, we will develop a product mix to help us achieve mission; align products, programs and services with member value; and prove financial viability. The board of trustees will ensure NACUFS has adequate staff and volunteer capacity to support the product mix.

NACUFS has had a very successful 60 years. Let’s keep working together on a strong and viable strategy for NACUFS’ growth and sustainability for the next 60 years and counting!

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CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER’S PERSPECTIVE

C HI E F EX E C U T I V E OFFIC E R’S

perspective As NACUFS continues to work toward becoming ONE NACUFS and the board focuses its efforts on the strategic plan, there is significant progress being made behind the scenes to create member value with volunteers and staff using data to support decision-making.

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Education

GRETCHEN COURAUD chief executive officer gcouraud@nacufs.org

Through the work of dedicated volunteers and staff, NACUFS is piloting a new two-and-a-half-day workshop, Engaging People to Improve Operational Performance, this June. It is designed to help learners improve their interpersonal interactions with employees so they can confidently and professionally address problem behaviors, manage conflict, and receive actionable feedback to help members improve their unit’s operations.

Member data shows us that personnel issues are a top member concern. This workshop sold out quickly which likewise indicates member demand.

The NACUFS 2016 National Conference planning is well underway and we are excited to invite you to what we believe will be a strong lineup of education this July in Anaheim, California. This conference will feature keynote speakers Chef Jeff Henderson, Robert Rosenthal, and Jillian Michaels. Nearly 30 interest sessions range from topics on how to conquer meal insecurity to using alternative protein sources. The conference will be full of educational and networking opportunities, including the closing night event at Disney’s California Adventure. Register today! www.nacufs.org/2016

Membership Membership recruitment is a high priority and we’re pleased to report progress in this area. We’ve taken a cold hard look at member retention

and member growth rates with a strategic plan focused on growing institutional membership by 10%.

We are now strategically targeting our membership recruitment. Our “green box” membership campaign and increased personal touches to prospective members have driven our new member rates beyond where they have been in the past several years. We’re pleased to report that our overall member retention rate is 80% toward our annual goal of 87%. And our institutional membership growth rate is up from last year by nearly 50%! Another round of the campaign just began to include community colleges. We’re excited to begin this reach!

Operations — Policies and Procedures Last October the board of trustees charged NACUFS staff with consolidating the six regional and national policies and procedures manuals as well as operating manuals.

These efforts are creating consistent policies throughout NACUFS and will support regional volunteers. The result of this major project will be to make the work of our volunteers easier and the experience for our industry members across the country consistent. This project will be complete this summer in time for the roll-out of the NACUFS 2017 regional conferences.

There is much to celebrate as we move toward becoming ONE NACUFS under a new strategic plan, focused on member value. The NACUFS staff is working very hard to support members and we’re grateful for the dedicated volunteers who work with us positively every day.

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Increasing Meal Plan Sales While Maintaining and/or Increasing Student Satisfaction

NUTRITION

MEAL PLAN PROGRAMS

C A M P U S D I N I N G TO DAY

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Tie images in here that incorporate what we were talking about. Read this article to get some ideas on the operational side of meal planning.

Stock is fine - let’s try to find adobe stock if we can.

By: Kristina Hopton-Jones, director of university dining services at University of Alabama, and Whitney Jones, project manager with Brailsford & Dunlavey University administrators often ask themselves, “Does my campus have the right meal plan offerings? How can I keep my students happy while financially supporting the meal program? Are there meal-plan-specific metrics I need to be tracking?” The engineering of meal plans can be a complicated process, from both a student satisfaction and fiduciary needs basis. The following is a primer on current meal plan trends and best practice recommendations from a university that has implemented them.

CURRENT MEAL PLAN TRENDS Flexibility. Today’s generation of students demand what they want and when they want it—whether it is streaming the latest TV show directly to their phones, ordering a textbook with two-day Amazon Prime delivery, or eating their “breakfast” at 10:00 p.m. Their perspective on meal plans is no different. Increasingly, universities are moving away from the “old school” model of fixed, weekly plans where meals expire every seven days. These types of plans simply do not match students’ variable schedules and often create value dissatisfaction with meals that seem to be paid for yet constantly expiring. To accommodate the flexibility that students are demanding, many top dining programs have

replaced weekly plans with semester blocks, or even unlimited plans. Additionally, some schools implement one-swipe/onetime-access for carryout meals from the dining halls. Initially, concern existed about increased utilization and associated food and operational expenses, but in practice most top programs have found the flexible plans’ associated price premium outweighs any added costs. Nation-wide survey data shows meal plan flexibility directly correlates to satisfaction levels. And greater satisfaction leads to greater voluntary participation, adding program revenue and further supporting quality and operational excellence.

Simplicity. With so many meal plan types (weekly and block in varying increments, unlimited plans, declining balance-only) and hybrid variations (with or without declining balance, equivalencies, or exchanges), schools can create a seemingly endless number of meal plan options. Although these efforts were well-intended and meant to create variety, too often the end result is confusion. Historically, individual institutions have offered as many as 30 to 40 meals plans. In recent years, based on reactions from parents and students, schools are changing their approach and offering fewer, simpler plans.

Take, for example, a residential campus offering 30 plans including weekly, block, declining balance-only, hybrid plans, and optional exchange add-ons to each plan. That same school could reduce its number of plans to 10 or fewer by eliminating unpopular weekly plans, creating appropriately-sized residential and commuter block plans, and making its exchange standard on each plan. The end result is short, simple, and in keeping with the styles of plans most popular with students.

Equivalencies versus Exchanges. Simply put, associating a dollar amount with a meal plan swipe often generates grumbling and dissatisfaction like “why do I get a $14 dining hall meal but only $6 in retail; if my equivalency

INCREASING SATISFACTION AND DRIVING MEAL PLAN SALES On a typical residential university campus, meal plans are the crux of the campus dining program and critical to its financial viability and long-term success. How do top dining programs drive meal plan sales while maintaining, if not increasing, campus community satisfaction with their meal plan program?

Mandatory Requirements. When all else fails, make them buy a meal plan, right? While this suggestion may sound blunt, it can actually be implemented in a nuanced way.

Expansive mandatory meal plan policies are appropriate for institutions that view the dining program as central to campus life and socialization; need a significant capital infusion to address deferred maintenance or other facilityrelated deficiencies; or, would otherwise have too small a participating population to support the desired program (e.g., a small university). (Be sure to check with state legislation on laws which may apply here.)

The University of Alabama is one example of an institution that successfully implemented this type of program.

Alabama implemented its Dining Dollars program in 1996 to help fund what was then a struggling campus dining program in desperate need of sustained capital infusions to fund facility renovations. What was then a practically unheard-of meal plan model has since become the gold standard for generating revenues while creating value.

Alabama’s current Dining Dollar program requires all undergraduate students enrolled in nine or more credit hours per semester to participate for a $325 fee which may be used at all on-campus dining facilities. Unlike other campus fees, the students receive 100% of the value paid or are eligible for a refund (for which Alabama receives almost no requests).

F E AT U R E

Technology. Generation Z, Digital Natives, iGen, PostMillennials—no matter what you call them—the current generation of university students is very different than its predecessors. Stereotypically never without their smart phones, this group is technologically focused, and meal plans are evolving correspondingly. Increasingly, schools are using apps to communicate information about meal plans and available equivalency/exchange options and hours. With the rise of Apple Pay and other non-traditional, phone-based payment systems, the university card swipe may soon be a thing of the past. Some schools have even moved beyond cards and phones to biometricbased payment systems, like the iris scanners at Virginia Commonwealth University, George Mason University, and the University of New Hampshire; or hand scanners at the University of Maine and the University of Georgia.

To help mitigate potential privacy concerns, campuses implementing biometric scanners often tout them as optional, not mandatory, with card scanners available as backup.

is for a $6 meal but get a $5 meal, why don’t I get $1 back?,” and so forth. For that reason, the institution may consider meal plan exchanges over equivalencies for transparency purposes. Exchanges keep students focused on the value they receive (a full combo meal from a set of options) instead of a set dollar amount and its relative fairness or lack thereof.

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Transparency. A growing number of universities are choosing to publish their meal plan overrides, rather than keep the campus community in the dark. Despite concerns about negative publicity, many who have revealed this information find it improves meal plan price:value perceptions. Understanding the override, students can calculate the actual cost per meal without the override artificially inflating the meal price relative to the perceived quality/service received. When it is adequately explained, students and parents generally understand that university dining is a business model with corresponding overhead costs their meal plans help support.

F E AT U R E

Examine Barriers to Utilization. One of the biggest reasons students become frustrated with meal plans is their inability to redeem purchased meals. Examine your program, talk to students, and understand what contributes to your missed meal factor. For example, does your dining hall close at 6:00 p.m. when most of your students want to eat dinner at 8:00 p.m.? Is food being put away before the dining hall officially closes? Is there not enough variety in the menu, or options for those on limited diets? Identifying and mitigating these barriers to meal plan utilization will help decrease student frustration and increase overall satisfaction.

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Calculate Price Per Meal.

Understand what the perceived price per meal is for each of your meal plan offerings (understanding that perception and reality may differ if your institution takes an override). Check to be sure there are no plans one could consider an especially good or bad deal—most per-meal prices should be in relatively the same range. Students will do this math, so make sure your plans pass the test.

Don’t Forget the Basics. This does not have to be complicated. Make sure plates, napkins, and cutlery are always clean and available. Make sure the facilities are clean and that you keep equipment operational to serve customers with as little disruption and frustration as possible. Make sure hot food is served hot, and cold food is cold. It seems elementary, but convenience, cleanliness, and good service go a long way. Of course, the menu has to be exciting and the food delicious, but responsive customer service and a friendly smile are just as important to crafting a value proposition.

WHAT TO CONSIDER BEFORE OVERHAULING YOUR MEAL PLAN PROGRAM When starting its required meal plan program for first-year residential students, the University of Alabama used the lessons learned from implementing the mandatory dining dollar program. Here are some tips and best practices from their experience: • Collect input from as many university community members as possible, and don’t forget to ask students what they want.

• Develop a strategic plan to disseminate information to all constituents.

• Prepare a press release or summary of the plan to distribute among the dining department to ensure there is a united and consistent message.

• Communicate and publicize the intended new structure early and often.

• Talk about the plan and ask for feedback.

• Create a FAQ document to provide clear and easy-to-understand explanations of the logic used in

creating the plan and how it

impacts students.

• Send out a memo with a summary, the FAQ document, and other pertinent information to all departments, deans, and directors as appropriate for your campus.

• Ask the student government association and/ or other student organizations to assist with promotion.

• Attend staff meetings with housing, admissions, and any other applicable departments to brief them in person.

• Understand areas that elicit push-back and react or adjust the structure before implementation.

The key to the University of Alabama’s success was to get ahead of potential questions and complaints as early as possible, so that when the program was implemented the campus was not surprised, negative responses were limited, and the dining team reduced time spent responding to questions and complaints—and the associated stress!

