{"id":403782,"date":"2019-10-31T13:45:57","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T17:45:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=403782"},"modified":"2019-10-31T13:45:57","modified_gmt":"2019-10-31T17:45:57","slug":"local-foods-sustainability-farm-to-university-403782","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/local-foods-sustainability-farm-to-university-403782\/","title":{"rendered":"Farm-to-University: Local foods programs support community, sustainability"},"content":{"rendered":"

(University of Rochester photo \/ Sara Miller)<\/em><\/p>\n

Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm<\/a> sits high upon the western hillside of Cayuga Lake in the heart of the Finger Lakes region, about 60 miles from the University of Rochester<\/a>. Owners Sarah and Tim Haws started the livestock farm in 2001, and now it is one of the University\u2019s newest and most trusted local providers of pork, beef, and eggs.<\/p>\n

On a picturesque September day in the Finger Lakes, University Dining Services<\/a> Director Cam Schauf and some of his senior staff, joined students from Dining Team Green <\/a>and Facilities Team Green at Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm for a tour.\u00a0 The connection was made between Schauf\u2014who oversees program development for everything served in the University\u2019s residential Dining Halls, campus eateries, and catering operation\u2014and the Hawses because of their shared food philosophy: delivering consumers a healthier and more natural way to eat, while respecting the animals and the environment that give humans this nourishment.<\/p>\n

\"students
\u201cI was blown away the first time I came here,\u201d said Tony Pignagrande, executive chef of the University\u2019s Harvest Table Culinary Group. \u201cIt\u2019s always great to connect the dots and the people that are raising our food.\u201d<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Hawses operate their 100-acre family farm with the mindset of using the most sustainable operations possible in all of their work. Since its founding, they have never incorporated the practices followed by larger livestock confinement farms, so there\u2019s little to draw back from in the name of sustainability and animal welfare. Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm operates largely on solar power with very minimal electricity, and the staff typically use one ATV to get places around their property and herd their cattle (although they are currently training their horse, Sugar, to take on a cattle-herding role).<\/p>\n

On the tour, their Murray Grey cows are observed slowly grazing on the natural grasses in a wide open pasture. These cows have never been fed steroids, growth hormones, or antibiotics. The farm chickens lay their eggs in coops that are mobile units easily moved to different areas of the farm, with drains built into them to catch the rainwater for the chickens to drink. The chicken \u201ctractors\u201d often visit the pastures that the cows just left in order to pick at the bugs and scrubs that can hinder the grass from growing.<\/p>\n

Autumn\u2019s Harvest is located in Seneca County, which is in large part farmland and vineyards, and they work closely with New York State\u2019s Agriculture Environmental Management program to continuously improve upon the sustainable aspects of raising their livestock and mitigating any farm runoff into Cayuga Lake.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur farm went from one with erosion issues and multiple bare spots to a lush, vibrant new ecosystem,\u201d according to the Hawses. \u201cSeeing these positive changes to the environment encourages us to farm more efficiently and in ways that are utilizing animals to heal and improve the environment.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Chickens
\u201cThe chickens go in and out of their \u2018tractors\u2019 all day. Some lay their eggs a little later than others. That’s fine for us. No rush.\u201d Tim Haws, co-owner of Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dining Services works with Headwater Food Hub<\/a> of Ontario, New York, to help get top-quality, \u201cfarm-to-school\u201d food products from regional sources to the University, and Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm is one of these top sources. According to Schauf, more than 60 percent of all of the items sold and served on campus are grown, raised, processed, or wholly manufactured within New York State. Eighty-five percent of the protein and seafood served to students is responsibly sourced. It was this past year that Schauf transitioned to Autumn\u2019s Harvest from a sustainable beef supplier in North Carolina, reducing the supply chain from to 700 miles to 60. In doing so, the beef earns an even higher Global Animal Partnership rating (Gap 4 to Gap 5), the delivery dramatically decreases the greenhouse gas emissions associated with transporting food long distances, and the University is able to support the New York state farmers who are trying to do things the sustainable way.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Hawses have created a farming system that goes back to a simplified, sustainable ecosystem approach to raising animals,\u201d said Chris Hartman, founder and president of Headwater Food Hub. \u201cAnd farms like theirs work best when a large institution like the University of Rochester comes in to say \u2018we\u2019d like to stand by the good, positive work being done in the sustainable food system.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm doesn\u2019t operate on the large scale that national livestock farms do, and this smaller and more patient focus helps Sarah and Tim\u2019s operation be everything that industrial-produced meats are not: sustainable, humanely raised, and healthier. \u201cI was actually a vegetarian when I met Tim, just because of everything I knew about the livestock industry and the conditions in which the animals are raised,\u201d said Sarah. \u201cNow we\u2019re here today to give beef and pork consumers a new experience and better way to eat meat, and show that we are committed to a humane way to raise animals.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"group
Student members of Dining Team Green meet Sugar the horse, who is training to take on new cattle-herding responsibilities on the farm.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Dining Services reinforces this commitment by whenever possible purchasing the whole cow as opposed to cuts. With Tony Pignagrande\u2014executive chef of the University\u2019s Harvest Table Culinary Group\u2014and Harvest Table\u2019s<\/a> many recipes, Dining Services can maximize the grass-fed meat through roasts, ribs, steaks, and ground beef, without having to discard a lot. This economical approach to local purchasing embraces a waste-reducing consciousness and gives respect to the life of the animal that nourishes humans.<\/p>\n

Schauf notes that Dining Services partnerships with local food producers represent a $6 million annual investment in New York State. As another example, many of the pork, sausage, and cured meats products served at the University come from Autumn\u2019s Harvest Farm and Hillskine Farm in Rensselaer Falls, New York, also in the Finger Lakes region.<\/p>\n

For more information on University Dining\u2019s Sustainable initiatives, visit https:\/\/dining.rochester.edu\/sustainability\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Schauf named 2019 Individual Winner of Seneca Park Zoo Society Environmental Innovation Award<\/strong><\/h3>\n

On Oct. 30, the Seneca Park Zoo Society<\/a> recognized University Dining Services Director Cam Schauf with its individual Environmental Innovation Award for his commitment to sustainability.<\/p>\n

The Environmental Innovation Awards celebrate leadership in environmental stewardship, raising the profile of innovative companies and people working to solve complex environmental problems in the Rochester and Finger Lakes Region. The winners are leaders from throughout the region who are building a more sustainable future by implementing zero waste practices, leading renewable energy efforts, creating advanced green technology and infrastructure, and driving efforts in conservation education.<\/p>\n