At Vanderbilt Campus Dining, we take responsibility for doing our part to support the well being of our guests and for supporting the health of our environment. Our Eat the World, Save the Earth program is designed to give you information about our kitchen principles and how they affect your environment, community and well being.

Components of the program include:

• Dining Advisory Committee - comprised of students, university staff and dining staff to address all aspects of our dining program
• Easy reference guide to icons defining food choices such as organic, vegetarian, vegan, etc.
• Corresponding icons at the food stations
• Nutrition Calculator on our web site
• Staff Registered Dietitian - available for consultation and guidance
• Training for our entire staff - environmental & kitchen principle training is on-going
• Sustainability Coordinator - on staff
• Hydration Stations - to reduce the use of bottled water. Stations at Rand Dining Center, The Commons and Branscomb Quad
• Biodiesel - student-run initiative that recycles fry oil to produce Eco Suds, a soap alternative
• Green chemical, bleach-free napkins & tenant scrubber 9uses 70% less water that conventional scrubbers)

Vanderbilt Campus Dining recognizes the great power and importance of FOOD. Food brings people together, CREATES a sense of place and a feeling of KINSHIP. Food sustains not only our bodies but also our communities and environment.

Our Kitchen Principles

The following standards have been created for well being of our guests:

• Menus change seasonally and are regionally based
• We buy local and organic produce whenever possible (seasonal)
• We offer milk from a local dairy farm
• Vegetarian entree is available at each meal at all locations
• Healthy nutritional choices offered at each meal at all locations
• Vanderbilt Campus Dining serves all-natural deli meat
• We use 100% canola oil in all fryers & oil is recycled
• Our coffee is 100% organic, local, and  100% fair trade in all of our restaurants
• We utilize World Centric biocompostable disposables
• Plastic cups are recyclable
• Campus Dining crushes and recycles all cans used in our kitchens.  This amounts to saving over 57.57 cubic feet in the landfill on a WEEKLY basis!
• We buy locally bottled water
• We utilize "Pick Tennessee" products
• Majority of our fruits and vegetable are "Pick Tennessee" products (seasonally based)
• Management staff is ServSafe certified
• Our Varsity Markets sell organic, gluten-free, natural and local products
• Cookies and muffins are baked fresh daily
• MSG is never allowed
• We offer soy milk and yogurt at most locations
• Nashville's only certified vegetarian Kosher kitchen is a part of our meal plan
• Left over foods are donated to local charities
• We specify energy star rated equipment
• Source products from local vendors whenever possible
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•  Check our daily menus for featured local and organic produce!

Eat the World, Save the Earth Icons
ORGANIC: Contains at least 95% organically produced ingredients (be weight) from a USDA certified source	LOCAL: Contains ingredients purchased from a local company or farm
VEGETARIAN: Contains no meat, fish, poultry, shellfish, or products derived from these sources but may contain dairy or eggs	FAIR TRADE: Contributes to sustainable development by offering better trading conditions to, and securing the rights of, marginalized producers and workers
VEGAN: Contains absolutely no ingredients from animal or dairy products	RECYCLE: Made from materials that are 100% recyclable

Our Local Contributors - Dining utilizes over 50 businesses within a 300 mile radius.

Did you know that Vanderbilt Campus Dining is purchasing from our local farmers?  We buy eggs and chickens from Will McDonald (Hohenwald, TN.), chickens from Emerald Glen Farms (Munfordville, KY.), beef from Gourmet Pastures (rural East TN.), milk from Hatcher Family Dairy (College Grove, TN.) and much more. Take a look at our local contributors:

ACH Foods provides Vanderbilt with high-quality cooking oils, spices, and seasonings.

Al Dente Catering located in Nashville, TN is a provider of bread and deli meats that are offered in our markets.

Aladdin Temp Rite provides Vanderbilt heated storage units to keep prepared food at the proper temperature for serving.

Bake Crafters Food Company makes a variety of baked goods that are served here at Vanderbilt

Better Maid Products is one of Vanderbilt’s dairy providers

Bonanza Produce provides Vanderbilt with paper packaging materials

Bongo Java provides local, organic coffee to all of the restaurants on campus. Their coffee is also fair-trade.

Bush Brothers provides Vanderbilt with various types of beans and legumes. Bush Brothers is more commonly known for Bush’s Baked Beans with Jay and Duke the talking dog.

Brush Creek Honey Farm is located in Lawrenceburg. They produce all natural, pure honey.

Charpier Bakery provides Vanderbilt with baked goods such as rolls, buns, and loaves of bread.

Chili Pops is located in Nashville, TN. They produce all natural frozen pops that are served in our markets.

Cascades Tissue is run out of Memphis, TN and supplies Vanderbilt with paper mill supplies.

Clifty Farm Country Meats is a family owned business located in Paris, TN. They supply Vanderbilt with country-cured hams.

Coffee Connexion is based out of Lebanon, TN. They produce natural, processed and imitation cheese products.

Colts Chocolates is based here in Nashville and they sell different kinds of gourmet sweets including Colt Bolts, Gooey Butter pies, and more.

Creative Occasions is a high-volume cake bakery located here in Nashville, TN. They bake every kind of cake imaginable in many shapes and sizes.

Delvin Farms is a local farm in College Grove, TN. It is a family farm producing organic vegetables that are served in all of our facilities.

