A UNC student group fighting to bring more sustainable and locally grown food into the University’s dining halls is taking today — national Food Day — to raise awareness about its cause.
FLO (Fair, Local, Organic) Food is hosting events on campus throughout the week to promote healthy, sustainable and affordable food.
“One of the goals for Food Day is to support organic farms, and building partnerships between Carolina Dining Services and local farmers is a great way to do this,” said Alison Doernberg, a student coordinator for UNC’s Food Day celebrations.
“Bringing more sustainable food into the dining halls benefits both the farmers and the campus community.”
On Tuesday night, Rams Head Dining Hall hosted a fair trade-themed dinner with the help of FLO that featured foods like coffee, bananas and chocolate.
Last year, members of FLO submitted a proposal to Chancellor Holden Thorp asking him to commit UNC to making at least 20 percent of all food served in the dining halls “real food” by 2020.
And although Carolina Dining Services has broader standards for “real food,” the groups have worked together to identify opportunities to put more fair and community-conscious food into the dining halls.
Director of Auxiliary Services Mike Freeman said that last year approximately 23 percent of non-convenience store dining hall food originated within 150 miles of Chapel Hill, and Carolina Dining Services hopes to increase that percentage this year.
Senior Suzanne Fleishman, a member of FLO, said the group wants to highlight the current accomplishments of Carolina Dining Services this week and inform students about what it is already doing regarding sustainable food.
