The University of Michigan is pioneering interdisciplinary curriculum and directing programs and partnerships around food, hunger, equity, and environmental impact — for the university community and beyond. U-M organizations are pioneering every stage of sustainable food systems, from the Campus Farm to the M Dining table, and leveraging leading research along the way.
From analyzing the greenhouse gas emissions linked to animal-based foods to studying the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food access, U-M experts are leading efforts to bring forward multidisciplinary, sustainable approaches. Some of our key initiatives in food include: the Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, the Center for Sustainable Systems, the Campus Farm, the U-M Sustainable Food Program, and M Dining. Find U-M experts in sustainability and environmental science, across fields and academic units.
Ajay Varadharajan (MS/MSE ’11) is the creator of GreenSwapp, the “first carbon-neutral grocery store app” that tracks the carbon footprint of the food items you buy, suggests lower-impact products that can reduce your cart’s footprint, and offsets the rest of it to make them carbon-neutral.
Typically, U-M dining halls offer reusable ware for on-site dining. But this semester, all meals will be served in takeout containers, and most of those containers will be fully compostable. These measures aim to reduce dining density while advancing the university’s commitment to composting
Replacing half of all animal-based foods in the U.S. diet with plant-based alternatives could reduce climate-altering greenhouse gas emissions 1.6 billion metric tons by 2030, according to a new study by researchers at U-M and Tulane University.
Part of the U-M President’s Commission on Carbon Neutrality, an analysis team of students and faculty is evaluating U-M’s food system, with an eye toward quantifying and reducing greenhouse gas emissions linked to food production, procurement and waste.
Detroit growers Jerry Hebron, Ashley Atkinson and Naim Edwards and environmental justice advocate Michelle Martinez discuss how climate change directly impacts urban agriculture and environmental issues in Detroit.
While most of the Puerto Rican coffee farms did lose a great deal of shade cover—an average of 37.5% canopy loss—there was “no relationship” between the amount of shade on a farm and damage to its coffee plants, U-M researchers report in a recent study.
