Flik Independent School Dining has partnered with 25 of the independent schools it serves to achieve certification by the Green Restaurant Association (GRA). To date, Flik's on-site school foodservice teams have assisted 11 schools in the New York City, Boston and Charlotte metropolitan areas to complete certification and 14 schools ranging from New Hampshire to North Carolina are currently in progress. Three more schools will start the certification process in the 2012-13 year.
“Collaborating with schools to achieve Green Restaurant Certification makes sense on so many levels,” says Flik President Ray Mulligan. “We believe it is our responsibility to be a contributing member of the school communities we serve, and ten years ago we began implementing environmental initiatives as part of this belief. The certification process provides a defined structure for school communities to reduce their carbon footprint and energy fees, and we are proud to help them do it.”
Founded in 1990 with the goal of helping the restaurant industry to reduce its environmental impact by providing tools to encourage sustainability, the GRA is a national non-profit organization that offers a rigorous certification program requiring foodservice operators to meet minimum criteria in seven environmental categories: water efficiency, waste reduction and recycling, sustainable furnishings and building materials, sustainable food, energy, disposables and chemical/pollution reduction.
One of the schools working with Flik is the Ethical Culture Fieldston School in New York City, which this past January received official certification for its three cafeterias as three-star green restaurants by GRA, making it the only Pre-K-12 school in the country to receive this rating, according to Damian Fernandez, the head of the school.
“This achievement is a testament to the school’s commitment to and leadership in living green," he adds. "The award reflects both the conscious decision of the ECFS community to increase sustainability throughout both campuses, and the collaboration between ECFS and Flik Independent School Dining to effect the greening of our foodservice operation.”