Clare Hall has a strong commitment to sustainability, and has been making a conscious effort to reduce its environmental impact in all departments. This week, we are spotlighting the work of our kitchen department, and how they have strengthened their dedication to being zero-waste.

Clare Hall has long been dedicated to achieving a zero-waste kitchen, but with the launch of the CamEATS ZERO Sustainable Food Initiative in February 2024, the kitchen has been closely evaluating how and where it can improve. The Initiative outlines four priority actions that Colleges can use to improve their food sustainability—increasing the proportion of plant-based meals, reducing ruminant meats, serving sustainability sourced seafood, and reducing food waste.

As part of this commitment, the College has introduced a series of special dining days designed to promote more environmentally conscious food choices. These initiatives include vegetarian tasting menus, Fish Fridays with responsibly-sourced seafood options, and plant-based formals, just to name a few.

Beyond themed events, Clare Hall’s kitchen continues its commitment to sustainable practices on a day-to-day basis. For example, the dining hall’s soups frequently incorporate root vegetables or other leftover ingredients from the kitchen, and the stocks used in recipes are cooked from vegetable or fresh meat scraps from the week. The kitchen also creatively reuses ingredients in a variety of ways, such as making homemade bread crumbs from leftover bread, steaming fish scraps to be used in fish cakes, and serving extra protein pots and desserts from Formal Hall during lunch service the following day.

In July 2024, Clare Hall’s kitchen team introduced two major initiatives, which have further strengthened our commitment to reducing our environmental impact. The ‘No Excuse for Single Use’ initiative, which aims to curb the use of disposable takeaway containers by introducing a small fee for purchasing single use containers, encourages Clare Hall members to bring their own reusable tupperware instead. This move has reduced single use consumption by a remarkable 70% since its introduction. Additionally, the ‘Too Good to Throw’ initiative offers those who have purchased a meal at dinner service to take away an extra reusable container of food for just £1. Since its launch, this initiative has reduced food waste by an additional 30%. Whilst the kitchen already has weekly food waste collection to reduce landfill contributions, these initiatives have added an extra level of commitment that encourages all College members to be involved.

My goal is to have people consider their environmental impact when choosing their meals, and be open to seeing changes with more of a focus on sustainability in this department.

-Sabrina Gyles

On a broader level, Clare Hall’s kitchen team embarked on a new partnership over the summer with Angry Monk, a fresh produce supplier that rescues surplus and irregular produce that would otherwise be discarded. Over a three-month period, the kitchen has rescued nearly 3000kg of surplus fruits and vegetables, significantly reducing food waste, and conserved over 1 million litres of water based on the volume of produce saved.

Looking ahead, the kitchen plans to expand on its sustainability efforts with additional plant-based formal halls, as well as publicising data on carbon footprint on menus to encourage those who dine at Clare Hall to make more sustainable choices. With many great changes already being made, Clare Hall’s kitchen team continues to lead the way for sustainability at Clare Hall.