TRACKING SUCCESS In the world of dining program administration, there is a saying, “What gets tracked gets done.” Meal plans are no different. University administrators overseeing dining programs should request and regularly review the following metrics, also known as key performance indicators (KPIs), to understand the strengths and opportunities of their meal plan program: • Meal plan participation rates and/or missed-meal factors to track how many meals students consume relative to the total available meals through their respective meal plans. Participation rates are a strong indicator of satisfaction.

• Total meal plan sales by plan type, which tracks how meal plan pricing perceptions and preferences may be changing on campus and which plans may need to be replaced. It is particularly important to differentiate which plans are mandatory and which are voluntary.

• Dining dollar spending to monitor the pace of spending throughout the term. If students are rapidly spending dining dollars early in the term, it may suggest an opportunity to revise the plans to start at a higher dollar value.

THE FUTURE OF MEAL PLANS It is hard to say what the future may hold for meal plans—no one has yet invented those Jetson-inspired meal replacement pills, let alone determined whether they should be included as part of students’ meal exchanges! In all seriousness, there are several best practices that withstand the test of time, including:

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• Listen to the students. Whether you conduct focus groups, check the comment “napkin board,” or just regularly talk to students in the dining facilities, the best feedback comes straight from the source.

• Consider customer retention. The best meal plan marketing strategy pales in comparison to providing a top-notch dining experience. Make sure your dining program basics are in place and that you are providing good quality, variety, cleanliness, and customer service.

• Recognize that students do the math. While some believe that students aren’t paying attention, it is a near-universal truth on any campus that students are calculating their per-meal costs based on the overall plan cost and the number of meals they actually eat. Remember that students will compare what they pay per meal versus what the door rates are. Make sure when you craft your plan options and pricing structure that you are doing the same!

• There is no replacement for proactive management.

Effective dining programs don’t run themselves—if they did, every campus would have one. Crafting and sustaining a contemporary and successful meal plan program requires some work, both on the initial planning end and in the continual monitoring of KPIs and student satisfaction.

F E AT U R E

Additionally, dining programs may choose to conduct market research using focus groups or surveys to better understand the campus community’s satisfaction with their plans and potential areas for modification and improvement.

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• Exchange/equivalency utilization and spending patterns to understand the popularity of the options allowed and whether accepting locations/meal options should be adjusted to match changing campus community preferences.

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS Kristina Hopton-Jones is the director of university dining services at the University of Alabama. Since July 2000, she has worked in Enterprise Operations and serves as the food service contract administrator/liaison. During her time at UA, the department has grown from six to 26 food service locations across campus.

Whitney Jones is a project manager with Brailsford & Dunlavey, a program management firm with comprehensive in-house planning capabilities, dedicated to serving educational institutions, municipalities, public agencies, and non-profit clients from offices throughout the U.S

For information on flavors, pricing, and delivery, visit YuenglingsIceCream.com/food-service or call 570-968-4352, ext. 107.

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farm house cafe portland community college portland, oregon

Farm baskets and other display items pull together the farm-fresh theme in the self-serve areas.

CAMPUS DINING When entering the 260-acre Portland Community College’s Rock Creek campus, the first structure visitors see is the Farm House Café. The new foodservice is situated in a 62,000-square-foot southwest addition to Building 5.

Enrollment increases and deteriorating facilities led planning teams to recommend this addition. The café’s name refers to this campus’s fully functioning farm and the use of neighboring farm and wetland areas as outdoor learning labs.

“We hadn’t remodeled for 30 years, so we designed the operation with enough flexibility and durability to withstand the continuing changes in food trends,” says Dianna Benting, PCC’s district foodservice manager. “Customers love this new café with its bright ambiance and large variety of food options. Our kitchen, which is triple the size of our old one, is beautiful and is designed so we can grow our catering business.”

HIGHLIGHT S & UNIQUE F E ATUR E S

PROJECT DE TAIL S

• This sole foodservice (vending is the only other

Opened: January 2016

option on campus) features a global station; Asian/ wok, enticing customers to taste stir-fry dishes and Indian food prepared in a tandoori oven; pizza, featuring pies baked in a gas-fired oven; sub sandwiches to order and noodle dishes; grill; and salad bar with items from the Learning Campus garden.

• Farm House Espresso Café offers bottled beverages, espresso beverages, chilled smoothies, and grab and go menu items. A large bank of reach-in supermarket-style refrigerators can be restocked from the back, so the logistics are hidden from customers.

• The Farm House Espresso Café’s direct connection to the servery allows customers to purchase hot food options without opening the whole space. There is room for prep, storage, and execution, which makes the space both highly efficient and easier on the staff. When the stations are stocked, staff can run the operation fully independently of the kitchen, which eliminates the need to go back and forth.

• The operation serves a generation of customers that is always on the move, so the dining room was downsized, with a focus on foods that could double as takeout.

• The kitchen, with its full line of bakery equipment, supports front-of-house operations with prep as well as catering capacity for 250 guests.

• Foodservice never had a loading dock and now shares a dedicated loading dock with the bookstore.

• During construction, Benting’s team operated the old café so customers never experienced a gap in service.

Photos courtesy of Portland Community College & Ricca Design Studios

Hours of Operation: 6:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m., Monday – Thursday; 6:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m., Friday; Farm House Espresso Café, 8:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m., Saturday Daily Traffic: 950

Seats: 132

Payment Accepted: Cash and credit cards Average Check: $4.42 Annual Sales Volume: $800,000 projected Total Project Cost: $63 million for Building 5 and smaller construction projects at Rock Creek. This is the third of four design projects on the four main PCC campuses. The projects are all part of a capital improvement bond passed by voters in 2008.

Cost of Foodservice Equipment: $1.7 million Staff: One full-time manager; 5.75 equivalents of .75 FTEs, including 15 students.

KEY PL AYER S Portland Community College: Linda Eden, auxiliaries director; Dianna Benting, district foodservice manager; Darin Rose, Rock Creek foodservice manager Architect: Opsis Architecture, LLP, Portland, OR; Alec Holser, Randall Heeb, Aaron Schalon, Bryan Hollar, Heather DeGrella Interior Designer: Opsis and Bainbridge, Portland OR; Rachel Schubert, project manager Foodservice Consultant and Designer: Ricca Design Studios, Greenwood Village, CO; Jean-Michel Boulot, principal; Min An, FCSI, LEED AP, project director; Giang Nguyen, project manager Equipment Dealer: TriMark Gill Group, Montana office

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rock creek campus at portland community college in portland, or

BY

DESIGN

FARM HOUSE CAFE

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farm house cafe portland community college portland, oregon

The back-of-house kitchen contains griddles, ovens, butcher block tables and an energyefficient hood system. Large windows flood the space with natural daylight.

DESIGN BY

PROJECT SIZE Total, Foodservice: 8,815 sq. ft.

Servery: 2,440 sq. ft.

Seating: 2,400 sq. ft.

Kitchen: 3,200 sq. ft.

Customers access the servery’s salad bar from all sides, which helps eliminate long queues. The flexible design allows each station to morph into a variety of flavor profiles and menu offerings. The neutral rather than cuisine specific signage also supports the flexibility of each space.

Daily offerings rotate and offer an element of surprise and variety.

An industrial motif supports the mechanical aspects of the farm theme.

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Total, Building: 62,300 sq. ft.

CAMPUS DINING DESIGN

CAFÉ EVANSDALE

BY

at west virginia university in morgantown, wv

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Built in the 1960s, the all-electric Cafe Evansdale, the largest AYCTE dining hall at West Virginia University, had become outdated and unattractively institutional. Housing approximately 1,800 students, it is located in a four-residence hall complex. Since there was no possibility of doing a full renovation, a smaller transformation was approved by using dining services’ funding reserves. “By creating an open-ended request for proposal and working with design consultants, within 94 days from bid to completion, we were able to transform the dining hall, upgrade services, and see improvements in students’ perceptions in a 63-day window for less than half the budgeted amount,” says David Friend, executive director. Installation took place the week before students moved in.

HIGHLIGHT S & UNIQUE F E ATUR E S • The nearly five-decades-old facility contained more than 50 pieces of worn-out portable buffet units. Staff cooked all food in the kitchen and placed it in warmers on a service line.

• Due to outside competition with public/private partnerships, WVU desperately needed to upgrade the facility and improve student perceptions by adding more made-to-order stations to improve product quality and cut down waste.

• Because of the short time-frame to perform a renovation without making changes to the infrastructure, the project focused on replacing equipment and installing new service counters, painting walls and hanging signage. Facilities personnel identified existing electrical capacities, WVU created an RFP, met with procurement in the middle of January 2015, secured approval from the state and awarded the bid.

• The millwork, countertops, and equipment were built and consolidated at the Partners by Design manufacturing facility in order to meet the timeframe. Installation was completed

by August 9.

• The new servery allows WVU to cook many more items to order with the addition of induction cooking equipment at the Healthy U and pasta stations. An extra grill at Chef’s Express promotes the cooking capacity for all three day parts. Cold wells allow student to select condiments. Thermal shelves support plates so they can remain hot under heat lamps. Two added deli lines feature a rapidfire panini oven to toast wraps and sandwiches.

Chef ’s Express features chefs preparing food to order.

Photos courtesy of Bryan Jarrell, marketing manager, WVU

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CAFÉ EVANSDALE west virginia university morgantown, wv

DESIGN BY

Similarity in station décor offers an aesthetic continuity throughout the servery.

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PR OJE C T DE TA I L S

K E Y PL AYE R S

Opened: August 9, 2015

West Virgina University: Michael Ellington, associate vice president of student life; David Friend, executive director of dining services; Kathy Curtin, associate director of dining; John Thomas, executive chef; Gary Yester, general manager

Hours of Operation: 7:00 a.m – 8:00 p.m.

Monday – Thursday with continuous dining; 7:00 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. Friday; 9:00 a.m. - 6:30 p.m. Saturday and holidays; 9:00 a.m. - 7:30 p.m. Sunday Daily Traffic: 1,700 Payment Accepted: Meal plans, Dining Dollars, Mountie Bounty, cash and credit cards

Foodservice Consultant, Designer and Equipment Dealer: Partners by Design, Manchaug, MA.; Dennis LaPlante, principal; Jim Schwandt, director of business development, Elizabeth, CO

Average Check: Door prizes; $8.35, breakfast; $9.25, lunch; $11.25 dinner; traditional and block dining plans cost $7.25 to $9.90 Annual Sales Volume: $3.1 million during academic year Total Project Cost: $533,975, not including electrical and plumbing, which was done by facilities services Cost of Foodservice Component, including Equipment: $600,000, including the facility hook-up and infrastructure changes Staff: 4 managers, 8 supervisors/sous chefs, 38 additional FTEs, and approximately 88 student employees, working 10 to 20 hours per week Seats: 450

Pizza presentation atop baking pans attracts attention.

