Yale is committed to improving the world today and for future generations through outstanding research and scholarship, education, preservation, and practice…” – President Peter Salovey
As an organization which crafts 15,000 meals per day – our thoughtful sourcing, preparation and daily service builds the foundation of our impactful role amongst university food service organizations at the local, regional, national, and international level. We are a transformative organization that has influence at the intersection of human health, environmental sustainability, and community well-being.
Yale’s Food Literacy Collaboration grew out of the University mission statement, and uniting various facets of the University in partnership over food. We began by hosting events - including Food Conversations, Reality Bites, and farm tours - for several hundred students, exploring the context of a food theme together with professors, celebrity chefs, and our own culinary staff. Through the varied lenses of historical context, cultural heritage, well-being and environmental sustainability to name a few – students learn while enjoying a very special meal and maybe even experience new flavors!
Yale Hospitality also believes in the value of educating our community about our impact on the preservation and development of our wider foodshed. We traditionally host students on visits to surrounding farms during harvest, tap Yale’s maple groves in spring, highlight suppliers with on-campus demonstrations, and collaborate with industry partners to develop better-for-you products. We support creative entrepreneurial activity and even bring students to see where plate scrapings are bio-digested into electricity.
Most recently we have opened our operation up to further supporting student and faculty research. We are ready to collaborate – whether it is surveying behavior modification when informed of environmental impact or implementing United Nations and Yale’s sustainable development goals into our operation. Through an effort with Yale’s School of Public Health, we have also begun sharing educational resources with New Haven Public Schools.
The Food Literacy Collaboration relies on the convening power of the University, bringing different people together to create educational opportunities for students. We embrace the balance between the practice of serving meals every day and the support of research questions that push the ways in which we think about Yale food system. We always look forward to the new school year, new conversations, new collaborations.