Your Green FoodPrint!

It's tough to eat green on a meal plan. No, scratch that, it's really, really, REALLY tough.  However, there are still things you can do to eat green on campus. Plus, eating green can also mean saving green and losing some freshman 15 (the rhyming was not intentional).  

First, limit your intake of red meat.  There are so many negative side-effects for you AND for the environment linked with the consumption of meat.  For instance, the environment suffers because in order to sustain high demand, cattle are raised on grain (instead of grass) which must be fertilized with harmful synthetic fertilizers, and depletes a lot of nutrients in the ground.  In addition, cows give off a lot of methane- which is the most potent greenhouse gas. And yes, the methane that comes from cows comes from their farts. 

In addition, overcooked meat can often house carcinogens (cancer-causing compounds) and have high amounts of saturated fat, which isn't good for your heart or your waist.  

So choose chicken instead- it's raised on grass and has a shorter lifespan, so less energy goes into sustaining the life of a chicken.

Second, hit the salad bar! Our dining halls strive to offer produce that is in season. Also, Syracuse Dining carries some foods that are local- including those delicious apples, cheese curds, apple cider, Byrne Dairy products, and Crowley yogurt (high in protein, calcium, and really good with granola).  

Nonetheless, if you really aren't satisfied with dining hall food, Syracuse University also offers students, faculty, and the community a farmers market from the beginning to the end of summer that is located in the Waverly Avenue parking lot.  The food is incredibly fresh, cheap, and delicious.  And once you get a lot of it, it can be frozen and eaten in the winter months. Here's a tip: frozen blueberries make a terrific topping for cereal, filling for a crumble or pie, or even a great topping for ice cream when cooked in a pan with strawberries, a bit of sugar, vanilla extract, and some honey.

Hopefully, it's clear by now that you can eat sustainably (and deliciously) without having to eat grass.  

Happy munching!

-Marissa