At a glance
As you evaluate food service guidelines, you may want to consider the co-benefits. These include support of locally sourced foods, environmentally friendly practices, and food safety best practices. To increase widespread support for your efforts and help ensure long-term sustainability, you may want to measure co-benefits.
Introduction
The Food Service Guidelines for Federal Facilities is comprehensive and includes more than nutrition standards. If you apply the guidelines, you may want to track and report on other benefits to describe your efforts' impact. For example, adopting food service guidelines may result in increased support of locally sourced foods, environmentally friendly practices, or food safety protocols. Measuring co-benefits may increase widespread support for your efforts and help ensure long-term sustainability.
Potential co-benefits
Increasing healthier options in food service operations can be a win-win for population health, the local economy, and the environment. Potential co-benefits include:
- Increased purchasing of locally sourced fruits and vegetables from small- and medium-size regional producers.
- Increased food safety training for food service staff, resulting in less food-borne illness or outbreaks.
- Increased profitability for vendors due to healthier product trends, innovative marketing strategies, and new menu offerings.
- Reduced costs resulting from food waste diversion, recycling, composting, and use of biodegradable serving ware.
- Reduced carbon footprint related to offering more plant-based entrée options.
- Increased job creation and employment opportunities from the surrounding community, including agricultural job training opportunities for youth.
More information
Food Loss and Waste—U.S. Department of Agriculture
Food Loss and Waste—Food and Drug Administration
Sustainable Management of Food—Environmental Protection Agency