CAFÉ EVANSDALE west virginia university morgantown, wv

DESIGN BY

PROJECT SIZE Servery: 1,980 sq. ft. for 4 concepts (Pizza & Pasta, Deli, Healthy U & Grill) Dining Room: 13,100 sq. ft. for 4 concepts (Chef’s Express, Soup & Salad Bar, Dessert station, beverages Private Dining Seating: 450 (no changes made) Kitchen: No changes made to the 10,000-square-foot kitchen, which supports front-of-house operations

Healthy U features sushi rolls.

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W H AT ’ S H OT

What’s hot on campus

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Satisfying Students’ Insatiable Appetite For Snacks

By Bill Trovinger, Global Consumer Insights Senior Associate From the dorm to the dining hall and from the classroom to the coffee shop, snacks have evolved into the anytime, anywhere meal occasion on college campuses. Today’s students snack throughout the day to refuel, to satisfy cravings, to give themselves a reward, or to replace a meal. In addition to their diverse and adventurous palettes, students’ need for eat-on-the-go is changing the way many college and university campuses approach their meal plans.

“We have definitely seen a surge in snacking in recent years with students eating more frequent, smaller meals throughout the day,” said Maya Vincelli, assistant director of retail operations at the University of Richmond. “Students today not only want to eat when and where it is convenient for them but they are also looking for more interesting snack choices.”

No matter how you slice these snacking occasions, they will continue to impact college and university foodservice decisions and operations. In fact, operators who view increased student snacking as a growth opportunity can find new and creative options for sweet and savory snack sales throughout the day. Breaking down the latest research on snacking trends, including college students’ snacking motivations, the following shares some ideas for foodservice professionals including menu items, packaging and merchandising, and leveraging location in order to satisfy students’ appetite for snacks.

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The Rise of Snacking on Campus

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Americans’ eating patterns and behaviors continue to evolve, but the rise in snacking is probably no place more apparent than on college campuses, considering the age demographic of students and their busy, active lifestyle.

According to the NPD Group, 18-24 year olds—also known as young millennials—snack more than any other adult age group and are likely to snack instead of eating breakfast or lunch. Mintel’s 2014 “Snacking Motivations and Attitudes” study reports show that one-quarter of millennials enjoy four or more snacks per day.

When it comes to college students, snacks can center on health, happiness, and hunger. Some students prefer mini-meals throughout the day while others want something that tastes great while providing some health benefit. Others snack simply because it makes them feel happy, reminding them of good times or home. Millennials are also increasingly eating more pre-portioned snacks for reasons including health and portability, underscoring the need for balanced snacks that work well on-the-go.

Together, all of this means that campus foodservice professionals should offer a variety of snacking options to both fuel students through busy days and satisfy cravings during stressful times. As interest in snacks continues to grow among millennials, foodservice operations can craft menus, promotions, and options that satisfy this craving for flavor, convenience, health, and portability.

How to Maximize the Snack Attack College and university foodservice can make the most of this trend with some snack-specific strategies. The following tips can bolster revenue throughout the day.

• Variety is the spice of snack time. Since so many millennials are interested in and open to trying new foods, it’s key to offer variety in terms of flavors, portion sizes, locations, and service options. Consider snack centered food trucks, yogurt bars, food, and packaging that is easily transportable, and rotating items that celebrate a specific theme, ethnicity, or holiday.

Vincelli’s staff has been using more picnic-sized packaging in response to students who eat on-the-go. The packaging allows for students to customize mini meals and also caters to those students who are planning ahead.

“We were surprised when there was demand for items like sushi and dim sum at breakfast but then realized that

1. NPD Historical NET Data 2 Years ending May 2014

students were buying items to eat later in the day,” said Vincelli.

• Watch the clock. Snacking behavior changes across the day so it important to look across dayparts as separate snacking occasions and tailor menus to meet these distinct needs.

In the morning and afternoon, snackers have the best intentions and appreciate food that is healthy and provides fuel, such as fruit, yogurt, smoothies, granola bars, and salty snacks. As the day goes on, evening snacks are more about craving, relaxation, and connection – satisfying the sweet tooth. Likewise, as millennials may be less likely to sit down for breakfast or lunch, it’s important to offer on-the-go snack options that can serve as a healthy, easy replacement for a sit-down meal. Again, yogurt, granola bars and fruit can all be satisfying options.

• On the go, go, go. Portability is a huge benefit for college students who are always looking for quick and easy snacking solutions. Packaging must be easy to handle and the product must create little mess, no matter where it’s eaten on campus. Since students are sitting down to fewer meals, operators should continue to seek on-the-go options that can be purchased and consumed while walking between classes and snacks that can survive in a backpack all day for later consumption.

Grab-and-go snack kiosks can make portability even easier. While just over half of all adults rate portability as an important snack attribute, Mintel reports that 65 percent of millennials value the ability to grab and go.

Think less fuss, less mess and less stress for students .

• Ensure that snacks can be purchased on the student meal plan while including more QSR-style options. For students, it’s all about convenience. Making snacking— and meal time in general—easier will encourage more regular visits and purchases.

At the University of Richmond, students have a myriad of options with equal access to everything available to them.

“We offer a very flexible meal plan to accommodate our students,” said Vincelli.

“Students can use their dining dollars in any increment at any operation whether it is a sit-down or carryout meal in our main dining hall, grab-and-go items from any of our retail operations, or snacks and other grocery items from our on-campus convenience stores.”

2. Mintel “Snacking motivations and Attitudes US” April 2015

3. Mintel “Food Packaging Trends US” July 2014

Ultimately, the most common reason for making an eating decision on campus is convenience, so having a widespread snacking presence throughout campus—not just at centrally located cafeterias and c-stores—will help operators reach more students throughout the day. Consider high-traffic areas such as the student union and library to boost the entire foodservice operation. Convenience combined with portability can make programs that much more successful when it comes to student snacking.

The University of Richmond, recognizing a need for convenience and access to food in high-traffic areas, now features a full-service café at the entrance of its library. Students can purchase a variety of Starbucks drinks, locally made grab-and-go foods and packaged snacks.

“We recognized that students who were involved in intense study sessions at the library could benefit from some quick nourishment,” said Vincelli. “It’s all about meeting students where they are and offering them interesting choices.”

About General Mills Convenience & Foodservice General Mills offers solutions across campus to help C&U foodservice operators succeed—from offering student-favorite brands to a breadth of tools and expertise to drive growth across campus whether it’s the dining hall, bakery/commissary operations or campus c-stores.

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND: MEETING HUNGRY STUDENTS WHERE THEY ARE The University of Richmond is located in Richmond, Va. Its dining service program has been recognized by NACUFS for residential dining and catering, is ranked in the top 75 best colleges for food by The Daily Meal and is ranked in the top 100 nationwide for best campus food with an “A” grade by Niche.

Approximately 2,700 students live on campus, with many participating in a comprehensive meal plan that allows them access to eight dining locations across campus, ranging form all-you-careto-eat to late night grab-and-go options.

W H AT ’ S H OT

Students are often on the leading edge of trends, so campus dining operators will succeed when they stay informed about the latest food trends and offer those that are popular on campus. The current college generation boasts many exploratory eaters who seek global flavors and new diets and pay attention to ingredients. Snacks provide a lowrisk and low-investment way to try something different while driving traffic and interest and creating that thrill of newness.

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College Students Seek Customization,

Health-Conscious Dining Options

By Stefanie Rakes Millennials, ever the topic of conversation, are essential to trend development in foodservice and beyond. Generally defined as people born from 1981-1997, millennials grew up with food television as a reality, watching programs on the Food Network and the Cooking Channel and forging a personal relationship with their food, ingredient by ingredient. In their adult lives, they also consume much food media—food-focused social media accounts are increasingly popular, magazines and online columns dedicated to home cooking and restaurant reviews prevail, and documentary series on Netflix such as Chef’s Table are very widely watched.

Highly influential as trendsetters, millennials embrace decadent offerings like bacon and macaroons, alongside healthier and more socially conscious options. Additionally, Nielsen Research estimates that 33 percent of millennials think that healthy attributes are “very important” and 29 percent are willing to pay a premium. Coincidentally, many members of this age group are also planning to or are already attending college. So, it stands to reason, there is a need and an opportunity to create more revenue for foodservice operators across different sectors.

When considering how to best serve millennials in a college dining setting, the name of the game is customization.

More so than any generation before them, this age group craves the opportunity to seize a popular food item and make it theirs. For example, in the mid-2000s a boom of frozen yogurt chains gained serious momentum by allowing customers to choose their own flavor combinations in exact amounts (charging by the ounce) and letting them add any number and amount of toppings.

The customization trend was just getting started. Now, many fast-casual and quick-serve dining options have jumped aboard the train. One can find customizable burritos, tacos, pizza, falafel, sandwiches, pastas and everything in between without having to look too far.

Make no mistake about it—millennials, especially college students—are not interested in mass production. This creates a window of profitable opportunity for those looking to move into college campus dining foodservice.

The key lies in customization. Designing a modifiable menu is essential to attracting these students. While there is no set amount across the board, college and university on-

produce where available, for example. Rephrasing menu items or descriptions to include the source of the food is also a step in the right direction.

It’s not just food that is moving in the direction of customization, either. Big beverage brands have contracts with colleges and universities all over the country to add hundreds of “choose-your-own-flavor” machines in recent months. These large drink machines allow the consumer to add flavorings such as cherry, lime, vanilla and orange to various beverage choices and water.

Millennials are an influential group. Given the fact that many spend four years pouring time and money into a single college or university, it can be very beneficial for the institution to consider what makes them tick in order to move more readily into this huge nontraditional sector.

33 percent of millennials think that healthy attributes are “very important” and 29 percent are willing to pay a premium.

Also important to millennials is the availability of health-conscious food. No one is inspired by a drab, limp salad—least of all a generation that has pioneered the new tradition of taking photos of food before actually consuming it. Foodservice operators are finding that students are drawn to breakfast, lunch, and dinner options that are more healthful without the compromise on flavor or color.

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While it is mandated by city or state governing bodies in some regions, some restaurants are voluntarily posting calorie counts beside menu items. Naturally this has carried over to health-conscious brands showcasing their lower-calorie options to tempt diners with more wholesome offerings. Certainly, these options are also customizable as topit-yourself-salads and build-your-own wraps and sandwiches are becoming more popular. While they are also willing to indulge from time to time, it’s clear that today’s college students are craving more than beer and pizza.

Along with the health trend comes socially conscious dining— something millennials are more passionate about than any other generation. Fair trade, organic, free-range, cruelty-free, locally grown, grass-fed, hormone free… these are all labels that millennials identify with well-being, health, and wholesomeness.

This age group is much more sensitive to animal welfare, more interested in the local food movement (sometimes called “locavore” dining), and, in general, display a preference for all things natural and simply made.

