Scott BresslerBon App‚tit Management Company, the food service used by many universities and corporations including Washington University, Nordstrom, Inc. and Target, is introducing a new low-carbon diet. With this new initiative, Bon App‚tit aims to reduce carbon emissions and, in turn, lessen the greenhouse effect.
Maisie Greenawalt, the director of communications and strategic initiatives at Bon App‚tit headquarters in California, said that this project has been in the works for a year due to a general discontent concerning climate change.
“As [we] looked in, we found several studies that were dramatic,” said Greenawalt. “Agriculture accounts for one third of greenhouse gases. In many ways, food choices are more important than car choice. It was clear we had to do something.”
Some changes, beginning on Earth Day (April 22), that Greenawalt says will be behind the scenes include sourcing all of their meat, poultry and vegetables from North America.
“This has an impact because [we] are reducing the transportation of food,” said Greenawalt.
Noticeable changes for customers will commence on Earth Day of 2008, including comparative information about low- and high-carbon meals and the carbon impact of certain foods over that of others. According to Greenawalt, another change may not be so apparent to customers.
“In St. Louis, you can’t get tomatoes year-round locally,” she said. “We might stop serving tomatoes with every hamburger in winters, which you may or may not notice unless you really love tomatoes. The overarching message is that conscious food choices reduce climate change. If you really want the tomato, you can get it. If you don’t or you don’t care, don’t take the tomato.”
One more area in which students can make conscious food choices is their frequency of buying hamburgers.
“Livestock production accounts for 18 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, which is mostly from beef. If you currently have a hamburger four times a week, could you cut back to three and reduce carbon emissions by 25 percent? To me, that seems very doable.”
Additionally, students can decrease how much they make bananas a breakfast staple.
“Bananas are a very high-carbon item,” said Greenawalt. “They are grown far away and must be brought rapidly back so that they don’t spoil. In the morning with breakfast, do you have to have a banana every day, or can you eat dried cranberries? [These] aren’t major trade-offs but are small things that can have a really big impact.”
This initiative is in line with Bon App‚tit’s “green” mentality. According to its Web site, the food service was the first to deal with issues relating to the source of its food and how its food is grown. It has won several awards for its practices, including the Ecological Society of America Corporate Award and the Humane Society of the United States Excellence in Food Service Award.
And Greenawalt says this initiative won’t greatly cost the company.
“It will be cost-neutral,” she said. “Some components will cost a little more, some less. The big component in greenhouse emissions is waste. There will be a big push in reducing waste, then in helping consumers reduce their waste next year. Buying products in the U.S. that are more expensive will be offset by waste savings.”
Jacob Leemaster, a junior, is a little skeptical concerning how students will react to this initiative.
“There will be a small number who are pro, a larger number who will be annoyed and the majority won’t care,” said Leemaster. “It is a nice sentiment and effort, but it might be a little short-sighted in that it fails to address other greenhouse gases like water vapor and methane. Overall, though, I do think it’s a good thing because local food always tastes better than food not grown locally.”
On the other hand, Greenawalt thinks that customers as a whole will be thrilled about the initiative.
“People will be really excited to see these simple things that they can do that have great power,” she said. “Bon App‚tit Management Company was the first to make the connection between food and climate change. Students should feel good being on the cutting edge and getting information so that they can take action early.”