Last week, I was at the Culinary Institute of America’s St. Helena campus, in Napa, California, for the 6th annual “Worlds of Flavors” invitational conference, co-sponsored by the Harvard School of Public Health. There were five university representatives (Stanford, Iowa, Harvard, Texas A&M and UMass) in attendance, along with around 100 foodservice operators, chefs, nutritionists, dieticians, and foodservice suppliers, from MacDonalds, and the US Air Force, to the Whole Fruit Market. This is always one of my favorite conferences because of the content, the location, and the chance get into the kitchen to work with famed chefs. This time we had far from perfect weather, in fact it rained the whole time we were there. But our job was to learn from the experts and share knowledge, so there was nothing to complain about.

Dr. Walter Willett, professor of epidemiology and nutrition, and chairman of the department of nutrition at Harvard School of Public Health; set the tone of the conference by his opening remarks, that Americans face an epidemic of diet-linked adverse health conditions and chronic diseases, from obesity and type 2 diabetes, to heart disease and various cancers. It is vital to our nation’s public health that the foodservice industry accelerate current efforts to expand healthy menu choices. Although progress has been made especially in getting rid of transfat, we still have a long way to go in other areas. During the last several years, the conference focused on reducing portion sizes, promoting the consumption of the good carbohydrate such as whole grains, made the vegetables the center of the plate, encouraged sodium reduction and staying away from sugary beverages.

It was an action-packed conference that began in the morning and ran until the early evening. There were chef demonstrations, and workshop topics, that included inspiration for healthy menu development, panel discussions and presentations, from research scientists, on calories reduction, nutrition labeling, carbohydrate quality, and sodium and health. Since science is constantly evolving, each year we pick up new information and ideas from attending the conference.

Some of the take-home messages from this year’s conference:
1. Percentage of calories from fat is not important; diets high in fat do not appear to be the primary cause of the high prevalence of excess body fat in our society
2. When aiming to reduce calories, focus mainly on reducing refined starch and sugar
3. Importance of saturated fat has been overstated; reducing red meat is beneficial
4. Consume no more than 1500 mg of sodium ( 1 teaspoon) per day
5. Obtain sugar from natural sources (ie. fruit) and limit usage of concentrated sugar
6. New science study links sugary drinks to a higher rate of heart disease
7. Exercising one half an hour a day is important

On the last day of the conference, we all went into kitchen to prepare meals with 2 oz of protein per person. Let me tell you, the food was delicious and it was fun to use more vegetables and fruit-based recipes.

I encourage you to get onboard the train of healthy eating. It has already left the station; are you ready to come along?

This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.

Ken Toong
Director

Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu

You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong

Welcome back – we’ve been waiting for you. This week, Chancellor Holub presented a Climate Action Plan (CAP) to the university community on efforts already taken to combat global climate change and how the campus community will work as a unit to fulfill the goal of the carbon neutrality, as we move toward a more sustainable future. UMass Dining is taking an active role and has been involved from the beginning, as a member of the Environmental Performance Advisory Committee (EPAC) that compiled the CAP. Our EPAC food committee is probably one of the most active subcommittees on campus, with half of its members being students. Perhaps the interest in being part of the committee has something to do with their interest in food, as food does affect everyone’s lives. We had a tight deadline to meet and were given 6 weeks to come up a plan. Our goal is to achieve carbon neutrality for UMA in all food-related areas while feeding and educating our community about sustainable food issues. The committee shared UMass Dining’s mission of serving food in the most sustainable manner and also included in the report what UMass Dining is doing now, as a starting point to improve upon.

With over 14,000 students on the meal plan and being the third largest dining program in the country, we feel that food can play a vital role of supporting this lofty goal of climate neutrality on campus and we also want to take a national leadership role in doing so. We have a good baseline to work from but feel that there are so many opportunities for us to enhance our performance. We talked about growing organic food on campus, not just in the spring and summer, but throughout the year in a greenhouse, purchasing more food from student-run farms and increasing the percentage of local food purchases from 25% to 28% in the next two years. There were discussions about reducing and eliminating the use of water bottles on campus within 5 years or sooner. As the chair of the committee, I was most impressed with the passion and energy of the members. We know what we are doing now is just a beginning; to attain carbon neutrality is a mammoth task and will require everyone on campus to become involved.

One of the shining examples of efforts in sustainability for UMass Dining, was going trayless last September; it was a smooth transition and the majority of students overwhelmingly embraced the idea and were eager to take part. We had little opposition; every though students enjoy the convenience of using the trays, they were smart enough to know it was part of efforts to reduce food waste and to save water and reduce the use of chemical by not having to wash trays. Although we are still waiting for the outcome from the Waste Management Office, our preliminary results indicate food waste has decreased by 20%; this is significant considering we have close to 4 million visits at the DCs annually.

Another great example is what UMass Dining did last semester to reduce the greenhouse emissions, was to switch to using a prime vendor located in Springfield, which is only 25 minutes away, instead of using one that was an hour and half away in Connecticut – not to mention creating jobs locally, since we are the largest single customer in the Northeast for this company.

This semester we will be switching to compostable cutlery at all retail locations and promoting the use of reusable bags for the grab-and-go operations.

We know there is so much we can do to support the environment and with your help, we can accomplish some of the goals of achieving a greener UMass even faster. Please share your ideas with us on going green at UMass Dining.

This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.

Ken Toong
Director

Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu

You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong

I think most of you would agree in time, starting this week and over the next two weeks, “It’s the most wonderful time of the year”, with no school, no exams, shopping for love ones and holiday cheer. Here at UMass Dining, our staff are getting a much-deserved holiday break; besides the essential staff, most of them will have some time off too. Our staff holiday party is this Tuesday and it is always one of my favorite events.

