Are there a lot of plant-based options on campus?

What is Forward Food?

Forward Food [1] is an international program that works with an array of diverse organizations, institutions, and other partners to transform menus by including more plant-based options.

The Forward Food team is comprised of registered dietitians, chefs, and foodservice professionals, who support the idea that as a society, we ought to be focusing more on plant-based foods as a means of creating a better food system.

Plant-Based at the University of Guelph

As Canada’s food university, we’re not sitting down to lunch without first carefully considering what we're serving. That is why we joined the international Forward Food campaign and have transformed our menus on campus to transition 20% of meat protein on our menus to plant-based proteins.

To date:

We have hosted a 2-day Forward Food workshop/ chef training for approximately twenty of our UofG chefs/apprentices from various kitchens on campus to review the recipe book for plant-based menu items and work together to incorporate more recipes into our menus.
We're working with Forward Food's team to transition 20% of meat protein on our menus to plant-based proteins. You can learn about some of the ways we're doing this below.
We currently offer various plant-based meals, snacks, and desserts across campus and even have a rotating selection of 25 plant-based bowls, which have become one of our most highly requested and sought-after menu items.
We think education about plant-based diets is vital, and that is why this fall semester, we will be extensively promoting plant-based menu options and features on our social media channels.

Plant-Based Menu Options

To accomplish more plant-based menus on campus, we have introduced the Beyond Meat burger, 100% plant-based, which has been a huge hit so far! You can find this burger at the Royal City Grille in the UC's Chefs' Hall. We have also incorporated Beyond Meat's (crumble product similar to ground meat) into dishes like pizza, poutine, sandwiches, wraps, etc. You can see this Beyond Meat crumble marked on the menu, so keep your eye out for it!

This fall, we're offering the sustainable smash burger- which our supplier locally makes VG Meats - a 100% Ontario beef burger made with 28% mushroom stems (which would be food waste if not used) - this not only reduces our meat-based protein for a more sustainable menu option but at the same time helping to reduce food from becoming waste.

We offer various plant-based kinds of milk at our cafe locations for your specialty and traditional beverages. When you're ordering a drink, ask the barista for your plant-based milk options. If you're using a self-serve station when getting a beverage, look out for the signs in the unit displaying where to find these plant milk options, as they are often stored in a nearby fridge.