SUSTAINABILITY PRINCIPLESHarvard University is committed to developing and maintaining an environment that enhances human health and fosters a transition toward sustainability. Sustainability should be advanced through research, analysis, and experience gained over time. To that end, Harvard University is committed to continuous improvement in:Demonstrating institutional practices that promote sustainability, including measures to increase efficiency and use of renewable resources, and to decrease production of waste and hazardous materials, both in Harvard’s own operations and in those of its suppliers.Promoting health, productivity, and safety of the University community through design and mainte-nance of the built environment.Enhancing the health of campus ecosystems and increasing the diversity of native species.•••Developing planning tools to enable comparative analysis of sustainability implications and to support long-term economic, environmental, and socially responsible decision-making.Encouraging environmental inquiry and institutional learning throughout the University community.Establishing indicators for sustainability that will enable monitoring, reporting, and continuous improvement.•••HARVARD UNIVERSITY DINING SERVICES (HUDS)From 13 dining halls, 14 restaurants, and a catering program, we serve 25,000 meals daily. We share our passion for and knowledge of food with our community, thereby raising our collective understanding of food’s nutritional, historical, and agricultural importance.THE FOOD LITERACY PROJECT (FLP)The FLP’s mission is to cultivate an understanding of food from the ground up. Education focuses on four integrated areas of food and society: sustain-ability, nutrition, food preparation, and community. Ultimately, the project’s goal is to promote enduring knowledge, enabling consumers to make informed food choices.In addition to promoting community in our daily operations, the FLP also draws together the Har-vard Community at its on-campus farmers’ market, cooking classes, film screenings, and other events. Students, faculty, and staff find opportunities to take pleasure in and learn from the food they share. HUDS’ DEFINITION OF SUSTAINABILITYHUDS is committed to purchasing and operational practices and menu choices that sustain the health and well-being of the environment, communities, and the people producing and eating food. Ongoing education of ourselves and our customers is crucial to evolving sustainable practices and issues related to dining.This philosophy addresses three core areas:ENVIRONMENTALsupport purchasing and operational prac-tices that are not detrimental to the planet ECONOMICencourage financial well-being for both producers and buyersSOCIALinfluence fair treatment of workers; and support family farms and small businessesAt a given time, HUDS’ produce comes from any of the 25 farms in the Pioneer Valley Growers Association (PVGA) and 220 farms in the Southeastern Massachusetts Agricultural Partnership (SEMAP).The Pioneer Valley Growers Association is a cooperative of farmers located in the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts. The PVGA distributes fruit and produce grown by local farmers to supermarket chains within Massachusetts and throughout New England.The mission of the PVGA is to provide consumers with the freshest, highest quality locally grown produce. The farmland in the Pioneer Valley has some of the richest soil in the world. (Information taken from the website: www.pvga.net)SEMAP is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to help agricultural enterprises in southeastern Massachusetts achieve economic success. [SEMAP] works towards this mission through two program areas: 1) Market Development: Working to create demand locally for locally-produced agricultural products; 2) Business/Technical Assistance: Providing targeted business education and assistance to local agricul-tural enterprises.(Information taken from the website: www.umassd.edu/semap/net)South DeerfieldWestportActonConcordEasthamptonBridgewaterHarvardLexingtonNatickHansonLunenburgAyerHadleyHatfieldKingstonPlymptonMiddleboroughMontagueSunderlandNorthbridgeWhatelyMiddletonConwayW. BridgewaterE. BridgewaterFresh fruits and vegetables are purchased locally to the utmost extent possible. We consider not only the proximity to campus of farms and orchards but also the method by which the produce is grown (whether organically or via integrated pest management methods), the size of the operation, and the level of processing involved.Especially during the summer and autumn months, most fresh produce served by HUDS is grown locally in Massachusetts. In fact, the ma-jority comes from the Pioneer Valley Growers Association, a cooperative of farmers located in the western part of the state.During the fall, almost 40% of all fresh fruits and vegetables on HUDS’ menus are grown and purchased locally. PRODUCEHUDS is committed to strengthening the local economy, reducing its environmental impact as a consumer, and supporting small businesses by buying locally as much as possible. A wide variety of the foods that HUDS purchases encourages this sustainable philosophy.The following local fresh produce was available to HUDS chefs the week of September 17, 2007:Green & Wax BeansParsnipsZucchini & Summer SquashKousa SquashNative CornNative TomatoesApples - Early Macs, Spartan, Red Free, Empire, Cortland, Paula Reds, PrimerPeaches Japanese EggplantCucumbers & Pickling CucumbersGrape Tomatoes - Pink & Yellow•••••••••••Pears - BartlettKaleAcorn SquashSwiss Chard - GreenPeppers - Green, White, Purple, OrangeGourds Sugar PumpkinsHoneyButternut Squash The following produce items are always organic, year-round:Field greensRed onionsSwiss Chard - Red••••••••••••SEAFOOD Massachusetts ranks among leading US commercial fishing states. Mindful of the need to preserve this abundance, HUDS purchases much of its seafood according to the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Guide. Seafood Watch is a program that helps raise consumer awareness about the impor-tance of buying seafood from sustainable sources.The following HUDS purchases fall on Monterey’s “best choices” list:Clams (farmed) – softshell/steamers; littleneckMussels (farmed)Oysters (farmed)Pollock (US)MEATThough much of HUDS’ meat is not raised locally, it is processed and distributed locally. All sausages are made by