Major
Environmental Horticulture and Turfgrass Management
Advisor
Faubert, Heather
Advisor Department
Plant Sciences and Entomology
Date
5-2016
Keywords
regional food; local food; URI dining services
Abstract
In recent years a demand for locally sourced food has arisen among students, faculty, and staff at the University of Rhode Island. Having now recognized this demand the hour is upon us to organize and create a movement that is as enlightened as it is revolutionary. Published material regarding regionalizing institutional food, however, is fragmented and difficult to apply to URI. The aim of this project is to collect and analyze the existing research in order to produce a cohesive text written in the context of URI. The paper details the motivation behind this movement in the form of a gathering of scientific and anthropological writing on the subject, regional production statistics, and an evaluation of the URI purchasing process. The data compiled in this paper can be drawn upon by the ever increasing population of students, faculty, and staff at URI with an invested interest in eating regionally produced food at the dining hall and will assist those involved in defining ‘real food’ priorities for the completion of the Real Food Challenge at URI.