Colleges and college dining locations can take small steps toward meeting the millennial expectation by providing more whole wheat options or using local

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campus dining costs can run between $2,000 and $6,000 per person. Being compliant with the students’ wants and needs provides opportunity for increased margins.

About the Author: Stefanie Rakes is the director of development for non-traditional venues at Le Duff America, Inc. She has an extensive international background in nontraditional development with brands such as Pizza Hut, Taco Bell and KFC, focusing brand expansion within colleges and universities, airports, sports stadiums and more. Rakes received her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Texas at Austin.

NUTRITION

Closing the Fruit Consumption Gap

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By John Lawn

Campus dining operations nationwide are increasingly making increased fruit consumption an important strateg y for improving the healthfulness of student diets.

We’ll get the bad news out on the table first.

With all the headlines about obesity, diabetes, the Five-a-Day campaign, USDA’s MyPlate recommendations and the new Dietary Guidelines, you’d think American adults’ consumption of fruits and vegetables would be on a big upswing these days. But you would be wrong.

In fact, data compiled by the Produce for Better Health Foundation (PBH) shows that U.S. per capita consumption of fruits and vegetables actually declined 7 percent between 2009 and 2014. (PBH 2015 State of the Plate Report).

Further, the gap between the amount that American adults should eat and do eat remains large. PBH estimates the average person consumes only 37% of the recommended amount of fruits and 57% of the recommended amount of vegetables each day. Researchers say closing that gap would reduce the risk of cancer by 5.6%, heart disease by 18.6%, and stroke by 22.2%.

Now, for the good news. These numbers are still a big improvement over those collected back in 2004. PBH also found that a significant part of the recent decrease

was due to lower consumption of fruit juice, probably because of its large sugar, caloric, and carb loads. And PBH noted a number of bright spots in the trend data, especially for fruit: • children of all ages (campus dining services’ next- generation customers) are consuming more whole fruit, partly because of new USDA school meal standards; • adults aged 18-44 are eating more fruit at breakfast; • and African Americans, Hispanics, and consumers in the West North Central, Mountain, and Pacific regions are increasing their fruit consumption.

The nutritional advantages of eating more produce are well known: it brings vitamins, anti-oxidants, micro-nutrients, and fiber into the diet. But fruit brings something else as well—a burst of flavor that makes it an ideal accompaniment for many other foods. And that has meant opportunities for campus dining professionals looking to close the produce consumption gap.

To help, many schools look to build better working partnerships between culinary staff and on-campus dietitians. At Eastern Michigan University, executive chef Tom Murray, CEC, registered as a dietetic preceptor several years ago. He already works closely with the campus’ two full time RDs, and each year rotates a junior dietetics class through the dining operation for six weeks.

Murray then consults with his team to select one student to be mentored in a paid assistant position for the rest of the year, helping the chefs improve the nutritive value of recipes while working on educational and promotional ways to encourage healthful dining. The student gets to learn something about the culinary side of the business along the way.

At Kansas State University’s Housing and Dining Services, which has historically integrated many dietetic and culinary initiatives, administrative dietitian Kelly Whitehair, PhD, RD, LD, teaches classes, writes, and tests menus and oversees nutritional analysis of the department’s more than 8,000 recipes.

That’s a seemingly small change, but it can really add up. At Cornell University, director of nutrition Michele LeFebvre, RD, CDN, says only a single piece of fruit to go is allowed there, but “in our case, that is the equivalent of 200,000 pounds of bananas a year.”

The impact of such policies is magnified if supported by other promotional activity. During March Nutrition Month last year, LeFebvre says fruit consumption probably peaked during dining’s “Five for Five” fruit and vegetable promotion. “We had participants sign posted pledges saying they would eat five cups of fruits and vegetables a day for five days,” she says. “Almost 3,000 people pledged to do it.”

Another Cornell promotion involves a loyalty program punch card for a la carte sales. “Once you buy 10 fruits and vegetable items, you get another one for free,” she adds. “We ordered 20,000 of them in August and had to re-order more in January.”

Researchers say closing that gap would reduce the risk of cancer by 5.6%, heart disease by 18.6% and stroke by 22.2%.

“For most students, this is the first chance most students have to make their own daily decisions about dining and diet,” she says. “So it is important to us to educate them in a non-intrusive way, and develop dining patterns they will carry with them throughout their lives.”

Efforts to improve fruit and vegetable consumption often will seek to leverage campus sustainability programs as well as student demand for more locally grown food and vegetarian fare. Altogether, this means increased opportunities to enhance station concepts and improve the variety of sandwiches, salads, entrées, and snacks offered across campus dining operations.

Selling the whole fruit On the front lines, most dining programs seek to encourage more whole fruit consumption via merchandising displays, like the one created in the former Ike’s Diner at George Mason University.

When Ike’s was recently renovated into a dining hall to serve the 1st-year student residence area, “we built a fruit stand display at the entrance to give it the feel of a farmer’s market,” says Michel Henri Wetli, Sodexo general manager for Mason Dining. “We encourage students to add whole fruit to a meal and to take one or two pieces with

Promotions provide ongoing support

Mason Dining and many other schools sponsor student Iron Chef competitions highlighting winning entries, like a recent winner, Kale Salad with Apples and Strawberries. At University of CA-Santa Cruz, every Friday is Farm Friday, with each unit offering an entrée composed only of locally produced ingredients, with fruit often playing a starring role.

Across the country, at the University of Connecticut, assistant director of culinary Rob Landolphini likes to grill fruit skewers during season with plums, peaches, strawberries and maple sugar and vanilla glaze for special events, served with ice cream or yogurt. “We teach a cooking camp for kids in the summer and they just love the idea of cooking fruit,” he says.

At Sewanee, the University of the South, interim director and executive chef Rick Wright sends out a daily morning email to students that promotes the menus for the day and talks about health and wellness, local food sourcing, and snippets of food history. The use of fruit in those menus helps him to romance them to the students, he says.

Last year the dining department at University of Massachusetts-Amherst worked with the Watermelon Commission to develop a promotion that featured Watermelon Raspberry Lemonade tastings, recipes like Blackened Redfish with Watermelon Salsa, Watermelon Waldorf Salad, and French Toast with Watermelon Syrup.

UMass works with many boards to sponsor similar high-profile promotions throughout the year.

NUTRITION

Interviews with NACUFS members across the country show that they have been putting a lot of creativity— both culinary and otherwise—into this effort.

them on-the-go.” (It is the only exception allowed to a ban on taking food out of the residence dining hall).

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What this means for college operators

Building out the breakfast opportunity Dining departments have noticed and are taking advantage of the increased interest in consuming fruit at breakfast.

Many will offer fruit-based syrups at DIY waffle stations and most we spoke to offer a fruit bar, often much bigger than these were in the past.

NUTRITION

Cornell’s LeFebvre says that testing demonstrated greater consumption of cut fruits when they were displayed singularly, as opposed to a medley. “We also found that when we put out sliced watermelon still on its rind that students took more and wasted less,” she says. “The same with kiwifruit—we cut them in half and let them spoon out the skins. They like the more natural look this offers.”

Kansas State’s Whitehair takes the labor out of slicing watermelon on its bar, “We just cut them in half and put them out with an ice cream scoop. Students will scoop them well into the rind.”

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At Mason Dining, Wetli says a campus favorite are the breakfast sushi rolls Mason Dining offers in surprise “pop up” stations and at special events. Sticky rice is flavored with miran sweet rice wine and rolled with combinations of mangos, apples, strawberries, and melons.

Instead of using nori, they are wrapped in a layer of coconut.

Rob Landolphi, University of Connecticut-Storrs’ assistant director of culinary operations, says a sandwich favorite there is its Sweet Melon and Capicola Croissant. These are made in its central production center with a thin layer of Boisen cheese, thin slices of honeydew melon, and a glaze of balsamic vinegar, and arugula. “It combines sweet and sour with a bit of acid bite and is a big seller in our retail operations,” he says.

Landolphini also points to a lunch rotation of four grain salads every day. These may use a wheatberry, barley, quinoa, or farrah base along with fruit or vegetables, often using cranberries or mandarin oranges. Another UConn favorite is a savory Veronique Sweet Potato Stuffed with Cream Cheese, Honey, Grapes, and Sage.

Catering menus can often be more customized than those in dining hall or retail operations and fruit has more opportunities in that context. Santa Cruz’ Martin says one favorite developed by his catering chef, Vince Franco, is a Seared Corbina Sea Bass on a Bed of Local Leeks, Fingerling Potatoes with Local Apple Fennel Citrus Slaw.

When local fresh fruit is not in season, “we often use dried stone fruits like apricots, peaches and berries,” he adds. “One of our Seasonal California Appetizer Platters might feature cheese, sliced local apples, and dried fruits in a Meyer Lemon compote or stone fruit chutney. At Eastern Michigan, Murray roasts and purees plums and peaches that are popular for its catered bruschetta appetizers.

At Yale University, director of culinary excellence Ron DeSantis Sweet Melon & Capicola Croissant will offer grape, apple, or banana University of Conneticut fritters at the traditional Yale weekend Using culinary treatments for stealth brunches. The fruits are dipped in fritter batter, deep fried, and then dusted Culinary initiatives that use fruit as an ingredient, especially with powdered sugar. to complement savory items, are having a much bigger

Get creative with lunch, snacks, & catering More healthful snacks have received a lot of attention as schools look to offer students retail alternatives to traditional items. House-packaged diced fruit, (especially if packaged in cups that are portable) as well as yogurt and fruit yogurt parfaits are very popular. Smoothies made from natural fruits hardly need mentioning.

At lunch, traditional green salads have long been a mainstay offering and it is easy to add fruit either to composed salads or those packaged for grab-and-go.

Wetli likes to do a watermelon salad with red and yellow melons, drizzled with a balsamic vinegar and cornstarch reduction. At Eastern Michigan, dried and diced mango, papaya, and pineapple are offered as toppers at the salad bar.

impact on campuses than is commonly imagined. These efforts are also changing the flavor palate expectations of tomorrow’s consumers.

“If you want to encourage healthy eating you have to change the way college students look at food,” says Michel Westli, Sodexo general manager at George Mason University. “We try to drop as many flavor bombs as we can in our offerings and fruit offers a terrific way to do that. It builds value and gets students out of the fast food rut.”

“We have another chef of Mexican descent who does a lot with avocados and mangos in that way. He makes a lot of purées so that fruit flavor can be blended in a wider variety of applications.”

Similarly, UConn’s Landolphi says that for some retail applications his team will grind apple with chicken to provide a more healthful sandwich or salad protein.

Tips for Produce Purchasing

Eastern Michigan’s Murray likes to buy a fresh-cut mango and pineapple mix: “We will just drain it off and fold it right in to some recipes,” he says. He also uses some of the newer shelf-stable fruit mixes in his cobblers.

