Sustainable food

Our catering contractor supports our commitment to providing sustainable food by:

• Following the Food Made Good Scheme from the Sustainable Restaurant Association
• Sourcing locally grown seasonal ingredients
• Procuring sustainably-certified products (Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance and Marine Stewardship Council)  
• Ensuring all its suppliers comply with UK and EU animal welfare standards
• Not using palm oil for cooking
• Purchasing 100% sustainable palm oil products from RSPO (Round Table on Sustainable Palm Oil) accredited suppliers.
• Recycling waste cooking oil through Olleco
• Implementing Olleco's "Wipe Out Waste" initiative, focusing on actions such as preventing food waste through menu planning and finding new uses for items such as coffee grounds.

Our catering contractor (Aramark) achieved 3-star rating in the 2026 Food Made Good Standard across the Kingston University campuses, demonstrating high standards across sourcing, society and environment impacts of our catering outlets.

Organisations and individuals can all reduce greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) and tackle climate change by eating fewer meat and dairy products. We have catering options for vegans, vegetarians and flexitarians as well as for those who simply want to try something new. We offer plant-based milks, such as oat milk, at no additional cost. Food is also carbon labelled to help you choose a more sustainable option.

Our catering contractor is working to reduce single-use items within its operations.

We are rolling out returnable cups at the major food outlets and apply a 25p discount to drinks and food when you use your own re-useable cup or container. When you buy four drinks in a reusable cup we’ll treat you to the fifth one free.

We also use plant-based compostable food service packaging instead of single-use plastic.

Approximately one third of all food goes to waste. In landfill, this waste produces methane – a powerful GHG which is 25 times more damaging to the environment than carbon dioxide.

We have a zero-waste-to-landfill policy in place. All food waste from our operations is diverted from landfill and sent for anaerobic digestion. Here, food is broken down by micro-organisms to create biogas and liquid fertiliser.

We also help tackle food waste at home. By providing microwaves across our campus sites, staff and students can reheat leftovers. Plus, our catering outlets at Penrhyn Road, Knights Park and Kingston Hill advertise discounted left-over food on the app Too Good To Go. 

At our Kingston Hill campus, and as part of our Green Impact Programme, we have an allotment for staff and students to grow their own fruit and vegetables. For further information, contact [email protected].

During term time Kingston Students' Union (KSU) works with Waste to Plate to host a community food hub that distributes surplus food free of charge or low cost to students. The aim is to reduce food waste while supporting students through the cost of living crisis by providing free, accessible options with no barriers or stigma. To find out more, visit the Waste to Plate website.

To help rescue food in your local area, you can also sign up to Too Good To Go and OLIO.