Vision and values

We accept responsibility for the outcomes of our actions and the decisions of our team

• We are a proud Fair Trade Certified campus serving 100% Fair Trade coffee and tea at our retail outlets, as well as other items, including chocolate. This ensures that workers in developing countries are rightfully compensated and their communities are strengthened by our purchases.
• We continually strive for a balanced budget allowing for contributions back to the university to benefit student bursaries and other fundraising needs.
• We offer a food service career destination with living wages, benefits and vacation, reflected in the decades of service that many of our employees choose to work with us.

We believe in reducing our carbon footprint.

• We work closely with the Office of Campus Planning & Sustainability in maintaining and continually improving the sustainability of our operations.
  
  
• Our priorities include:
  • reducing waste
  • promoting reusable mug use on campus
  • increasing the percentage of sustainable Ocean Wise seafood options we offer
  • offering reusable plates/cups/cutlery in catering, retail and residential dining
  • instilling practices that support landfill diversion, such as composting & recycling
  • offering sustainable disposables options like biodegradable straws and containers
  • choosing local suppliers and ingredients whenever possible
    
    
• Some of our sustainable initiatives:
  • discontinued plastic straws in April 2018 and replaced with cornstarch straws
  • discontinued soft plastics (saran wrap) for retail grab and go items in April 2018 and replaced with plastic shells which are 100% recyclable (currently this excludes baked goods due to COVID safety protocols)
  • Removed all single use plastic bottled water from Mystic Market point-of-sale kiosks in September 2019 to reduce availability
  • All end of meal food trays within Mystic Market and The MOD are sorted by our staff to ensure 100% of plastics are diverted to recycling stream versus the landfill and all uneaten food is diverted to composting stream versus the landfill
  • All brewed coffee and tea is $2 (+tax) for customers who bring their own mug at any of our outlets

We are committed to fostering an inclusive environment that inspires trust.

• We provide personalized and timely responses to customer feedback.
• We provide detailed information about our suppliers and the ingredients, allergens and nutrition facts for our products so our customers can make informed decisions and manage their food needs safely and effectively.
• We communicate regularly with staff to ensure their needs are being met and they understand any changes to our operations.

We work together to grow relationships and support our campus.

• We provide affordable food options for our campus community
• We support the campus student Food Bank with food donations and fundraising.
• We support student groups and departments on campus through collaboration on events and providing in-kind donations.
• We strive to enrich our campus with fun, food-forward events like pop-up shops, foodie tricycle visits, residence events and contests.
• We provide food and nutrition education to our students and campus community through cooking classes, lunch & learn information sessions and free, one-on-one counselling services for all students with our registered dietitian.

We prioritize menu offerings made in-house from quality ingredients. 

• We continually increase the number of menu items we produce from scratch.
• We use fresh local ingredients whenever possible.
• We employ a culinary team of professionals who work together to offer healthy menu items at all locations.

We adhere to stringent safety standards and training.

• Rigorous food safety procedures, training and auditing ensure a safe environment our guests can trust.
• We provide food allergy training for all our staff with guidance from Food Allergy Canada. We partner with Campus Security & Student Health to support the Stock-Epinephrine program to keep our food allergic customers safe.
• Food facility inspections are carried out by environmental health officers from Island Health on a regular basis, and are available on their website for public viewing.

We strive to exceed our customer and staff expectations.

• We value input and actively seek feedback from the campus community to ensure we continually improve our customer and staff experience.
• Our standards include:
  • customer engagement through Residence and Retail Dining Advisory Committees
  • an annual satisfaction survey
  • staff training on Service Excellence
  • team-building and recognition events for our staff