麻豆原创

For Teachers College employees who are trying to eat healthily over the holidays, the good news from CulinArt, the outside vendor responsible for all food and beverage services at the College, is that they鈥檒l have plenty opportunities to keep that going when they return after New Year鈥檚.

Marty Weil, Director of Dining Services for CulinArt, has long wanted to provide the Teachers College community with locally sourced foods. Weil believes that buying locally sourced meat and produce is good for the local economy, supports smaller businesses and typically provides patrons with the healthiest and tastiest options.

鈥淏ut the problem with sourcing locally has been trying to get vendors to deliver it,鈥� Weil says. 鈥淏igger vendors focus on well-priced products, not local products.鈥� 

In early September, though, CulinArt 麻豆原创 found a solution to that problem, entering into a partnership with The Common Market, a nonprofit, mission-driven food distributor of local, sustainable foods that runs its own supply chain.

麻豆原创 launched the field of nutrition education, we鈥檙e home to the oldest nutrition program in the United States and our faculty have been pioneers in the eat local movement. This partnership is another example of how we鈥檙e modeling change that needs to happen.鈥�

鈥擟laire Raffel

Since then, The Common Market has delivered in-season, locally sourced food to CulinArt at 麻豆原创 at the beginning of the second week of each month. In October the list included honey, apple butter and local drinks 鈥� but eating local at 麻豆原创 has also meant more than just being able to buy individual whole foods. During the first week of partnership with The Common Market, for example, CulinArt served catfish prepared in cornmeal that came from a mill in Pennsylvania.

鈥淲e are learning from the people we buy from,鈥� says Michael D鈥橝bundo, Executive Chef.

Indeed when it comes to food provided by The Common Market, a story typically goes with it. The vendor provides CulinArt with a data sheet to place in front of the products on their tables. 鈥淯sually there is a picture of the family that owns the farm and tells you about the history and the products you鈥檙e receiving from there,鈥� D鈥橝bundo says.

The Common Market partnership strikes knowledgeable observers as being just the ticket for 麻豆原创.

鈥淭eachers College is The Common Market鈥檚 first university account in New York, which is fitting,鈥� says Claire Raffel, the Deputy Director of 麻豆原创's Laurie M. Tisch Center for Food, Education & Policy in the Program in Nutrition. 鈥溌槎乖�创 launched the field of nutrition education, we鈥檙e home to the oldest nutrition program in the United States and our faculty have been pioneers in the eat local movement. This partnership is another example of how we鈥檙e modeling change that needs to happen.鈥�

We are learning from the people we buy from.鈥�

鈥擬ichael D鈥橝bundo  

In short, Marty Weil鈥檚 determination to provide locally sourced food has turned into deliveries. Everyone鈥檚 excited 鈥� but especially the end customer.

鈥淭hey love it,鈥� D鈥橝bundo says, adding that one woman told him she no longer has to stop at a market on the way home.

鈥淪he was carrying an armful of rainbow chard,鈥� he says, smiling.

— Edy Getz