AMS Food and Beverage Department is the second largest provider of food services on campus, owned and operated by the students of UBC. One hundred per cent of the net profits are turned over to the students’ society to fund valuable services and resources to be enjoyed by all of the students at UBC. SafeWalk, Tutoring, Volunteer Connect, Minischool, and the Food Bank are just some of the many programs funded by the proceeds generated from the AMS businesses.

The AMS Food and Beverage Department is committed to providing sustainably and locally produced foods whenever possible, supporting applied learning on food-related issues, reducing waste, and fostering positive changes through staff training, menu design, and various community events.

Several other campus food providers, such as Sprouts, Agora, and UBC Food Services, are also committed to providing healthy and sustainable food at UBC. Together, we serve over 30-million meals annually, and your everyday dinning choices will help us make a difference on and beyond campus.

FOOD SOURCING

• A herb garden was planted in the SUB courtyard in 2009, with 11 large herb pots that are used by AMS Food and Beverage Department.
• A produce procurement liaison (contract position) was hired in 2008 to create new relationships with local producers and identify steps to further increase local and sustainable procurement. A detailed report can be found here .
• All dry goods and vegetables are purchased from local companies whenever possible. For example, when in season, much of the vegetables come from the UBC Farm, Delta, and only as far as the Fraser Valley.
• All eggs AMS Food and Beverage Department served are cage free since 2008.
• All coffee is certified organic, shade grown, and Fair Trade since 2004.

TEACHING AND LEARNING

AMS Food and Beverage Department has actively supported and worked with AGSCI 450 teaching team and students, UBC Food System Project coordinator, UBC Sustainability office, and the SEEDS program manager in designing collaborative research projects, providing ongoing support, and implementing findings and recommendations. Selected projects include:

• A Lighter Footprint menu line called LOV (Local, Organic, and Vegan) in 2008 to raise awareness of the impact of everyday food choices and help customers make more informed purchasing choices.
• An initial monthly “Eco-Friendly Day” to promote the LOV product line, which has been expanded to a monthly Eco-Friendly menu that features the most in-season LOV items.
• Implemented AGSC 450 proposals on recipe development, procurement, waste reduction, and awareness campaigns.

COMMUNICATION

• We created an AMS sustainability outlet officer position for all AMS food outlets in an effort to increase the success of outlet participation in AMS sustainability initiatives and provide a mechanism for staff to discuss new ideas and existing challenges.
• Raise awareness through various community events, such as the first AMS Farmer’s Market, AMS Annual Farmade , and Imagine Day Green Lounge during undergraduate student orientation.
• Encourage staff and managers to participate in sustainability-related workshops, in order to learn new skills that will help identify and overcome internal and external barriers to better sustainability practices.
• Implemented various AGSC 450 proposals, such as the LOV (Local, Organic, and Vegan) menu line. Please check out “Teaching and Learning” for more information.

WASTE

• Reuse/reduce before recycle: customers who bring their own mug for hot drinks or containers for meals receive a $0.25 discount. All AMS employees are strongly encouraged to lead by example and use reusable containers and service ware from the office kitchen to reduce the use of disposable containers.
• Responsible purchasing: All napkins are made from post-consumer recycled material. In addition, all foam coffee cups (lid excluded), plastic cutlery, and 1000ml foam containers have been replaced with compostable ones, and a full switch to 100 per cent compostable containers is planned for 2010.
• Composting: The first pre-consumer composting program was introduced into AMS Food and Beverage Department in 2003. Now the program has been expanded to every AMS food outlet and we compost 100 per cent of our pre-consumer food waste. We have also included post-consumer composting stations at AMS eating areas, and are working on incorporating more tri-bin waste stations around the SUB.