“I feel that mango is our “go-to” ingredient with savory dishes,” agrees Kansas State’s Whitehair. “A good example is the Mango Chicken Twister wrap we have offered for years.

We make it using both breaded and unbreaded chicken strips and a house-made mango salsa. Yesterday we offered a smoked turkey sandwich with mango-curried mayonnaise.”

University of CA-Santa Cruz, executive chef Josh Martin points to items like Summer Watermelon Gazpacho Soup and Butternut Squash Bacon and Apple Pizza and Apple Fennel Citrus Slaw as examples of campus favorites that incorporate fruit into the recipe.

For those mid-western students whose tastes still run toward traditional “meat and potatoes meals,” she suggests adding fruit to some casserole dishes items like Kansas State’s Apple Sage Stuffing. And pizza (as always) offers great flexibility for adding fruit to the menu.

Maximizing results When you come right down to it, individual offerings and techniques like these are tactics, not strategies. They become strategic when they are coordinated, as increasing numbers of campus dining departments are seeking to do, when they run supportive promotions to best take advantage of seasonal fruit buys, ensure that produce purchasing and recipe development are planned for the long term and similarly keyed to consumption objectives and seasonal deals.

The big picture suggests that many schools are taking just that kind of approach as they look to encourage healthy student lifestyles and diet in their programs.

When it comes to increasing the amount of produce in everyday college student diets, operators like those interviewed here may not have completely closed the gap, but they are clearly making it narrower. USC strongly emphasized that budget and menu mix must be considerations in addition to nutrition needs. Remember, students won’t eat the food unless it tastes good! Educating, sampling, and involving students in the menu creation process can help ensure a successful fueling program that can benefit all student athletes.

Look hard to buy culls and seconds for onsite processing. Cosmetic blemishes don’t matter if you’re turning fruit into a puree, chutney or glaze, and often can be purchased for a significantly lower price, especially from local sources.

Extend Seasonality. Many schools extend the seasonality of bumper crop fruit deals by freezing or canning excess supplies.

“We are in the center of some of the most productive farming regions in California,” says Josh Martin, executive chef at Santa Cruz. “Right now a lot of fruits are out of season, so we use canned items our catering chef has put up himself to offer items like lemon compote or stone fruit chutney.”

UConn buys skids of local strawberries in season and freezes them for off-season use in strawberry breads, sauces, and syrups.

Work closely with your produce supplier. Some schools prefer to source produce from a distributor specialist while others have great success buying from a prime broadline vendor. There are arguments for both approaches, but to get the most from either means doing more than cherry-picking deals. Work with your primary produce provider to plan and take advantage of seasonal buys and stay on top of weekly supply and price trends. Make sure your buyer visits the supplier’s produce handling facilities to inspect its receiving, storage and shipping procedures first hand.

Most colleges are looking to take maximum advantage of locally grown produce and a knowledgeable distributor can help you vet those sources to make sure they meet best practice standards and have adequate liability insurance. They also have the experience to ensure food-safe transport of produce from local growers to campus loading docks.

Learn to play the produce market. Weather volatility in producing areas can affect quality and availability on a weekly or even daily basis, often adding a good deal of volatility to the cost and quality factors. Stay informed about such trends and ask about your options.

“We lean first toward domestic sources, but leave open the opportunity to buy product from other countries when it is advantageous to do so,” says Toby Gebben, category manager of fruits and vegetables for Gordon Foodservice, a member of Markon produce co-operative. (Gordon supplies both Eastern Michigan and Cornell.)

“If Florida freezes up in the winter, we may source from Mexico, as an example,” he says. He also points to realtime supply updates Gordon provides to customers and to a dedicated smartphone app that provides ongoing alerts about specialty and local product availability, field inspector updates and food safety recalls. He says many customers also like “From the Field” videos that Markon frequently posts on YouTube. These help educate customers in real time about the impact field weather is having on produce and the supply chain.

NUTRITION

“Mangos are a great complement to meat, both because of sweetness and because they serve as a natural tenderizer,” he adds. We try to sneak as much as we can into every dish.”

Produce can be expensive, so dining departments do well to purchase carefully to get the most bang for the budget buck. Here are some common strategies:

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“We do a lot of composition dishes with more than one ingredient,” says Sewanee’s Wright. “A featured entrée may be something like brisket or spare ribs, and when it’s served it will come with peach mango jalapeno salsa, or salmon will come with a mixed fruit salsa. We often offer seared apples next to our breakfast meats or offer a ham dish with apples and pineapple.

MENU IDEA

By: Frank Turchan

Executive Chef

University of Michigan

NUTRITION

process

1

Recipe idea

2

3

Submit recipe to Executive Chef and Registered Dietitian for review

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Chef tests in unit and shares with staff for feedback

4

5 6

Executive Chef reviews product and procedure

Registered Dietitian reviews allergens and nutrition

Send back to Chef to test recipe for a larger yield in unit

Chef and staff make adjustments to recipe

Feature recipe on menu based on the following criteria:

7 Add to menurecipe database

• Seasonality • Nutrition criteria • Vegan/vegetarian options • Seafood options twice or more a week • Halal options • Gluten-free options

1

Creativity/ Menus

2

Budget & CPM

3

Sourcing & Supply Chain

4

Staffing/ Scheduling

5

Food Allergies

6

Nutritional Information

7

Local, Organic, Natural & Sustainable

8

Categorization of Retail

9

Religious Considerations

10

Other

Source: Market research survey of NACUFS’ voting delegates, March 2016

Randy Lait, Director of Hospitality Services North Carolina State

The dining services dietitian/nutrition team is the nutritional education resource for campus programming; they keep the menu planning team and campus abreast of trends in nutrition, healthful eating practices, and recent legislation dealing with nutrition.

Jeanette Moser, Associate Director, Dining Grinnell College

The better-for-you foods (vegetables and whole grains) are usually much more cost effective for foodservice operators and should be the “meat and potatoes” of the customers’ meal plans.

Implementing stricter portion control standards with staff and purchasing right-sized containers for items will help customers be more apt to maintain a healthy diet while enjoying some of the “fun foods” like French fries in moderation!

Elizabeth Shaw, MS, RDN, CLT; President Shaw’s Simple Swaps: Nutrition Communications and Wellness Consulting

NUTRITION

(as ranked by NACUFS’ voting delegates)

At North Carolina State University, we use nutrition information as an indicator of recipe accuracy in our menu and recipe development process. Our nutritionists, using their knowledge of expected calories, fat, sodium, etc., can at a glance review the nutrition data for a recipe and determine from those numbers if the ingredients, quantities, and yields are correct. Correct recipes result in optimal amounts of ingredients to purchase, which provides accurate recipe costing, which leads to informed retail pricing, and promotes healthy margins.

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Menu Planning Priorities

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TM

Creative presentation in a martini glass brings a “wow” response to Tomato Gazpacho with Avocado and Cucumber Salad (Burke J. Reeves, UC Riverside).

Vegetables Take Center Plate On growing numbers of college campuses, chefs are placing vegetables in the center of the plate as the main delicious and compelling attraction, relegating dishes heavy in meat and other proteins to a supporting role. CDT invited four chefs to contribute popular main course vegetable recipes and plate up these dishes to share with their colleagues.

“The demand for vegetable-based dishes is consistently increasing among the Washington University in St. Louis, especially as this conscientious group of students look for ways to reduce their carbon footprint,” says Sara Cox, Bon Appétit Management Company’s research and development chef. “Reducing the amount of animal-based protein is one way that students look to accomplish this.”

At the University of North Dakota, Gregory J. Gefroh, executive chef, reports that “we have seen a 15 percent increase in the consumption of fresh vegetables over the last few years and expect this trend to continue.”

The chefs featured herein hope others will find inspiration from these beautiful, tasty examples of veggies taking on remarkable prominence.

By Donna Boss

Download

RECIPES R e a d C h e f B io ios at N A C U F S ..O ORG

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A colorful arrangement of vegetables combines to create Roasted Vegetable Platter, a sure way to impress catered customers.

Shrimp Grilled on Sugar Cane can be held for one hour.

The shrimp must be ice cold when making the paste.

Burke J. Reeves’ Tomato Gazpacho with Avocado and Cucumber Salad and Roasted Vegetable Platter at University of California, Riverside When Burke J. Reeves, executive chef of retail dining and catering, and his team at UC Riverside want to impress guests at their Citrus Grove catered events, they present the healthy and elegant Tomato Gazpacho with Avocado and Cucumber Salad (article feature photo on page 37) and Roasted Vegetable Platter (above).

Both dishes feature local vegetables from farms located within 250 miles of campus and from UC Riverside R’Garden.

“Our approach to menu development is based on Seeds of Change, a program based on principles of healthy, sustainable menus presented by the Culinary Institute of America and Harvard School of Public Health,” says Burke.

The gazpacho recipe features local tomatoes, avocados, and cucumbers. “The gazpacho is refreshing yet has a little

kick to it,” Burke says. The jalapeno peppers, hot sauce, and garlic contribute zing to the other ingredients including the heirloom tomatoes, champagne vinegar that contributes a nuanced flavor, cucumbers, red bell peppers, parsley, salt and pepper, and extra virgin olive oil.

“The gazpacho requires a light blend and just the right amounts of heat, acidity, and spice,” says Burke. “I make sure the culinary staff consistently taste everything they produce so the outcome of the final recipe has a perfect blend of all the different flavors.”

The flavorful, multi-textured Roasted Vegetable Platter also features local vegetables including wild mushrooms, sweet potatoes, broccolini, cauliflower, baby carrots and baby eggplant. This versatile recipe, which can be customized to match customers’ preferences and produce supply at different times of the year, brings an impressive splash of color to buffet tables and smaller tables featuring family-style meals. Served with artisan breads, cheese, sauces, and charcuterie, this platter provides the culinary team with flexibility.

Burke recommends that these vegetables, also, must be cooked perfectly at a high temperature to maintain their color and flavor. They can be cooked ahead of service and kept in sealed containers in a refrigerator.

Photography by Justin Kuo

FOOD

Fresh vegetables in large quantities are combined with from-scratch pizza dough and alfredo sauce with shredded parmesan cheese to attract customers’ interest.

Gregory J. Gefroh’s Basil Pesto Vegetable Kabobs and Roasted Asparagus, Artichoke, and Spinach Pizza at University of North Dakota in Grand Forks, ND Consumption of fresh vegetables during the past few years has jumped 15 percent at the University of North Dakota thanks to the creative approach of Gregory J. Gefroh, executive chef. Basil Pesto Vegetable Kabobs and Roasted Asparagus, Artichoke, and Spinach Pizza exemplify how Gefroh brings a fresh, healthful addition to residential dining.

Both are served on theme dinner menus and a five-week rotation menu to students and staff.

Though fresh produce comes in daily, local produce grown in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, and Montana comes in only during summer months. Vegetables available locally and at the Farmers Market in Grand Forks include red onion, sweet potatoes, cherry tomatoes, yellow squash, zucchini, and asparagus.

