Durham is proud to support Durham County Council’s Places to Eat initiative, an innovative new scheme which will see carbon ratings added to menus at eateries across our campus accommodation.
The move is part of Durham’s Greenspace Movement and works alongside Durham County Council’s Food for the Planet campaign, which is aimed at encouraging both eating establishments and consumers to think more about the carbon emissions associated with their meals and snacks.
The campaign will see specialists from My Emissions, a provider of carbon calculations and labelling for the food sector, give each item on our menus a rating based on the amount of carbon that is emitted in the process of its journey from production to plate.
These ratings will then be displayed on menus for our students and staff to consider.
Our Greenspace Movement encourages small acts that together make a big difference, which includes the food and drink we consume as this makes up a significant proportion of the university’s carbon footprint.
In June, our annual Greenspace Festival will be hosted by Grey College. The event, which takes place on 14 June between 12:00-17:00, will see student groups, researchers, charities and local businesses join together to focus on environmental sustainability. There will also be talks, workshops and food - all to be announced shortly.
Other local supporters signed up to Food for the Planet include REfUSE Café and Stroodles, both at Chester-le-Street, Teesdale Cheesemakers, Broomhouse Farm near Sacriston and Bayberry Hollow at Tanfield.