We are already working on the menu for the spring and will plan the weekly specials next. Our goal is to continue to improve and offer an even stronger dining program, with some surprises thrown in for excitement.

I will be home with my family to celebrate the holiday season; the tree is up and the house decorated. I will be the chief cook again and am still planning the menu. As Canadians, my family is thinking about having Traditional Turkey, but I always want to prepare something different. We will be joining two other families for dinner, so I might have to compromise and cook a turkey. But one thing for sure, is that I can always count on my daughters, to take charge when it comes to shopping, and for that I am lucky, as I am not much of a shopper.

It has been a great year for UMass Dining with double digit growth and highest customer rating during these economically challenging times. There are so many people to thank for to helping to make UMass Dining what it’s today. Our staff, our managers, other university departments, our supply chain vendors and also our customers; all work together to make things happen.

Cheers to all of you and your family.

This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.

Ken Toong
Director

Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu

You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong

This week, a little elf told me to read Friday’s Collegian in the column of letters to the Santa; I was not surprised to see three requests related to dining services and I will attempt to answer some of the questions. First of all, the article shows that food is serious business, especially in a large residential university like UMass. Our goal is to continue to improve and meet your needs while following the Mission of UMass Dining. In case you don’t know, the Mission of UMass Dining Services is to contribute to the campus life experience by providing a variety of healthy and flavorful meals featuring local, regional and world cuisine, in a sustainable and environmentally conscious manner.

Let’s look at the three wishes:

1. All I want for Christmas is a dining commons somewhere in the middle of campus -
As you know we have the Campus Center and Whitmore in the center of the campus, both offering good food. The only challenge it that it is not an all-you-care-to-eat program such as at the DCs. We plan to renovate Franklin DC soon; if not this summer, then the following one. It will mirror Berkshire and be just as good. Worcester will also undergo a major renovation after Franklin. So watch out, both of them are located close to the center of the campus; however, in the near future, you could get a commuter meal plan, such as YCMP which will allow you to eat at either the DC or retail. What’s more, with YCMP, Friday night is free!

2. For Christmas this year, all I want is chicken fingers to be available all the time at every Dining Commons on Campus
Chicken fingers (tenders) are still one of the most popular items on the menu. We use the top-of-the-line chicken fingers and fry them in healthier omega 9 oil (the next generation of cooking oil – a zero trans-fat canola). We usually have them on the menu once a week or so. As with everything, moderation is the key; we will have chicken fingers on the menu once more this week, before we call it a semester. Too much of a good thing, might not be a good thing and could be boring. However, I will pass on your comments to the menu committee.

3. I would like plain bagels, white bread and less rye bread
Honesty, I prefer white bread and a plain bagel too sometimes. In my house, I would prefer Wonder bread over wholegrain, even if it sticks to the roof of your mouth. We know wholegrain bread is better for us, but perhaps we should have “Wonder bread” every now and them – as I said, moderation is the key.

Let me share my three holiday wishes -

1. that all UMass students will handle the stress of exams well and enjoy a nice peaceful holiday break
2. that UMass will be able to further weather the economic storm next year, thanks go an improving economy
3. and lastly, that UMass Dining will be on the list of the best campus food in the next Princeton Review (more on this later)

Good luck on your finals and happy holidays to everyone!

This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.

Ken Toong
Director

Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu

You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong

They say times flies when you are having fun…here we are almost near the end of the semester. It seems just like yesterday that we served move-in day meals and the lobster dinner was not that long ago. Classes are almost done, finals are coming and the holidays are just around the corner. Our catering department and University Club have been busy with many holiday-related events lately; it might just be the best time of the year afterall.

At UMass Dining, we always try to pull a rabbit out of the hat to finish off the year. This one is no exception; there will be 4 upcoming specials in two weeks. We want you to have fun and have good memories of the food before the holidays. As you know, food is a great tool to build community and to help bring about calmness and reassurance during the exam period. Martha, our special events manager, has come up with several events that might blow your socks off. Several of us have had to pick up the slack while Martha has been recovering from surgery. Sometimes, you don’t know how much a person has worked or is missed until she/he is off for a while. The good news is Martha is back part time now and we will move ahead with the specials as planned.

1. Ultimate Chef Showdown December 9 at Berkshire DC 5-9 pm
This is a first for us and for any colleges to have 3 schools, plus UMass, join together for a culinary showdown as part of the Visiting College Chef Series. Billed as 16 dishes • 8 chefs • 4 schools • Southern soul food, Authentic Mexican dishes, Seafood cerviche and New England favorites will be served. It will be a food extravaganza night I don’t think you will want to miss.

2. Starry Starry Night December 10 at Franklin, Worcester and Hampshire 5-9 pm
To celebrate the season, we are featuring many local foods from free range turkey, and New England seafood, to many native vegetables and bread pudding from our own UMass bakeshop. It is all local fare at its best.

3. Midnight Buffet December 14 at all DCs, 9 to midnight
This annual exam treat time will feature many of your favorite late-night brunch items, plus healthy options such as fresh fruit, salad and low-calorie desserts

4. Extended Hours to 2:00 am at Worcester and Berkshire
You asked for it and you got it. Take a break from your studies or study at the DC; we will have many light foods to serve you, on top of great coffee and hot chocolate.

Afterall, this might just be the best time of the year.

This is Ken Toong and thank you for keeping UMass Dining at the top.

Ken Toong
Director

Contact Ken at ktoong@mail.aux.umass.edu

You can follow Ken Toong on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/KenToong