Destiny Produce is located outside Atlanta, GA and is the only certified organic distributor in the state of Georgia. Destiny Produce provides organic fruits and vegetables that are utilized in all of our kitchens.

Emerald Glen Farms is located in Munfordville, KY. They raise grass-finished beef, pastured poultry, and pastured pork using organic fertilizers, mineral supplements, and pest controls. None of their animals receive steroids, hormones, or antibiotics.

Falls Mill Country Store is located in Belvidere, TN and provides Vanderbilt with stone-ground grits and cornmeal. All of their products are ground using their old-fashioned water powered mill.

Five Star Foodservice has its headquarters in beautiful Chattanooga, TN. They are one of the main vending services that supply Vanderbilt University’s many vending machines.

Family Brands/Elm Hill Meats was started by the Baltz family in Lenoir City, TN. They produce hot dogs, luncheon means, bacon, and ham products that are used in various areas of Vanderbilt Campus Dining

Fortune Plastics is based in Lebanon, TN and manufactures various bag products.

Franklin Baker is an international food processing company. Their United States manufacturer is located in Memphis, TN. Franklin Baker supplies us with quality food products and international ingredients.

Gourmet Pasture is located in Springfield, TN. Local source for pork and chicken.

Gulf Pride Seafood is located in Franklin, TN and is Tennessee’s largest fresh seafood retailer.

Hatcher Family Dairy is located in College Grove, TN. This local dairy farm supplies milk for the Common Grounds coffee shop in The Commons and is also available at Nectar, the natural food store located in Vandy Barnard dorm.

IJ Company has many locations in Tennessee and Georgia. They supply fruits and vegetables for the Vanderbilt Campus Dining locations

International Paper is a global leader in paper and packaging products. They have many locations around the world, including Memphis, TN.

Jimmy Dean Foods has many facilities including a large facility in Newbern, TN. Jimmy Dean is a popular purveyor of breakfast foods such as sausage and bacon products.

Lodge Manufacturing is located in South Pittsburg, TN. They supply Vanderbilt Campus Dining with cast iron products that our cooks use to make things like waffles.

McKee Foods Corporation is located in Ooltewah, TN. McKee Foods is responsible for producing Little Debbie snack cakes and Sunbelt granola products that are available for purchase in our make Markets around campus.

Mid-South Maintenance is located in Hendersonville, TN. Mid-South is an integral part of Vanderbilt Campus Dining Services. They are responsible for all repairs that need to be done on the cooking and food storage equipment we use.

Mize Foods is located here in Nashville, TN. They supply various grocery items for Vanderbilt Campus Dining.

Moody Dunbar started in East Tennessee and has grown to become America’s leading processor of bell peppers, pimientos and sweet potatoes.

Mountain Jim’s Ice Cream is based here in Nashville, TN. They provide organic ice cream that is served in our markets.

Nashua Corporation is located in Jefferson City, TN. They provide office supplies and paper products.

Odom’s Tennessee Pride has its corporate offices in Madison, TN and a manufacturing plant in Dickson, TN. Odom’s makes country sausage products that are known throughout Tennessee for their excellent taste and quality.

Olive and Sinclair Chocolates is based here in Nashville, TN. They are a small-batch chocolatier. All of their beans are hand picked and slow roasted in house. Currently they have seven different chocolate bars, with new things always in the works. Their most popular bars are the sea salt and the Mexican style cinn-chili.

Phoenix Foods is located in Nashville, TN. They supply us with chicken products, such as filets, strips, and nuggets.

Pictsweet Company is located in Bell, TN and is one of the largest frozen vegetable suppliers in the United States.

Processed Food Corporation is located in Knoxville, TN. They manufacture frozen specialty food products.

Provence Breads is located in Nashville, TN and is consistently recognized as Nashville’s premier gourmet bakery.

S.R. Smith Meats is located in Nashville, TN. They provide Vanderbilt with whole fresh and cured meats.

Savannah Food Company, located in Savannah, TN, produces quality Southern sides like hushpuppies and fried okra.

Shenandoah Mills is located in Lebanon, TN. They produce various types of dry mixes, breading, and batters.

Specialty Breads, LLC is also located in Lebanon, TN. They are the purveyors of fresh and frozen baked goods such as cakes, pies, pastries, and biscuits.

Stevison Ham Company is located in Portland, TN. They make quality hams and ham products.

Swaggerty Sausage is located in Kodak, TN. Swaggerty Sausage produces different varieties of breakfast sausages.

Taste Maker Food is based out of Memphis, TN. They provide us with flour mixes and different types of dough.

Tennessee Cheesecake recently expanded to a larger bakery in Mt Juliet, TN. They make some of Tennessee’s finest cheesecakes in a variety of flavors.

Travis Meats, incorporate in Knoxville, TN, produces beef, veal, and pork products. They have been in business for over 75 years providing Middle Tennessee with quality meat products.

Tri-City Distributing, LLC is located in Bristol, TN.

Wampler’s Farm Sausage is located in Lenoir City, TN. They produce quality Tennessee sausage products.

West Wind Farms is located in Morgan County, TN. They practice sustainable, organic livestock and pasture production. Currently, West Wind Farms raises pork, beef, and chicken, in addition to growing a variety of fresh fruits, vegetables and herbs.

Wild Muffin was started right here in Nashville, TN. They produce natural, organic baked goods and have many varieties of muffins, cookies, and brownies including gluten-free varieties.