Every day the University Dining Services feeds 3,940 mouths. According to the director of Food Services, Tom Driscoll, the real challenge is providing a variety of local and organic food options for students.
In the past five years Driscoll has seen a push for more local, sustainable food options at the University of Oregon. Students have become much more interested in where their food comes from and what exactly they’re eating. This trend is also evident on a national scale.
The price and efficiency, however, pose a problem for the UO when buying local.
“You always have to weigh quality, cost and availability. It’s like a matrix you put together,” Driscoll said. “It doesn’t always spell out local, but a lot of times it does.”
On average, the UO spends about $7 million on food products each year. Most of that revenue comes from room and board, as well as UO catering income. About $1 million of that budget goes toward purchasing locally grown and produced food items that amount to about 20 percent of the total food purchased. The UO often pays a higher price for these products in comparison to what they could through other avenues.
The percentage of local foods fluctuates based on what is readily available for our location. Snack foods, and some produce like bananas, may never be purchased locally due to a lack of supply.
Distribution is a key challenge for many local farmers. Many don’t have an efficient method to deliver large amounts of product. According to Driscoll, it would be a lot more efficient to go through only one or two suppliers.
According to the University Housing website, the UO partners with over 20 local farmers and producers. Some consist of exclusive partnership where they specially produce a certain product for the school. For example, the pinto beans served at Big Mouth Burrito (one of the nine dining venues on campus) are specifically produced for UO by a local company in the Willamette Valley.
“Once you have a relationship with farmers, it leads to other opportunities,” Driscoll said.
The University connects with farmers through an annual meeting hosted by Lane Community College that brings farmers, ranchers, fishermen and the potential buyers together, as well as through the Willamette Farm and Food Coalition.
Most of the locally grown food products the UO has offered in the past have predominately been fruit and vegetable produce. Now, an increasing amount of beef and dairy products are starting to travel from a shorter distance as more quantity is readily available.
Still, despite the challenges, students are the main policy driver for local food.
In 2009, the Office of Sustainability’s co-curricular programs coordinator Shelley Bowerman (then a senior) helped to cultivate Project Tomato, a student orientation group that seeks to bring more local food items to campus.
“With dining services it’s important for students to advocate for what they want to see on their plate because the institution responds and cares about that demand,” Bowerman said.
The program is designed to provide students with the opportunity to become more involved in the food system. It is housed under the Office of Sustainability and partners with the Urban Farm and Dining Services.
After being a vegetarian for five years, freshman Kiara Kashuba became curious about where her food comes from. Through Project Tomato, she was able witness the life cycle of a tomato, from farm to table.
Before the start of fall classes, she, along with other Project Tomato students, bicycled to local Eugene farms, harvested organic tomatoes and worked with dining services to process them into pizza sauce.
“We take our food for granted and don’t take into consideration all the implications,” Kashuba said. “It’s a vital part of life and something we overlook.”