Gefroh developed the Basil Pesto Vegetable Kabobs while he was competing in a contest at the farmers market. Wanting to utilize all the fresh vegetables and herbs available there, he added the basil pesto sauce to “really make the kabobs pop when the vegetables are basted in it.”

When making a successful basil pesto sauce, Gefroh says sourcing the freshest possible basil and removing the leaves from the stems to eliminate a bitter flavor are crucial. “The sweet potato must be steamed then cooled before putting

on the kabob,” Gefroh says. “Otherwise the rest of the vegetables will get overdone.” Kabobs are grilled before serving.

Roasted Asparagus, Artichoke, and Spinach Pizza came about during the process of developing scratch pizza dough and a from-scratch white alfredo sauce that provides a perfect background for bringing out the pretty colors of spring in the vegetables.

“The key to making pizza in general is to start with a good dough,” Gefroh says. “We feel the combination of honey and olive oil in the dough gives it a nice texture.” The pizza dough recipe came about following an event two years ago at which students asked Gefroh if they could have a pizza party. “We invited them into Squires dining center on a Sunday, made them seven-inch personal pan pizzas and they picked toppings. They liked the crust so much we decided to produce it in volume for residential dining.”

When making alfredo from scratch Gefroh advises always using shredded parmesan cheese. It melts nicely and has a smooth and creamy finish. Asparagus and artichoke are versatile spring vegetables that lend themselves well to multiple applications.”

Photography by Charles Crummy, training manager, UND dining services

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D o w n lo load

RECIPES R ea e ad a d C h eeff B io i o s at at N A C U F S ..O ORG

Spring Pea Risotto with Asparagus Nage and Arugula, Oyster Mushroom Salad is best prepared in batches to maintain the bright green color and thickness.

Photography by April Powell, Bon AppĂŠtit Management Company, director of marketing and communication, Washington University in St. Louis

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FOOD

Cox maintains a philosophy to let seasonal ingredients “speak” for themselves.

Sara Cox’s Spring Pea Risotto with Asparagus Nage, and Arugula, Oyster Mushroom Salad and Sweet Summer Corn Puree Soup with Charred Ramps and Cherry Tomatoes at Washington University in St. Louis “Our philosophy is that we prepare menus with what’s in season, what’s fresh, and what our farmer partners may have on hand,” says Sara Cox, Bon Appétit Management Company’s research and development chef who oversees the development and implementation of recipes and menus at Washington University. “This allows our culinary team to be creative and flexible in preparing restaurant quality food in a university café environment.”

For CDT, Cox contributes recipes that are influenced by her childhood backgound. She grew up in the South and started her career at Café DuPont in downtown Birmingham, Alabama. “When I think of spring and summer vegetables I immediately remember going to a local farmer’s market to pick out fresh, seasonal ingredients that were turned into great recipes. I enjoy taking seasonal ingredients and letting them speak for themselves. So much of my early career was shaped around this philosophy and to me this is the best way to cook and eat foods.”

The recipes Cox selects for CDT feature vegetables that are simple in nature and what she believes are the “perfect vehicle to showcase the integrity of these vegetables’ flavors.” Both are featured on chef’s special menus rather than as part of a menu rotation.

Spring Pea Risotto with Asparagus Nage, and Arugula, Oyster Mushroom Salad features sweet peas grown within a 150-mile radius from campus. The purchasing relationships align with Bon Appetit’s and Washington University’s philosophies concerning sustainability and animal husbandry and welfare. The Parmesan cheese in the risotto gives a light saltiness to balance out the sweetness of the fresh peas.

“Make the risotto in batches to maintain the bright green color and thickness and hold under a heat lamp or in a covered warmer to avoid allowing it to thicken up,” says Cox. Locally grown corn, ramps and cherry tomatoes are combined in Sweet Summer Corn Puree Soup with Charred Ramps and Cherry Tomatoes. Cox selected cherry tomatoes for the acidity that cuts through the creaminess of the heavy cream while charred ramps balance out the delicate flavors of the corn. This soup can be held in a bain marie or steamtable. Keep garnishes refrigerated until service.

In any recipe, she says, “mastering the application of heat is the key to consistency.” Chefs must control the heat so ingredients that are meant to sweat don’t end up caramelizing or vice versa because the heat is too high or too low. Also, she says, avoid boiling when the instructions are to slowly reduce because the ability to capture maximum flavor is lost.

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NUTRITION

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d Downloa S IPE

Basting fresh vegetables in basil pesto sauce brings out the flavors of the vegetables on Gefroh’s Basil Pesto Vegetable Kabobs.

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t ef Bios a Read C h NA

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For Sweet Summer Corn Puree Soup with Charred Ramps and Cherry Tomatoes the tomatoes add acidity that cuts through the creaminess of the heavy cream while charred ramps balance out the delicate flavors of the corn. (Sara Cox, Washington University in St. Louis)

FOOD

Asparagus and other vegetable accompaniments with Portobello Filet allow McMurrey and his team to bring an artistic presentation to a dish that serves as a welcome entrée.

Shrimp Grilled on Sugar Cane can be held for one hour.

The shrimp must be ice cold when making the paste.

Chef Dewayne McMurrey’s Portobello Filet at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, TX Impressing customers at Top Tier Catering events is a certainty when Dwayne (Dewey) McMurrey, CEC, ACE, executive chef for operations at Hospitality Services at Texas Tech University, presents Portobello Filet. This recipe is prepared primarily for special dietary requests by customers attending a catered function who don’t want a steak entrée. “The mushroom pulls in robust flavors during the preparation and allows guests to enjoy a truly tasty, yet hearty option,” says McMurrey.

When available, the mushrooms are sourced locally. The quality of the mushrooms is McMurrey’s main criteria for determining the supplier. “With cotton being the primary source of agriculture in this area, Hospitality Services can be limited by which items are locally available,” explains McMurrey. “For this reason, the department works with distributors to purchase products that are grown in Texas when they are in season.”

In order to bring artistry to the presentation, McMurrey cuts the portobello mushrooms like hamburger buns, width-wise, through to the middle to create two discs.

Using a ring cutter, he cuts the caps into a 4-inch diameter size and sets these aside. To cook the recipe’s

dried mushrooms, he sautés the cut caps in a tablespoon of olive oil until tender and caramelized in color and sets these aside. Using the same pan, he adds another tablespoon of olive oil, adds the asparagus and sautés just until tender. He removes the asparagus from the pan and sets it aside to save for making the sauce. Next, he rices the garbanzo beans and seasons.

McMurrey then purees the dry mushrooms with water until smooth and places this in the sauté pan, bringing it to a boil and reducing until the thickness is a medium nappe. He seasons to taste.

To assemble the dish, he places one half portobello cap down first and tops with the garbanzo bean mixture. He adds asparagus tips on top of the garbanzo mixture, tops it with the other half of the cap and pours the dried mushroom sauce over the caps. A starch and vegetable provide appropriate accompaniments. Customers’ positive responses assure McMurrey and his team that this menu item is a keeper.

Photography by Alan Cushman, manager of business development, Hospitality Services at Texas Tech University

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Case study by: Crista Martin, Director for Strategic Initiatives and Communications for Harvard University Dining Services Lyza Bayard, Marketing Communications for Dining & Business Services at Tufts University

You’ve swapped your traditionally sourced apples for a variety from a local orchard, and your students even accept the slightly bruised product because they went on an orientation field trip to the orchard and now know the apples come to your docks in bushel baskets, not cardboard boxes. Or you’ve found a nearby dairy that can meet your volume needs for milk, at only a modest cost increase, and also does home delivery in the neighboring towns; a pasta-maker who makes great tortellini in the next town over, and can also share her story of being an immigrant starting her own business; or even a farmer who is willing to dedicate a small acreage to growing squash just for your campus, which students are encouraged to pick on harvest day.

For many of us, the locavore movement has been a steady and fulfilling process of shifting from one supplier to another. You are perhaps working closely with new partners to explain the nuances of meeting institutional packaging, labeling, volume, and delivery needs.

Once we’ve clipped the low- or even mid-hanging fruit, what’s next?

Often, expanding our sustainable purchasing requires us to shift the traditional purchasing paradigm. It’s comfortable to develop a recipe, identify ingredient needs, source products through existing vendors, compare prices, add to our order, and then move on to the next task.

What if we don’t start with the recipe or ingredients, and instead we start with the relationship?

Several Boston-area schools recently found a new way to expand local purchasing, bucking the traditional supply chain approach and partnering with two unique programs to procure local fish and local pasta sauce.

Local Fish New England fishing and fishermen are hallmarks of the rugged coastal vision. In reality, the fishing industry is under great pressure from regulations and a narrow consumer view of (or familiarity with) what is edible or easy to cook, not unlike farmers or any other range of food-based businesses.

Both Harvard University Dining Services (HUDS) and Tufts University Dining Services sought to expand local seafood purchasing to further support the local economy.

While more traditional vendors were responsive partners in advancing sustainable choices, being able to tell the full story of a fish and the fisherman who caught it was not probable.

Harvard and Tufts began talking to upstart seafood vendor Red’s Best, founded in 2008 by Jared Auerbach, a young Boston fisherman who had worked on commercial vessels in Alaska and Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Based on his fishing industry experience, Jared established Red’s Best to support New England day boat fishermen by finding markets for their catch—their whole catch, not just the most popular species.

Red’s Best works with approximately 1,000 fishermen unloading their daily catch, preparing the fish for sale (including cleaning, filleting, and packaging) and finding buyers. By eliminating the traditional wholesale fish auction and multiple middle-men, Red’s Best ensures that the fishermen receive more of the profit for the fish they catch.

The fish are uniquely tracked as they are offloaded, so even a diner can learn about who caught what they are eating and where.

(continued on page 49)

LOCAL SOURCING

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Local Sourcing , So What’s Next?

Efforts to manage fisheries and restore fish stocks in the Atlantic Ocean have instituted catch limits that sometimes challenge a New England fisherman’s ability to make a viable living, especially when consumers have a narrow view of what species they can or like to eat. As a result, the local fishing community has dwindled over recent decades.

To create a continuous and guaranteed revenue stream for Boston-area fishermen, Red’s Best and HUDS determined to use by-catch, be creative with recipes to highlight the fish, and serve it as the “Catch of the Week.”

The program features underutilized species, making local seafood consumption sustainable by: • utilizing a fisherman’s full catch, • introducing new varieties of fish—all selected for their ease of cooking and familiar flavor profile, if not name— to consumers (species procured have included hake, haddock, pollock, skate, monkfish, and dogfish), • and ensuring a fisherman can sell the full day’s catch at a pre-determined price, making his costs to fish a worthwhile investment.

