Sustainability

Our Initiatives

Your Diplomat Dining Team is dedicated to sustainability. We know we can all work together to make a positive impact right here at Franklin & Marshall College. In addition to the many initiatives we take on as a company, we have implemented the following programs specific to F&M.

Trayless

We are a trayless campus at Franklin & Marshall. Customers without trays typically waste less food and beverages. It is also a healthier approach to eating, as we all know that at times our eyes are bigger than our stomachs. Trayless dining also reduces the amount of water and detergents needed to wash trays - and saves energy too!

Grown & Trellis at KIVO

Grown is our dedicated plant-based station in the Restaurants at Ben Franklin that offers plant-based entrees for breakfast, lunch, and dinner 7-days a week. Trellis at KIVO is located in our KIVO dining space in the Restaurants at Ben Franklin. Trellis is available for lunch and dinner and is Star-K certified and Halal-certified.

Vegan Report Card

Universities across the U.S. were surveyed for peta2's Vegan Report Card. Franklin & Marshall's Dining Services was proud to receive an A in 2024. As we continue to increase our plant-based offerings in line with Sodexo's sustainability initiative to be 50% plant-based by 2025, our grading will grow as we expand our plant-based offerings campus wide, not just in the Restaurants at Ben Franklin.

Whether they’re concerned about the climate catastrophe, saving animals, or improving their health, more and more young people are recognizing the benefits of going vegan. According to the Good Food Institute, the sales of animal-free foods grew three times faster than overall food sales in 2021. Research shows that Gen Zers specifically view going vegan as a way to promote compassion toward animals, address the climate catastrophe, lower their carbon footprint, and promote sustainability.

Rainforest Alliance Certified Ellis Coffee

We are proud to serve Ellis Coffee in the Restaurants at Ben Franklin and the Eateries at CC. Ellis Coffees has been family-roasted since our beginning in 1854 as a shop on Philadelphia’s waterfront. For generations, our coffees have been served in fine hotels and restaurants. Ellis is Rainforest Alliance Certified.

The Rainforest Alliance works with coffee farmers to improve their livelihoods and the health and well-being of their communities. Coffee farms or groups of smallholder farmers that earn the Rainforest Alliance Certified™ seal are audited annually against a rigorous standard with detailed environmental, social and economic criteria. These criteria are designed to protect biodiversity, deliver financial benefits to farmers, and foster a culture of respect for workers and local communities.

Rainforest Alliance certification also promotes decent living and working conditions for workers, gender equity and access to education for children in farm communities.

Square One Coffee Roasters

We are proud to partner with Square One Coffee Roasters to serve their coffee at The Diplomatic Cafe coffee shop. Square One Coffee is an award-winning micro-roaster based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. We're a small, family-owned business, and we've been roasting and serving some of the highest-quality coffee in the world since 2007.

We believe that people matter, so we do our best to respect every person involved in the process of getting coffee from the seed to your cup—from the farmers to our importers, to our roasters, to our baristas, and to our customers.

For as long as we can remember, our motto has been, “Do good work.” We have a drive to make a positive impact in the world wherever possible, however possible. We want to use all of our resources to leave the world better than we found it.

KIVO

Our KIVO (Kosher, International, Vegan, Organic) Restaurant offers Plant-Based and Meat Features to students with special nutritional needs Sunday through Friday. KIVO is certified by Star-K with a Full Time Mashgiach on-site. KIVO is also Halal-certified. KIVO is closed Friday for dinner and for the Sabbath on Saturday.

Local Suppliers

The majority of our produce is purchased locally. In addition, our other local partners include Hershey’s Chocolate in Hershey, PA, Lancaster Farm Fresh Cooperative, Kegel's Produce, Lancaster Food Company, and Harrisburg Dairies in Harrisburg, PA.

Green Seal Chemicals

Over Winter Break 2007-2008, we converted the dish machine chemicals in all locations over to Eco Labs Geo System line which has a green seal rating.