The relationship also advances Harvard’s and Tufts’ efforts to “serve more kinds of seafood more often,” a key principle of the “Menus of Change” initiative. (Menus of Change is The Business of Healthy, Sustainable, Delicious Food Choices is a ground-breaking initiative developed

by The Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in collaboration with Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. (See more at menusofchange.org) How it Works for Harvard and Tufts: • Determine a day of the week for the “Catch” program.

Identify total locations and volume of fish needed. For Harvard, the program grew from one day a week to two, with local fish served at 13 residential locations and five retail cafes, for a total of almost 1,800 pounds per week.

For Tufts, the local catch is served once a week for dinner at two residential locations for a total of about 150 pounds a week.

• Red’s Best and Harvard agreed on a single set price per pound regardless of which of the “underutilized” varieties of fish are used.

• Tufts reviews Red’s Best fish choices weekly and each chef manager selects which fish they want to serve.

Then, Tufts orders the fish at market price.

• Orders are submitted to the campuses’ foodservice distributor for the Red’s Best catches, modifying volume modestly as appropriate. The foodservice distributor receives the fish from Red’s Best and includes it in the regular deliveries on the appropriate day.

• At Harvard, Red’s Best informs purchasing of the type of fish being delivered (as needed, the “Catch” might be split between more than one kind of fish, though each dining hall will only receive one kind of fish).

Purchasing then informs chefs which fish will arrive and what preparation is needed (most recipes are applicable to multiple kinds of seafood). Tufts chefs know as they selected the fish of the week.

• At the time of service, point-of-sale signs and social media showcase the type of fish, including information on the fisherman and fishing vessel that caught the fish—as traceable through the Red’s Best proprietary tracing software. Additional education at the point-of service highlights the type of fish and some history of New England fishing.

• Further educational programs also familiarize guests with Red’s Best and allow students to better understand the local fishing industry. These include visits from Red’s Best to the dining halls, and events such as Tufts’ annual Under the Sea dinner, Harvard’s tours of the Red’s facility on the Boston Fish Pier, or cooking classes.

The program has been well-received by students and staff alike. Student comments include: “Catch of the Day was excellent yet again! This is a great initiative that you guys have come up with.”

“That skate, so good, I ate three pieces, no joke. Really, really liking the “Catch of the Day” program!!!”

“Big fan of the Catch of the Day today.

The pollock was mild, not at all fishy, and accentuated with the lemon and butter nicely. The texture was that of proper white fish. Looking forward to more Catch of the Day.” As student demand and acceptability increases, Harvard’s preliminary projection is that HUDS will serve approximately 12,000 pounds more seafood this year than last.

LOCAL SOURCING

Finally, Harvard and Red’s Best realized they could alter their thinking. Instead of supplying a specific fish, Red’s instead sought to supply a range of fish: the countless “other” fish that are caught each day, known as by-catch.

And that’s where sustainable sourcing began.

• Several standard recipes are established for the “Catch of the Week,” recognizing that a number of traditional cooking methods could be applied to any of the specified fish. These recipes are readily available based on the fish and preparation selected. All rely on common ingredients in the kitchen, and therefore don’t require additional sourcing or ordering.

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When Harvard and Red’s Best began talking about specific species, it was very hard for Red’s to supply the volume (750-900 lbs. at a serving) Harvard needed of traditional fish at a price Harvard could accept. For more than a year, the potential partners kept trying. Maine shrimp? Cod? Nothing seemed to fit.

Local Tomato Sauce

LOCAL SOURCING

Along with the Red’s Best partnership, Harvard and Tufts have successfully partnered with a local food entrepreneur, Karl Dias, last summer to develop a custom marinara sauce for each university. The goal: to increase utilization of locally grown produce in a less traditional manner when the produce is at its peak, but the students aren’t at school.

As with Red’s Best, first came the partnership. Dias presented the opportunity of creating a product based on “dropped” tomatoes: fruits that are otherwise less sale-able due to blemishes yet still nutritious and fresh. Potential products were discussed and the partners agreed on pasta sauce, with the incentive of developing a recipe without added sugar, with less salt, and none of the preservatives found in commercially available sauces.

Having both schools partner with Diaz simultaneously provided economies of scale. While the final product cost is higher, the sauce is better and the process was beneficial to the local farming community.

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120,000 pounds of tomatoes were used to yield 14,000 gallons of sauce for Harvard, while 34,000 pounds of tomatoes yielded 4,000 gallons of sauce for Tufts.

Each school also has a unique recipe!

“It’s really important to find creative solutions to the sustainable food challenge,” says David Davidson, Managing Director for Harvard University Dining Services. “This sauce is a great example of thinking out of the box to expand local purchasing. When you serve as many meals as we do, you have a real opportunity to support the vital local agriculture economy.”

“Tufts Dining is proud to strengthen our local supplier and producer relationships to improve the food system. These initiatives are in line with our department and university goals for increasing sustainability. At the heart of it all are the relationships and finding more ways to work together,” says Patti Klos, Director Dining & Business Services for Tufts University.

Dias collected tomatoes from six area farms to make the fresh marinara sauce. The recipe was originally intended to use “dropped” tomatoes; but, with the overwhelming yield this season, Dias had many top-grade tomatoes to work with because farmers couldn’t sell them fast enough.

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NACUFS 2016 National Conference

GENERAL SESSIONS Thursday, July 14 • Conversations with Jillian Michaels JILLIAN MICHAELS Fitness Expert & Wellness Coach Jillian Michaels is one of the leading health and wellness experts in the country; educating, inspiring and motivating millions through her bestselling books, fitness DVDs, award-winning Podcast, and hit TV shows. As a fitness expert and wellness coach for over 20 years, Michaels has established an impressive media empire. Want to learn ways to engage your customers in healthful initiatives? Want to know what health-conscious students today are looking for in their dining options? Want to learn how to motivate and inspire from one of the best in the business? Join us for an interactive town-hall session and learn from one of the leading authorities on all things healthy—Jillian Michaels!

Friday, July 15 • A Brief History of the Future of Food ROBERT ROSENTHAL Food Humorist An entertaining look into the food industrial complex and our complex relationship with what we eat, Robert Rosenthal delivers cogent yet entertaining insights into our culture’s obsession with food. Armed with a professional culinary degree and a standup comedy background, he speaks from experience with authority and humor. Renowned for presenting content with comedy on four continents, Rob developed award-winning ad campaigns for Anheuser-Busch, Heineken, Evian and Absolut…while overeating in 3,000 restaurants around the world. He is the resident “food humorist” at food and drink megasite “The Daily Meal,” who Advertising Age calls “undoubtedly one of the industry’s most colorful characters.”

Saturday, July 16 • If You Can See It, You Can Be It CHEF JEFF HENDERSON America’s Human Potential Coach Inspirational speaker, best-selling author, and TV celebrity, Chef Jeff knows what it feels like to be hungry. He knows what it is to struggle. In this presentation he shares two decades of life lessons that he gained on his redemptive journey from drug dealer to TV celebrity chef to nationally acclaimed speaker. With his 12 inspiring and pragmatic street-smart recipes for success, audiences will discover their hidden business aptitudes, make life-changing decisions, and secure personal and professional success.

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July 13-16, 2016 Anaheim, California

The 2016 National Conference Committee invites you to Imagine, Discover, and Explore Anaheim and all the city and our conference have to offer. Prepare to be enlightened and entertained by our education program. Feast and be amazed by our food and beverage offerings, and navigate our networking opportunities to engage with your peers and friends. You get the IDEA.

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SUPER SESSIONS: THURSDAY, JULY 14 N AT I O N A L CO N F E R E N C E

Attend one of two concurrent Super Sessions presented by industry experts: Culinary Institute of America (CIA) — Menus of Change Join a panel of CIA’s Menus of Change University Research Collaborative (MCURC) participants and NACUFS members for a discussion and case study presentation detailing the work being done by the MCURC. The vision of this group is “to collaborate on research and education in support of culinary-centric, evidence-based food systems innovation within and beyond universities.” This presentation will share the work the collaborative is doing and help you understand how you, as operators, can learn from it.

Disney Concepts You won’t want to miss this presentation focused on two strengths of Disney: concept development and customer experience. Disney representatives will share the processes and challenges associated with the development of a new concept and how they ensure the customer experience meets their high expectations.

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CULINARY CHALLENGE Come one, come all to the 16th NACUFS Culinary Challenge. Pans will be sizzling, knives will be moving with speed and precision and competition will be fierce, as the six contestants chosen in regional challenges earlier this year face off and race against the clock in this American Culinary Federation-sanctioned contest. The challenge is classified as a Category W — Customized Wildcard Competition.

Individual competitors will have 60 minutes to prepare four portions of an original hot entrée, featuring the mandatory ingredients of edamame, black kale and red rice, to create a nutritionally balanced plate. In addition, the competitors will be judged on two classic knife skills.

Three ACF-approved judges will select the winners. Contestants will be judged on the taste of the finished product, the demonstration of cooking skills and culinary techniques, and the practice of organizational skills, including sanitation principles. ACF gold, silver, and bronze medals will be awarded on competition point totals.

All participants will receive certificates.

Be sure to stop by and cheer for your region’s competitor!

28TH ANNUAL JACK KEMPER GOLF OUTING

REGISTRATION FEE!

Wednesday July 13, 2016 • Shotgun start at 8:00 a.m.

EARLY BIRD RATES (Discount deadline May 27)

Additional registration and fees apply.

WE ARE ABLE TO PROVIDE SUCH A HIGH-QUALITY CONFERENCE THANKS TO OUR SPONSORS. For a complete list of our sponsors, please visit www.NACUFS.org/2016 To become a sponsor and support the NACUFS 2016 National Conference in Anaheim, please contact sponsorship chairs Tom Driscoll, driscoll@uoregon.edu and Dianna Benting, dbenting@pcc.edu. You can find the sponsorship brochure online at NACUFS.org/2016.

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Member $630 Non-Member $1,030

REGULAR CONFERENCE REGISTRATION Member $820 Non-Member $1,220

DAILY RATES Early Bird Regular

$265 per day $295 per day

Note: Times and events are subject to change. All events take place at the Anaheim Marriott unless otherwise noted.

WEDNESDAY, JULY 13 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

NACUFS Café

3:15 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.

First-Time Conference Attendees Orientation

6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Theodore W. Minah Reception

7:00 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.

Theodore W. Minah Dinner and Award Presentation

THURSDAY, JULY 14 Awards Breakfast

8:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.

Super Session: Disney Concepts

8:45 a.m. – 10:15 a.m.

Super Session: CIA – Menus of Change Panel

10:45 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

General Session: Jillian Michaels

12:45 p.m. – 4:45 p.m.

Showcase at the Anaheim Convention Center

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7:30 a.m. – 8:30 a.m.

— more than 430 exhibitor booths 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Culinary Challenge

5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Industry Appreciation Reception

FRIDAY, JULY 15 7:30 a.m. – 8:45 a.m.

Regional Breakfasts

9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.

General Session: Robert Rosenthal

10:45 a.m. – 1:45 p.m.

Showcase at the Anaheim Convention Center

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CONFERENCE AGENDA

— more than 430 exhibitor booths 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m.

Interest Sessions & Member Forums

3:20 p.m. – 4:20 p.m.

Interest Sessions & Member Forums

4:45 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

General Membership Assembly

9:00 p.m. – 11:00 p.m.

Club NACUFS

SATURDAY, JULY 16 7:30 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Continental Breakfast

8:15 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.

Interest Sessions & Member Forums

9:35 a.m. – 10:35 a.m.

Interest Sessions & Member Forums

10:50 a.m. – 12:35 p.m.

General Session: Chef Jeff Henderson

12:50 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Loyal E. Horton Dining Awards Luncheon

6:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Closing Event at Disney California Adventure®

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CONFERENCE REGISTRATION EARLY BIRD DEADLINE: MAY 27, 2016 Register online for conference and golf outing. Stay at an official conference hotel and receive your registration discount!

NACUFS 2016 National Conference July 13-16, 2016 Anaheim, California

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REGIONAL CONFERENCE HIGHLIGHTS MID-ATLANTIC REGIONAL CONFERENCE March 6-8, 2016 | Liberty University | Lynchburg, Virginia 1.

College has become a bridge between the safe home environment and the real world. We can teach students with food allergies to advocate for themselves. (Beth Winthrop)

2. “Playing in the NFL, you have the awesome responsibility of giving back to the community.

I’ve found ways to give back to the little kid I was. It made the NFL make sense to me.”

(Rashad Jennings) 3. As leaders, we have to create a culture that allows our employees to deliver “wow” service.

Enthusiasm and caring are the key ingredients to leading. (Dr. Jim Earle) 4. Partnerships across campus are essential to implementing a successful health and wellness program, which encompasses way more than nutrition and exercise. (Jamie Swyers) 5. Cooking methods and innovative ingredient combinations contribute exponentially to complexity of flavor in healthy cooking. (Lisa DeStefano)

MIDWEST REGIONAL CONFERENCE March 8-10, 2016 | The Ohio State University | Columbus, Ohio 1.

People like real—they crave attention and authenticity—people are more than just what’s written on a piece of paper. (Todd Dewitt)

2. Energy + Enthusiasm + Staff/Team + Customs + Success + IT Factor = You (Ken Wasco) 3. Trends and the Menu Adoption Cycle (inception, adoption, proliferation, ubiquity). (Jack Li) 4. Buckets and Dippers: Buckets are full of motivation. Dippers are negativism, confusion, stress, doubt, fear, and draining motivation. As a leader your job is to keep everyone’s buckets filled. A key element to keeping buckets full is excellent communication.

5. Closing Dinner: As Greg Minner started to describe the winner of the Distinguished Service Award for the Midwest region, everyone listened in anticipation. Speechless and full of emotion, everyone stood up and applauded as Jon Lewis’ wife and son walked up to accept the award for the late Jon Lewis.

NORTHEAST REGIONAL CONFERENCE March 16-19, 2016 | University of Buffalo | Buffalo, New York 1.

You cannot be frustrated with millennials for using different tools to get the same job done. (Meagan Johnson)

2.

11 emotional behaviors that derail you: High-risk excitable, skeptical, cautious, reserved, leisurely, bold, mischievous, colorful, imaginative, diligent, dutiful. None of these are bad traits, it’s knowing your strengths and weaknesses and finding a good balance. Too much of one behavior can lead to failure, resistance and miscommunication. (Frank Ciccia)

3.

When you have something that knocks you down, how quickly can you move forward and recover from it? That makes all the difference. (Jim Kelly)

4.

It’s not how bad the situation is, it’s what you do about it. How can you make things better?

(Jim Kelly)

5.

Brand is more than the logo, it’s emotional connection with organization. (IAC Presentation)

5. Over 12 interest sessions on a variety of great topics from building renovation, workplace communication, local foods, branding, mobile technology, and invasive fish.

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1.

Negative thinking often leads to drawing inaccurate conclusions INTO RACING THE FUTURE about events and people. Positive thinking allows you to suspend judgement about events and people to stay in a good mindset. (Erika Oliver)

NACUFS SOUTHERN REGIONAL CONFERENCE 2016 | MURRAY STATE UNIVERSITY | MURRAY, KY | MARCH 20-22

2. The renovation design and construction planning must incorporate the need to constantly manage the project from a global and integrated perspective. (University of North Carolina, Greensboro) 3. Companies and universities have explicit and clear guidelines around branding because they want potential customers and students to be clear about what they are offering (value proposition). (IAC presentation)

CONTINENTAL-PACIFIC REGIONAL CONFERENCE March 27-30, 2016 | Coeur d’Alene Golf and Spa Resort | Coeur d’Alene, Idaho 1.

“When you put chocolate on bacon, it becomes vegan.” You cannot believe everything you hear. Ideas of what is good versus bad are constantly changing. (Dr. Jim Painter)

2. Losing weight has the most direct link to improving overall health.

Portion control is key. Giving smaller plates leads to eating less without a change in satisfaction of the serving size. (Dr. Jim Painter) 3. Major trends in nutrition and dining services: increase in demand for plant based menu items (veg centric), need to be aware of food insecurity on campus (there is a greater need for food pantries and subsidies to allow for healthy meal options), looking to provide more nutrient dense options. (Lindsey Pine, Tara Sanders, Christine Carlson) 4. Some students are asking for the healthier, plant based menu items but most will eat and enjoy them when offered. Make the food attractive. Don’t label it as vegan/vegetarian/etc. just give it a name that fits what it is. (Lindsey Pine) 5. Data is the most powerful tool!! We need to be collecting data all of the time. How are we looking for trends? How many ways are we looking for trends? Turn the data on its head.

(Stephen Rose)

2016 NACUFS REGIONAL CULINARY CHALLENGE WINNERS Continental: Chef Juan Garcia - University of Utah Mid-Atlantic: Robert Higgins – Rutgers University Midwest: Charu Chandra Pant – University of Notre Dame Northeast: Joshua Fontaine – Yale University Pacific: Chef Kue Her - U Cal San Diego Southern: Jonathan Elwell – Georgia Institute of Technology

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4. Monday night dinner at Barkley Lodge on Lake Barkley, part of the Western Kentucky “Land Between the Lakes” development. Beautiful cool evening with the sunset, good food, drink and live band.

REGIONAL CONFERENCES

SOUTHERN REGIONAL CONFERENCE March 20-22, 2016 | Murray State University | Murray, Kentucky

5!

O ZZ I

NA S C U ee Ju F l S Bo y 13 Co ot -15 nve at h , 20 ntio 7 0 16 n

NACUFS webinars are an excellent way to support and promote excellence on your campus through education, engagement, and learning. Webinars also provide a cost-effective and viable alternative to off-site education.

This fall NACUFS introduces a group of well-respected and top-notch speakers to help you and your campus: • Understand the importance and critical components of program assessment • Start off on the right foot with a new renovation project • Plan for rolling out and sustaining a new customer service culture

N AC U F S E D U C AT I O N

NACUFS webinars

WHAT IS PROGRAM ASSESSMENT? (TENTATIVE) Tuesday, October 11, 2016, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. (EST) Evaluating and measuring your operational performance is critical to an effective campus dining program.

This webinar will present how the University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW) began and completed a program assessment. Join Ann Roebuck and Sharon Boyd as they discuss the important value of assessments, the component parts, and the results from the work at UNCW. Presenters: Ann Roebuck, Project Manager, Envision Strategies and Sharon Boyd, Associate Vice Chancellor for Business Services, University of North Carolina Wilmington.

IDEATION: THE FIRST STEP IN THE FACILITY DESIGN PROCESS Tuesday, October 25, 2016, 4 p.m. – 5 p.m. (EST) Where do you start? The architects want to dive right in, the financial people want to finalize the budget, the operations people need a space that will function, the construction people want to know where to put the plumbing, and the campus population wants something new and exciting to satisfy their wide range of needs. Join Tarah Schroeder and Karen Malody, faculty members of the Foodservice Design Bootcamp, for an introduction to Ideation and Visioning, critical first steps in building a new foodservice facility.

Presenters: Tarah Schroeder, Principal, Director of Sustainability, Ricca Design Studios and Karen Malody, Culinary Options

EXTRAORDINARY CUSTOMER SERVICE Tuesday, November 8, 2016 What are the key behaviors that DRIVE customer satisfaction on your campus? How do you develop a roll-out program to launch your customer service initiative? How do you effectively train, reinforce and incentivize behaviors to solidify your new customer service culture? Join TJ Schier, a popular NACUFS conference and institute presenter, who develops programs for contract management companies and universities across the country.

Presenter: TJ Schier, SMART Restaurant Group

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N AC U F S E D U C AT I O N

2016 OPERATOR ROUNDTABLES AND FOODSERVICE DIRECTORS SYMPOSIUM/CHEF SUMMIT Hilton, St. Charles Avenue, New Orleans

JANUARY 19-22 2016 OPERATOR ROUNDTABLES – JANUARY 20, 2016 In January, 30 foodservice directors and chefs met in New Orleans with about 30 industry representatives for NACUFS’ annual one-day operator roundtables. The roundtables provide each industry member an opportunity to meet face-to-face for 20 minutes with each director and chef from 15 member schools.

“The operators [schools] were totally engaged and focused on our programs, they had great questions!” stated one industry member.

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The program format is often described as business speed-dating because it facilitates information sharing and relationship building between foodservice companies and collegiate foodservice buyers.

“It was a good opportunity for one-on-one dialogue with the vendors; there were some products which I was not aware of,” said one foodservice director.

The two-day foodservice director symposium and chef summit were hosted on January 21-22 by Kory Samuels and Don LaFlam from the Rochester Institute of Technology. Small group break-outs allowed each group of professionals to share their current challenges, and to listen to peers talk about creative approaches and solutions to pressing campus-wide operational and culinary issues (see sidebar).

Tom Tucker from The Pulse Group was the invited speaker, and spoke about the strategic imperative for collegiate foodservices to go beyond customer demographics and psychographics to stay relevant and competitive. He emphasized leveraging fresh food, local flavors, and global comfort food to capture today’s millennial student.

Small changes made in this year’s format combined with dinner at Chef Donald Link’s award-winning restaurant, Herbsaint, enhanced and infused new energy into this year’s gathering in New Orleans.

2016 FOODSERVICE DIRECTORS SYMPOSIUM & CHEF SUMMIT HIGHLIGHTS TOP CAMPUS CHALLENGES FOR FOODSERVICE DIRECTORS • Managing student and leadership expectations • Recruiting and retaining skilled staff • Articulating our value proposition to campus leadership – Telling Our Story

TOP CAMPUS CHALLENGES FOR CHEFS • Simplifying processes to develop and implement new menu items • Engaging and motivating culinary staff throughout the year • Managing the explosion in themed events on campus

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